Operational and test performance in the presence of built-in current sensors

The effects of Built-In Current Sensors (BIGS) on I-DDQ measurements as well as on the performance of the circuit under test are considered, Most of the Built-In Current Sensor designs transform the ground terminal of the circuit under test into a Virtual ground. This causes increases in both propagation delay and I-DDQ sampling time with the increase in the number of gates, affecting both test as well as operational performance. The effects that current sensors have on the operational and test performance of a circuit are considered. Circuit partitioning may be used for overcoming the effects of BIGS on I-DDQ measurements as well as on the performance of the circuit under lest.