Keysight Noise Analyzer Adopted by Samsung Foundry

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Keysight Technologies, Inc., a leading technology company that delivers advanced design and validation solutions to help accelerate innovation to connect and secure the world, announced that Samsung Foundry has adopted the Keysight E4727B Advanced Low-Frequency Noise Analyzer (A-LFNA) for measurement and analysis of flicker noise (1/f noise) and random telegraph noise (RTN) in semiconductor devices. Samsung Foundry customers targeting the silicon manufacturer's most advanced technologies will have access to process design kits (PDK) that include the most accurate simulation models, based on A-LFNA data, for design and verification of radio frequency (RF) and analog circuits. 

"Accurate low-frequency noise measurement and modeling are increasingly important in development of PDKs, especially for the advanced technology nodes at 5, 4, and 3 nanometers," said Charles Plott, Director of Product Management for PathWave Software Solutions at Keysight. "Samsung Foundry's use of our A-LFNA enables design engineers with the highest quality PDKs for circuit design to achieve first-pass success and reduce time-to-market."

Keysight E4727B A-LFNA is a turn-key solution that measures the low-frequency noise of semiconductor devices. The PathWave A-LFNA Measurement and Programming software is built on top of the PathWave WaferPro (WaferPro Express) measurement platform. Engineers manage and automate the full wafer-level device characterization workflow in a measurement system that is both flexible and expandable. Next, engineers import the measurement data from the system into Keysight's PathWave Device Modeling (IC-CAP) and PathWave Model Builder (MBP) software to extract device models for PDK development, which ensures highly accurate RF and analog low-noise circuit design and simulation.

Samsung Foundry is the leading semiconductor foundry offering optimized foundry solutions, including state-of-the-art process technology, validated IP, and design service solutions.

"We chose the Keysight E4727B A-LFNA to improve our device measurement quality, efficiency, and scalability after careful technical evaluation," said Hyung Jin Lee, Vice President of Technology at Samsung Foundry. "Keysight's A-LFNA has 100MHz wide frequency bandwidth and enables noise measurements at higher frequencies. The measurement speed of the A-LFNA is also breakneck compared to previous generation systems. Without its speedy automated measurement of on-wafer devices, the characterization process would be an exhausting task. A-LFNA's highly accurate and speedy measurements ensure that our PDKs get to market earlier to accelerate customers' design cycles."