16.1.1 What Is Meant by Test Economics?

In simplistic terms, profitability is the difference between the revenues generated by a company's products and the costs associated with developing, manufacturing, and selling them. The test engineer has direct or indirect influence over the revenues, the development costs, and the manufacturing costs of semiconductor products. In this chapter, we will examine the role of test engineering in each of these areas. The direct and indirect influences of testing and test development on profitability is a subject we will call test economics.

It may not be obvious at first, but test economics is a subject that extends well beyond day-to-day production costs. Of course, we will examine direct testing costs and their obvious effect on overall manufacturing expenses. But we will also examine other less obvious aspects of test economics. For example, the test engineer's debugging skills have a direct and profound effect on time to market and yield enhancement. Both of these factors are of extreme importance to profitability.

In this chapter we will examine the debugging process and attempt to formulate some common sense techniques and ideas that can help the beginning test engineer debug common problems. Finally, we will examine some of the emerging trends that show promise in improving various issues related to test economics. These trends range from software tools that allow more rapid test debug and development to methodology shifts that are changing the very nature of mixed-signal testing.

16.1.2 Time to Market