A delay estimation system estimates a delay of a DUT for an emulation system. The delay estimation system receives logic blocks of the DUT and a combinatorial path connecting one or more of the logic blocks. The system applies a delay model to a feature vector representing the combinatorial path, where the delay model can determine a delay of the combinatorial path. The delay model may be a machine learning model. The system generates a timing graph using the determined delay and provides the timing graph to a compiler to perform placement and routing of the DUT.

A method for automatic detection of a functional primitive in a model of a hardware system, the model being a netlist having cells and net links therebetween, comprising the steps: a) mapping the cells to target nodes, each of which having a target node type, and the net links to edges of a target graph, and mapping the functional primitive to a search pattern having search nodes and connections therebetween; b) selecting candidates from those target nodes the target node types of which match a search node type, and selecting a candidate structure from those selected candidates the target nodes and edges of which match the search nodes and connections of the search pattern; c) reverse-mapping the target nodes and edges of the selected candidate structure to the cells and net links of the netlist; and d) outputting said cells and net links as detected functional primitive.

Disclosed herein are method, system, and storage-medium embodiments for single-pass diagnosis of multiple chain defects in circuit-design testing. Embodiments include processor(s) to select a plurality of a scan chains in a circuit under test and determine presence of at least a first defect in the first scan chain, and a second defect in the first scan chain or in the second scan chain. The plurality of scan chains may include specific scan chains that each have respective pluralities of scan cells. Processor(s) may map the first defect to a first range of first scan cells, and the second defect to a second range of second scan cells. Based at least in part on a failing capture-pattern set, processor(s) may locate the first defect in a first scan cell of the first range, and the second defect in a second scan cell of the first range or the second range.

A method for detecting errors of a first field-programmable gate array (FPGA) program includes: receiving, by a monitoring program executed on a processor connected to an FPGA on which the first FPGA program is executed, a signal value read out from the first FPGA program; and comparing, by the monitoring program executed on the processor, the signal value to a reference value from a source other than the first FPGA program in order to detect errors of the first FPGA program.

A method comprising categorizing nodes of a fabricated circuit as being priority nodes and nodes as being inferior nodes; evaluating a first priority node by automatically designating for verification the first priority node, and ascertaining whether a measured signal from the first priority node meets a pass-fail criterion for the first priority node; evaluating, when the measured signal from the first priority node meets the pass-fail criterion, a second priority node by automatically designating for verification the second priority node, and ascertaining whether a measured signal from the second priority node meets a pass-fail criterion for the second priority node; and evaluating, when the measured signal from the first priority node does not meet the pass-fail criterion, a first inferior node, by automatically designating for verification the first inferior node, and ascertaining whether a measured signal from the first inferior node meets a pass-fail criterion for the first inferior node.

Methods and systems for verifying, via formal verification, a hardware design for a data transformation pipeline comprising one or more data transformation elements that perform a data transformation on one or more inputs, wherein the formal verification is performed under conditions that simplify the data transformations calculations that the formal verification tool has to perform. In one embodiment the hardware design for the data transformation pipeline is verified by replacing one or more of the data transformation elements in the hardware design with a function element which is treated as an unevaluated function of its combinational inputs by a formal verification tool such that during formal verification the function element will produce the same output for the same inputs, and formally verifying that for each transaction of a set of transactions an instantiation of the modified hardware design for the data transformation pipeline produces a set of one or more outputs that matches a reference set of one or more outputs for that transaction.

Described herein are systems, methods, and other techniques for identifying redundant parameters and reducing parameters for testing a device. A set of test values and limits for a set of parameters are received. A set of simulated test values for the set of parameters are determined based on one or more probabilistic representations for the set of parameters. The one or more probabilistic representations are constructed based on the set of test values. A set of cumulative probabilities of passing for the set of parameters are calculated based on the set of simulated test values and the limits. A reduced set of parameters are determined from the set of parameters based on the set of cumulative probabilities of passing. The reduced set of parameters are deployed for testing the device.

Disclosed herein are method, system, and storage-medium embodiments for single-pass diagnosis of multiple chain defects in circuit-design testing. Embodiments include processor(s) to select a plurality of a scan chains in a circuit under test and determine presence of at least a first defect in the first scan chain, and a second defect in the first scan chain or in the second scan chain. The plurality of scan chains may include specific scan chains that each have respective pluralities of scan cells. Processor(s) may map the first defect to a first range of first scan cells, and the second defect to a second range of second scan cells. Based at least in part on a failing capture-pattern set, processor(s) may locate the first defect in a first scan cell of the first range, and the second defect in a second scan cell of the first range or the second range.

An electronic device test database generating method, comprising: (a) acquiring cell layout information of a target electronic device; (b) generating possible defect location information of the target electronic device according to the cell layout information, wherein the possible defect location information comprises at least one possible defect location of the target electronic device; (c) testing the target electronic device according to the possible defect location information to generate a testing result; and (d) generating an electronic device test database according to the testing result.

System analysis by receiving a model of a complex system design. The model includes at least one layer. The analysis includes performing a plurality of simulations of the performance of the layer. The number of simulations is determined according to a number of system components associated with the layer. The analysis further includes determining a worst-case result for a set of simulations from the plurality of simulations and assigning the worst-case result to an overall system simulation.