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technical note
A G R E A T E R M E A S U R E O F C O N F I D E N C E
Improving the Measurement
Speed and Overall Test
Time of the Model
4200-SCS Semiconductor
Characterization System
Introduction
Electronic device test and characterization isn't what it used to be. Whether they're
at work at a giant semiconductor manufacturing plant or a small research facility,
today's engineers are making more complex, high precision measurements than
ever before. Equipped with leading-edge measurement instruments, they use the
best of today's technology to produce the technology of tomorrow. Paradoxically,
unleashing the full power of the modern instruments isn't always that critical.
Quite often, the data is being acquired in higher volumes and with higher accuracy
than necessary. In the realm of high impedance, ultra-low current measurements,
accuracy inevitably comes at the price of time. While it may not be possible to
avoid a compromise between the two, there are plenty of other factors, often over-
looked, that can help boost the overall system performance.
This Tech Note offers users of the Model 4200-SCS Semiconductor Characteriza-
tion System guidance on avoiding the most common pitfalls, achieving better test
speeds, and reducing overall measurement times.
Optimizing the number of measurement points
The most common task performed on a semiconductor parameter analyzer is a
current-voltage (I-V) sweep across a device under test (DUT), resulting in some
device characteristic. A simple linear sweep is programmed by establishing the
start and stop values and the step size (Figure 1). The system then calculates the
(
number of measurement points based on this formula:
Stop Value