Patent · US Expired

System and method for measuring a capacitance associated with an integrated circuit

US6870375B2 · kind B2 · utility

13Cited by
10References
17Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateJul 1, 2002
Grant dateMar 22, 2005
Priority date
Expiry dateOct 2, 2022

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG11C2029/5002
  • WIPO fieldMeasurement
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A method for measuring a capacitance associated with a portion of an integrated circuit is provided that includes coupling a measurement circuit to an integrated circuit. One or more transistors within the integrated circuit are initialized such that a steady-state associated with one or more of the transistors is achieved. A capacitance associated with the portion of the integrated circuit is then measured using the measurement circuit. The portion of the integrated circuit is selectively charged and discharged in response to a voltage potential being applied thereto such that a drain current is generated that serves as a basis for the capacitance measurement.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.