Optimal Self-Testing Embedded Parity Checkers

This paper presents a new simple and straightforward method for designing Self-Testing Embedded (STE) parity checkers. The building block is the two-input XOR gate. During normal, fault-free operation, each XOR gate receives all possible input vectors. The great advantage of the proposed method is that it is the only one that gives, in a simple and straightforward way, optimal STE realizations with respect to the cost (number of XOR gates) and the speed (number of XOR gate levels).