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US 5,691,652 AGranted
Completion detection as a means for improving alpha soft-error resistance
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Company
InventorsRobert H. Miller, Jr., John R. Spencer
Life of this patent
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AssigneeHewlett-Packard Company
InventorsRobert H. Miller, Jr., John R. Spencer
Estimating the term…
A system and method for improving alpha-particle induced soft error rates in integrated circuits is provided. Logic isolation circuits implemented using a substantially fewer number of pn-junctions are situated at the outputs of fast logic portions containing a substantially greater number of pn-junctions. The present invention reduces the vulnerability of a dynamic logic circuit of incurring alpha soft errors by effectively trading the probability of an isolation circuit composed of only a few pn-junctions incurring alpha-particle strikes with the probability of a fast logic circuit having substantially more pn-junctions incurring alpha-particle strikes. By reducing the number of pn-junctions susceptible to alpha-particle strikes, the present invention significantly lowers the potential alpha-particle induced soft error rate. In one embodiment, isolation circuits used in the present invention are implemented using self-timed logic, to reduce the window in which a circuit is logically vulnerable to alpha strikes, in which a loss of state can occur.
A dynamic logic circuit having improved alpha soft-error resistance, comprising
A dynamic logic isolation circuit, directed for use in a dynamic logic circuit having fast logic portions and slow logic portions, for improving alpha soft-error resistance, comprising:
A method for improving alpha soft-error resistance in a dynamic logic circuit, the dynamic logic circuit having a plurality of fast logic portions and a plurality of slow logic portions, the method comprising the steps of:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.