Milestones of New-Generation ATE

Work began in 1976 to produce an accurate, high-speed, multipin tester in the 100-MHz range. Takeda Riken shipped the first such device, the 100 MHz, 384-pin, split I/O Advantest T3380, in early 1979. Although it offered speed and accuracy, the T3380 series was expensive, and it was later determined that the 40-MHz range was more practical and cost-effective for general use. This article describes the T3340 and T3341 testers developed to meet those needs. The T3340 provides signal integrity and a highfidelity DUT-to-tester interface, accurate timing, and innovative architecture to meet modem VLSI circuit testing requirements. Delivery of the T3341 began this year; this improved version has extended timing edges, advanced failure analysis capability, and a standard algorithmic pattern generator for testing memory-embedded generic gate arrays.