Improving hot-electron reliability through circuit analysis and design

On-chip hot-electron test/stress structures have been developed. These structures provide insight into device degradation under real circuit operation. This makes it possible to accurately predict device lifetime in a specific circuit application. A methodology leading to novel hot-electron design guidelines is proposed based on the device operating conditions and its susceptibility to hot-electron effects. By following these guidelines, circuit reliability can be improved without adversely affecting circuits performance. The correlation between device and circuit degradation has been obtained through subcircuit analysis and simulation. As a result, hot-electron circuit lifetime can be used as one of the design parameters to insure long term reliability of the circuit. An example of reliability through design is given.<>