APPARATUS OF COMPRESSION AND DECOMPRESSION OF PATTERN DATA FOR SEMICONDUCTOR TEST SYSTEM

摘要

PURPOSE: A compression and decompression apparatus is provided to reduce data transmission by transmitting test pattern data from a storing device of a host computer to a pattern memory of a semiconductor test system for testing a semiconductor device. CONSTITUTION: A compression and decompression apparatus includes the following units. A compression unit classifies vector data of test pattern data into a first group for compressing the same into short codes and a second group for not compressing the same, and generates a lookup table representing the relation between the short codes and the vector data of the first group. A compressed test pattern file stores a compressed test pattern containing the data vector of the second group and the lookup table. A hardware decompression circuit decompresses the compressed test pattern base on the relation represented in the short codes and the lookup table, and transmits the decompressed test pattern to a pattern memory of a semiconductor test system.