Correlation method of circuit-performance and technology fluctuations for improved design reliability

Abstract-- We propose a method of correlating circuit performance with technology fluctuations during the circuit-design phase. The method employs test circuits sensitive for technology fluctuations and a circuit simulation model which enables to interpret the correlation. We validate our proposal with a cascode-current-source test circuit and the driftdiffusion MOSFET model HiSIM. The chosen test circuit allows to separate intra-chip and inter-chip technology fluctuations and to correlate these fluctuations with circuit-performance fluctuations. One important result is that intra-chip fluctuations increase faster than inter-chip fluctuations with decreasing gate length. Quantitative modeling with HiSIM reveals random fluctuation of the effective gate length as the most likely origin for these findings.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2001
• Where: ASPDAC
• Authors: D. Miyawaki, Shizunori Matsumoto, Hans Jürgen Mattausch, S. Ooshiro, Masami Suetake, Michiko Miura-Mattausch, Shigetaka Kumashiro, Tetsuya Yamaguchi, Kyoji Yamashita, Noriaki Nakayama
• Keywords: ASPDAC 2001, Fluctuation, Hardware, Technology Fluctuations, Test Circuit