FREMONT, Calif., Sept. 9, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Aehr Test Systems (Nasdaq:AEHR), a worldwide supplier of semiconductor test and burn-in equipment, today announced at the International Test Conference (ITC) that it has received $2 million in production orders for its burn-in and test systems from a leading manufacturer of advanced logic integrated circuits (ICs) for automotive, embedded processing, digital signal processing and analog applications. The orders include down payments to lock in delivery slots and volume pricing discounts. Shipments of these systems are scheduled to be completed by the third quarter of Aehr Test’s fiscal 2014.

The orders are for multiple Advanced Burn-in and Test Systems (ABTS^TM) and Engineering Workstations. Two configurations of the ABTS system were ordered. The first configuration features a low-cost high-volume configuration targeted at production test and burn-in of lower-power devices, and offers compatibility with the customer’s extensive inventory of burn-inboards for our previous MAX™ family of test and burn-in systems. The second configuration features individual device temperature control for improved thermal control of higher-power devices, which is needed for sophisticated processors fabricated with state-of-the-art processes.

“We are pleased to receive these orders for additional production test and burn-in systems, as it is an indication of our customer’s success in the growing market for automotive and embedded applications,” said Carl Buck, vice president of marketing at Aehr Test Systems. “The Engineering Workstations  will give the customer’s engineers the ability to develop programs efficiently and cost-effectively in their engineering labs at several development locations.”

Aehr is showcasing its latest solutions for highly parallel testing of devices that incorporate Design-for-Test (DFT) or Built-In Self-Test (BIST) capabilities at ITC in Anaheim, CA. The exhibits are open Tuesday through Thursday, September 10-12.

The Aehr Test solutions all have the capability to test a large number of devices in parallel in a single system. Combined with devices which utilize BIST or DFT, they show their greatest benefit when test times are long, which is common in today’s memories and processors. The ABTS system performs highly parallel testing of packaged parts. The FOX^TM-1 system performs sort testing of all the devices on a wafer in a single touchdown. The FOX-15 system combines these concepts and can perform wafer sort testing, flash cycling, or wafer-level burn-in on 15 wafers in a single load, dramatically decreasing the number of testers that would normally be required for these functions.

The ABTS family of packaged-part test and burn-in systems features a new tester-per-pin hardware and software architecture. It can test and burn-in both logic and memory devices, including resources for high pin-count devices and configurations for higher-power and lower-power applications. The ABTS system can be configured with up to 72 burn-in boards with up to 320 I/O channels each and 32M of test vector memory per channel. The ABTS system is optimized for use with the Sensata iSocket* Thermal Management Technology, which provides a scalable cost-effective solution using individual device temperature control for ICs up to 75 watts or more.

The FOX-1 full wafer parallel test system has the capability to test thousands of die in a single touchdown, thus providing a cost-effective solution for devices with long test times such as flash and microcontrollers with embedded flash. Differentiating itself from typical testers, the FOX-1 contains a high ratio of power supplies to I/O channels, enabling the testing of thousands of die per wafer in a single touchdown.

The FOX-15 Test and Burn-in System contains probe cards and test electronics for up to 15 wafers in parallel for test applications such as automotive ICs, flash memory, DRAMs, sensors and VCSELs (laser diodes). The FOX-15 system can also perform burn-in at the wafer level so that Known Good Die (KGD) can be produced for stacked die and through silicon via (TSV) applications.

*iSocket is a trademark of Sensata Technologies, Inc.

About Aehr Test Systems

Headquartered in Fremont, California, Aehr Test Systems is a worldwide provider of test systems for burning-in and testing logic and memory integrated circuits and has an installed base of more than 2,500 systems worldwide. Increased quality and reliability needs of the Automotive and Mobility integrated circuit markets are driving additional test requirements, capacity needs and opportunities for Aehr Test products in package and wafer level test.  Aehr Test has developed and introduced several innovative products, including the ABTS and FOX families of test and burn-in systems and the DiePak® carrier. The ABTS system is used in production and qualification testing of packaged parts for both lower-power and higher-power logic as well as all common types of memory devices. The FOX system is a full wafer contact test and burn-in system used for burn-in and functional test of complex devices, such as leading-edge memories, digital signal processors, microprocessors, microcontrollers and systems-on-a-chip. The DiePak carrier is a reusable, temporary package that enables IC manufacturers to perform cost-effective final test and burn-in of bare die. For more information, please visit Aehr Test’s website at www.aehr.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on information available to Aehr Test as of the date hereof and actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied due to risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding expected shipping dates of our ABTS systems. The risks and uncertainties that could cause our results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, general world economic conditions and events, the state of the semiconductor equipment market, our ability to maintain sufficient cash to support operations, acceptance by customers of the ABTS technology, acceptance by customers of the ABTS systems shipped upon receipt of a purchase order and the ability of new products to meet customer needs or perform as described.  See Aehr Test’s recent 10-K and other reports from time to time filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a more detailed description of the risks facing our business. Aehr Test disclaims any obligation to update information contained in any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.

Contacts:
Aehr Test Systems Vernon Rogers EVP Sales and Marketing (510) 623-9400 x215 vrogers@aehr.com	MKR Investor Relations Inc. Todd Kehrli or Jim Byers Analyst/Investor Contact (213) 277-5550 aehr@mkr-group.com