Impact of screening of latent defects at electrical test on the yield-reliability relation and application to burn-in elimination

This paper addresses the question of under what conditions burn-in can be eliminated. Based on data of more than 30 million sold devices, the effect of screening of latent defects at electrical test on product reliability has been investigated. The results are combined with the yield-reliability relation and an experimentally determined failure rate time evolution, yielding a model that allows determination of the sense or nonsense of burn-in or screens at electrical test quantitatively. The model predictions are in good agreement with experimental data. Furthermore, for typical operating conditions, high yielding batches show a better long term reliability than low yielding batches even if the latter have been subjected to burn-in. It is also shown that voltage stresses, distribution tests and IDDQ screens can be good alternatives to burn-in.