Keithley Considers Ultra-Fast I-V Applications

Keithley Instruments has created an interactive applications overview, entitled 'Ultra-Fast I-V Applications'. The overview provides instruction and insight into a variety of semiconductor measurement applications that require ultra-fast I-V measurements, and it can be viewed online at the company's website. Ultra-fast I-V sourcing and measurement have become increasingly important capabilities for many semiconductor technologies.

Using pulsed I-V signals to characterise devices rather than DC signals makes it possible to study or eliminate the effects of self-heating (joule heating) or to minimise current drifting in measurements due to trapped charge. The applications overview includes sections on integrated high-speed sourcing and measurement; a discussion of voltage, current, and timing parameter ranges; a description of the built-in interactive software provided in Keithley's ultra-fast I-V test solution; and a detailed discussion of ultra-fast I-V applications.

Built-in links provide easy navigation, and many of the schematics and other diagrams enlarge automatically when scrolled over to allow easier reading. Ultra-fast I-V testing is appropriate for a growing range of semiconductor test applications, including: CMOS device characterisation (charge pumping, self-heating, and charge trapping); NBTI and PBTI characterisation, modelling, and monitoring; testing non-volatile memory devices such as PCRAMs; testing of compound semiconductor devices and materials (laser diodes and thermal impedance measurements); and characterisation of nanotechnology, MEMS devices, and solar cells.