dft interview questions

DFT Engineer Interview Questions

What techniques do you use to reduce pattern count without losing coverage?

Interviewers typically ask this role-specific question to gauge how you might react in a similar scenario at work. This question may also help them gauge your knowledge on the subject and your level of skill. When answering this question, provide a brief explanation of the process you use.

Example: “Different ATPG tools offer different compression and pattern ordering techniques to help reduce pattern count. The first step is chain balancing during Stitching or scan insertion. If I balance my chains, Tool needs to insert fewer dummy patterns for reaching a required flop. I can also include compression on the chains where there are constraints on the pins of the device. This means if I have a compression factor of two, then my one scan chain divides into two inside the device. This reduces the chain length.”

In-depth questions

In-depth questions related directly to the role for which youre interviewing. Interviewers typically ask these complex questions to test your extensive knowledge about DFT-related tasks and scenarios. Questions may include scenario-based questions or require you to recite specific concepts and actions. Heres a list of sample in-depth questions:

  • Explain DFT methods.
  • What are some DRC violations youve faced during Scan Insertion, and how did you fix them?
  • Whats the difference between flops and scan flops?
  • What are some important factors you evaluate before initiating a new project?
  • Whats metastability, and do you know its physical significance?
  • What types of technical resources do you require for completing DFT tasks?
  • If you have simulations failures, what things would you analyze to fix the issue?
  • What do you think is the best method for training new DFT engineers?
  • Are you comfortable using the technology we use at this organization?
  • Explain the role of design for testability in the product lifecycle.
  • Whats fault collapsing?
  • Draw a D-flipflop along with a timing diagram.
  • Whats test point insertion? Can you explain a test point insertion scenario?
  • What are controllability and observability?
  • Why dont we connect the capture flops clock to the lockup latch?
  • Whats the significance of the pause state of TAP state machine?
  • Write the setup slack equation.
  • General DFT interview questions

    Interviewers usually ask general questions to learn about your work ethic and your personality. These questions may also help the interviewer evaluate whether youd fit into the company work culture. Consider these general questions while preparing for your DFT interview:

  • Tell me about yourself.
  • What are your salary expectations?
  • What are your greatest strengths?
  • Tell me about a time youve faced a challenge at work. What did you do to overcome it?
  • Why are you leaving your current job?
  • What can you bring to this company?
  • What are you looking for in a new position?
  • What are your career goals? How do you plan to achieve them?
  • What should I know about you that isnt on your resume?
  • Do you have any questions for me?
  • Do you prefer to work alone or on a team?
  • What do you know about our organization?
  • What sets you apart from other candidates?
  • How do you stay up-to-date with technical industry knowledge?
  • Interviews for Top Jobs at NVIDIA

    DFT Engineer Interview

    Application

    I applied online. The process took 1 week. I interviewed at NVIDIA (San Jose, CA)

    Interview

    Started with telephonic discussion. After telephonic interview tool 3-4 days to get one-on-one interview call. There were 4 interview rounds. Most questions were based onDFT concepts. Few aptitude questions were asked. Difficulty level of interview question was medium. Make sure you referesh all the DFT concepts before interview

    DFT Engineer Interview

    Application

    I applied online. I interviewed at NVIDIA in Oct 2020

    Interview

    three-question one logical and two bout logic circuits.at the start, they introduce the company and then they talked about the position itself. after that I talked about myself and in the end, they asked me the questions.the interview took about 2-hours from the start to the end.

    Interview Questions

    • you got a part which receives two numbers and has two outputs, max of the two numbers and the min of the two numbers. create from that part a circuit which sort 4 numbers from smallest to largest

    How to prepare for the Verilog Interviews?

    The trainee who really wants to clear Verilog interviews needs to have the following skill-sets:

    Verilog HDL trained in RTL & Test bench.

  • The trainee has to try multiple digital designs and write RTL & TB for the same, followed by simulation and debugging.
  • The trainee should also do synthesis to understand the logical components inferred post synthesis.
  • The trainee should have hands-on experience with waveform analysis.
  • The trainee needs to use proper relevant technical terms during the interviews i.e. “A change in a signal has caused the process to run” is not that technically accurate rather “An event on a signal has triggered the process”
  • What is expected from the Verilog Interviews?

    The interviewer checks your RTL coding skills, Simulation debugging skills.

    They also expect you to write synthesizable code and be aware of the design implementation process i.e. from RTL design to Netlist for front end design and from RTL design to .bit file generation for FPGA design.

    Here we provide some useful Verilog interview questions and answers which will help you with the preparation for Verilog interviews from an industry perspective.

    9) What do you mean by clock skew? 10) Is Hold time dependent on clock frequency? 11) Is clock skew an advantage or not? 12) Current technology node used in industry? 13) Is set up time-dependent on clock frequency? 14) Why do you need a reset in flip flop? 15) What is the multicycle path? 16) Any tools for DFT?

    FAQ

    What is scan insertion in DFT?

    • Physical Design.
    • Design for testability (DFT)
    • Custom/Analog layout.
    • Physical verification.
    • FPGA system design.
    • Embedded systems.

    What is DFT VLSI?

    Scan Insertion: Tool Objective. SCAN is a DFT design technique used in IC Design to increase the overall testability of a circuit. SCAN insertion architecture helps to test each of the logic elements in the IC irrespective of its position by inserting test vectors to device pins.

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