Table of Contents

Overview

The Semiconductor Test Library includes the following high-level features:

  • Interfaces and classes—Abstract instrument sessions and encapsulate the necessary pin and site awareness.
  • Pin- and site-aware data types— Simplify instrument configuration and measurement results processing.
  • Parallelization methods—Abstract parallel for loops required to iterate over multiple instrument sessions regardless of how sessions map to pins or sites.
  • Publishing methods—Simplify results publishing and add support for the SiteData and PinSiteData types.
  • Utilities methods—Provide utility methods commonly required for writing test code.
  • Extension methods—Abstract common, high-level instrument operations.
  • TestStand step methods—Perform common operations, such as setting up and closing instruments, powering up a DUT, or executing common tests.

Architecture

The following diagram illustrates a high-level overview of the Semiconductor Test Library:

flowchart TD
subgraph TestStandSteps ["TestStandSteps"]
    CommonSteps
    SetupAndCleanupSteps
 end

 subgraph Abstractions ["Abstractions"]
    Common
    DataAbstraction
    InstrumentAbstraction
 end

 subgraph Extensions ["Extensions"]
    DAQmx
    DCPower
    Digital
    DMM
    Relay
    Types
 end

 TestStandSteps-->Extensions
 TestStandSteps-->Abstractions
 Extensions-->Abstractions
 Common -.-> DataAbstraction
 InstrumentAbstraction -.-> DataAbstraction
 InstrumentAbstraction <-.-> Common

The Semiconductor Test Library is compiled into the following .NET assemblies:

Assembly Description
NationalInstruments.SemiconductorTestLibrary.Abstractions.dll Abstractions for pin- and site-aware data types, instrument sessions management, as well as parallelization, publishing, and core utilities.
NationalInstruments.SemiconductorTestLibrary.Extensions.dll Extensions for common, high-level instrument operations built using the abstractions.
NationalInstruments.SemiconductorTestLibrary.TestStandSteps.dll Step methods used by TestStand. A test sequence references this assembly when you drag and drop step types in TestStand.

The Abstractions and Extensions assemblies are combined into a single NuGet package that can be referenced by a test program.

Note

The source code for the Extensions and TestStandSteps is publicly available on the GitHub (semi-test-library-dotnet).

Installation

As of STS Software 24.5, the Semiconductor Test Library is included as a component of the STS Software bundle. The NuGet package is included as part of the NI Default - C#/.NET template used by the STS Project Creation Tool.

Note

The Abstractions & Extensions assemblies are installed in the following directory to be referenced by other STS Software components: C:\Program Files\National Instruments\Shared\NI_SemiconductorTestLibrary. However, a test program should reference the NuGet package instead of the installed assembly files.

Using the NuGet package allows test programs to use the latest version of Semiconductor Test Library without upgrading the STS Software. Refer to NuGet Package Management For STS Projects for more details.

Additionally, the TestStandSteps assembly is installed in the following TestStand directory: C:\Program Files\National Instruments\TestStand <version>\Components\StepTypes\NI_SemiconductorTestSteps\NationalInstruments.SemiconductorTestLibrary.TestStandSteps.dll. TestStand will reference this assembly for Step Types that can be found in TestStand Insertion Palette.

Note

Refer to Using TestStand Steps for more information.

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