Reliability Analysis of Logic Circuits

An efficient algorithm is presented for computing the reliability matrix of a logic network whose components are characterized by a known probability of malfunctioning. Using the concept of path sensitizing, a graphical representation of error propagation is derived. Through the computation of Boolean path functions, the information provided by these graphs is put into a malfunction table from which the matrix entries are directly computed. The method not only offers computational efficiency but also provides further physical insight into the reliability problem.