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2018
Presentation
Titel
TCAD-fitted ESD modelling using equivalent circuit elements
Titel Supplements
Presentation held at International Electrostatic Discharge Workshop 2018, Priorij Corsendonk, Belgium
Abstract
Electrostatic discharge (ESD) can be considered as one of the main reliability risks of modern electronic systems and causes failure of semiconductor devices by an over current effect. In case of an ESD event the avalanche breakdown leads to a negative differential resistance and possibly to strongly localized current filamentation. Because of strong self-heating in a very localized spot this current filament causes damage due to gate oxide or junction breakdown. The self-heating then leads to a translational movement which extenuates the problem to some extent. To predict the effectiveness of an ESD protection solution on IC level, it can be desirable to include those effects in a nominal circuit simulation. Today, this non-linear electro-thermal problem is mostly solved by a physics-based device simulator such as TCAD (Technology Computer Aided Design). TCAD gives very accurate results, but has an intolerable runtime for a high amount of devices. To improve the performance and to enable a fast optimization process during the design phase of a protection structure, we suggest a physics-based compact model capturing the relevant effects such as self-heating, avalanche multiplication and filament motion occurring under ESD load. The major advantage is the possibility to include the model into a circuit simulation and verify IC protection solutions already during the design phase.