Infrared Lock-In Thermography: From Localization of Low Power and Masked Defects to Absolute Temperature Mapping for Product Debug

The application of IR-Lock-In Thermography (IRLIT) has been extended from 2D and 3D package fault isolation to on-die level analysis. In addition, the technique has become more sensitive allowing for detection of much lower dissipated power. In this paper, several fault localization cases covering PCB assemblies down to die level analysis are discussed using IR-LIT and absolute temperature mapping. Where possible, the analysis is complemented with physical defect verification. The fault isolation cases include an ultra-low power dissipation (<150 nW) and several case studies with high ohmic connections. For the latter a new method based on phase mapping is discussed allowing for 2D localization of thermally invisible defects. The method will be demonstrated on a test vehicle where phase data extracted from a visible feature of the device under test is studied. After this, a case study at die level is presented in an attempt to distinguish the phase information from two stacked M2-M3 metallization layers of the Back-End Of the Line (BEOL). Finally, temperature mapping results of a 5 micron wide aluminum feature in silicon-oxide is presented that is pushing the optical resolution of the tool.