Failures caused by supply fluctuations during system-level ESD

It is necessary to design robust electronic systems against system-level electrostatic discharge (ESD). In additional to withstanding ESD without hard failures (permanent damage), it is important that the system is robust against soft failures (recoverable loss of function or data), which can be caused by ESD-induced noise on signal inputs and power nets. Besides radiation, the current injection into the circuit alone can cause these disturbances, especially the sharp current spike of a high amplitude in system-level ESD. The waveform of this current is similar in various ESD test setups. Circuit models with distributed elements enable accurate modeling of the system-level ESD current in contact discharge. Experiments have shown that ESD-induced noise on signal traces starts to disturb the IO input at very low ESD levels, and the effectiveness of the transient voltage suppressor (TVS) on board is limited. The noise on supply is global to integrated circuit (IC), as it travels across all the power domains. The waveform of the noise depends on the polarity of the ESD current and the type of ESD protection. The experiments have shown that the supply fluctuation can be quite severe, as a strong reverse of the on-chip supply is indicated by monitor circuits starting from the ESD levels below the common required passing level. This poses a requirement of a minimum amount of on-chip decoupling capacitances (decaps) to limit the amplitude of supply fluctuations. This requirement is similar whether the supply voltage is generated on-chip or off-chip, as long as a large amount of off-chip decap is used and connected to the board ground. If the supply voltage is generated on-chip, the regulator needs to be carefully designed against ESD induced noise. In addition, the rail clamp, if not optimized, deteriorates the power integrity with its instability. The ESD-induced supply fluctuation may cause latch-up without careful attention to the well-bias scheme.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Electrical & Computer Engr

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2018

Author dc:creator

• Xiu, Yang

Contributors dc:contributor

• Rosenbaum, Elyse
• Schutt-Ainé, José E.
• Hanumolu, Pavan Kumar
• Gong, Songbin

• System-level ESD
• supply noise
• IEC 61000-4-2

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2018 Yang Xiu

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/100889

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/100889