2.1.1 Purpose of a Data Sheet

Beginning test engineers often spend a great deal of time learning how to generate test plans for mixed-signal devices. A test plan is a written list of tests and test procedures that will be used to verify the quality of a particular device under test (DUT). The definition of a production test plan usually begins with a device data sheet or specification sheet, as it is often called. Unfortunately, the data sheet does not directly translate into a finite list of all required production tests. For example, a low-pass filter ripple specification of 1.0 dB states that gain variation is guaranteed at each and every frequency in the passband of the filter. Of course, semiconductor manufacturers do not test every possible frequency in production. Test plan generation sometimes seems like more of an art than a science, especially when one tries to define exactly how a data sheet is translated into a test plan. Before exploring the art and science of mixed-signal test plan generation, let us look at the function and structure of a data sheet in detail.

The data sheet serves many purposes. When development of a new device begins, the data sheet serves as the design specification. Design engineers refer to the data sheet as a blueprint to make sure they design the functions that the marketing and systems engineering organizations have specified. As the project progresses, the test and product engineers refer to the...