This book is a definitive guide to improving yield and reliability in the modern semiconductor industry. Blending academic research with industrial expertise, it unveils the innovative Build-In Reliability (BIR) platform.

The book consists of 20 chapters, organized into four technical parts, deep diving into operational excellence and future perspectives. It emphasizes BIR’s core components—Wafer-Level Reliability (WLR) and the AI-enhanced Build-In Reliability Diagnosis System (BIRDS), a knowledge-based tool designed to enable early detection of non-conformance.

Part I introduces the BIR framework. Subsequent parts address completeness and timeliness, which are essential for establishing robust systems to enhance yield and reliability. Part IV discusses emerging trends, including 3D packaging technologies (e.g., CoWoS), neural network-driven reliability predictions, Prognostic Health Management (PHM) for predictive maintenance, and the strategic importance of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and globalization in overcoming industry challenges.

This book covers a wide range of topics, including logic devices, volatile and non-volatile memory tests, laboratory management, tool design, integrated circuit (IC) qualification, supplier and consumables management, statistical process control (SPC), and a novel multi-level quality and reliability training and certification framework. It also addresses the development of exceptionally reliable automotive chips, system-level lean methodologies, and optimization strategies, with a focus on yield-reliability and performance-cost trade-offs for value engineering.

Complex concepts are elucidated through 50 real-world case studies, derived from decades of industry experience. These case studies emphasize root cause analysis, timely corrective actions, and innovative methodologies. Vivid figures, flowcharts, and tables are used extensively to enhance clarity and minimize reliance on complex mathematics. Each part concludes with 20 key takeaways to reinforce core insights.

An indispensable resource for practitioners, researchers, and students, this book provides actionable strategies and advanced solutions for semiconductor manufacturing. It is the only comprehensive guide available today to bridge advanced academic research with real-world industrial applications in nanoelectronics manufacturing.

Dr. Wei-Ting Kary Chien has held positions with Intel, TSMC, STMicroelectronics, SMIC, and Centrillion Technologies as Q&R Head, Director/VP (Q&R), and General Manager in charge of technologies from IDM to Foundries, memory bio-chip, logic, and MEMS, managing quality and reliability of electronics from 2um to 2nm technologies. He has also served as an Adjunct Professor of Electrical Engineering at City University of Hong Kong as well as Electrical Engineering at Shanghai Jiaotong University.  

Dr. Chien has co-authored two technical books and holds more than 80 patents in US, Taiwan, and China. An IEEE Fellow, he has provided services to professional societies and technical journals in various capacities.

Dr. Way Kuo is a Senior Fellow of Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study, Emeritus President and University Distinguished Professor at City University of Hong Kong. He has held the endowed Wisenbaker Chair of Engineering in Innovation at Texas A&M University and served on the senior management team of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. A pioneer in designing reliability for electronics systems at the infant stage, he has been employed by Bell Labs and as a reliability consultant for IBM, TI, Motorola, and other high-tech companies.

Dr. Kuo is a member of National Academy of Engineering and an IEEE Life Fellow. He has served as the Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Transactions on Reliability from 1999 to 2015.