Counterfeit Detection

In the last decade, the global semiconductor industry has seen a sharp rise in the volume of counterfeit semiconductors. The authenticity of a product can be lost in a long supply chain of many stages. Many companies will end up paying full price for a product of minimal functioning quality. The Semiconductor Industry Association has estimated that this problem causes as much as billions of dollars in losses to the industry every year. The major risk is a critical system failure due to a malfunctioning circuit component. Depending on the application the consequence could range from a simple shorted circuit to an economic or life-threatening disaster.

The challenge of verifying the true manufacturer comes from the integrated circuit packaging process. The original manufacturer will often stamp the die itself with a barcode or a logo, before sealing the package with the plastic epoxy. A visual inspection is often necessary to ensure that the internal circuitry is correctly wired or that the manufacturer identifier exists. By using an RKD Engineering decapsulator, the quality of the die is maintained while the tough plastic is etched away. This leaves the die and bond wires perfectly exposed, so that the analyst can easily verify the authenticity of the product.

Read the Semiconductor Industry Association's white paper on anti-counterfeiting and the risk of IP theft in the industry.