Process Variations and their Impact on Circuit Operation

The statistical variations in electrical parameters, such as transistor gain factors and interconnect resistances, due to variations in the manufacturing process are studied using data obtained from a 0.8 m CMOS process. The impact of these variations and correlations on circuit operation is illustrated. Examples show that circuit delay can increase from the mean by about 100 due to crosstalk e ects aggravated by process variations. Case studies emphasize the need for a tighter coupling between fabrication and circuit design and the need for new design corners based on process information.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 1998
• Where: DFT
• Authors: Suriyaprakash Natarajan, Melvin A. Breuer, Sandeep K. Gupta
• Keywords: DFT 1998, Process Variations, Statistical Variations, Transistor Gain Factors, VLSI