Design Of High Speed Sige Hbt Bicmos Circuits For Extreme Environment Applications

The objective of this work is to investigate the suitability of applying silicon-germanium (SiGe) heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) bipolar complementary metal oxide semiconductor (BiCMOS) technology to extreme environments and to design high-speed circuits in this technology to demonstrate their reliable operation under these conditions. This research focuses on exploring techniques for hardening SiGe HBT digital logic for single event upset (SEU) based on principles of radiation hardening by design (RHBD) as well as on the cryogenic characterization of SiGe HBTs and designing broadband amplifiers for operation at cryogenic temperatures. Representative circuits ranging from shift registers featuring multiple architectures to broadband analog circuits have been implemented in various generations of this technology to enable this effort.

SiGe HBT BiCMOS technology is the obvious groundbreaker of the Si heterostructures application space. To date virtually every major player in the communications electronics market either has SiGe up and running in-house or is using someone else’s SiGe fab as foundry for their designers. Key to this success lies in successful integration of the SiGe HBT and Si CMOS, with no loss of performance from either device. Filled with contributions from leading experts, Fabrication of SiGe HBT BiCMOS Technologies brings together a complete discussion of these topics into a single resource. Drawn from the comprehensive and well-reviewed Silicon Heterostructure Handbook, this volume examines the design, fabrication, and application of silicon heterostructure transistors. A novel aspect of this book the inclusion of numerous snapshot views of the industrial state-of-the-art for SiGe HBT BiCMOS technology. It has been carefully designed to provide a useful basis of comparison for the current status and future course of the global industry. In addition to the copious technical material and the numerous references contained in each chapter, the book includes easy-to-reference appendices on the properties of Si and Ge, the generalized Moll-Ross relations, integral charge-control relations, and sample SiGe HBT compact model parameters.

Operation of SiGe BiCMOS Technology Under Extreme Environments Tianbing Chen 96 pages Directed by Dr. John D. Cressler "Extreme environment electronics" represents an important niche market and spans the operation of electronic components in surroundings lying outside the domain of conventional commercial, or even military specifications. Such extreme environments would include, for instance, operation to very low temperatures (e.g., to 77 K or even 4.2 K), operation to very high temperatures (e.g., to 200 C or even 300 C), and operation in a radiation-rich environment (e.g., space). The suitability of SiGe BiCMOS technology for extreme environment electronics applications is assessed in this work. The suitability of SiGe HBTs for use in high-temperature electronics applications is first investigated. SiGe HBTs are shown to exhibit sufficient current gain, frequency response, breakdown voltage, achieve acceptable device reliability, and improved low-frequency noise, at temperatures as high as 200-300 C.A comprehensive investigation of substrate bias effects on device performance, thermal properties, and reliability of vertical SiGe HBTs fabricated on CMOS-compatible, thin-film SOI, is presented. The impact of 63 MeV protons on these vertical SiGe HBTs fabricated on a CMOS-compatible SOI is then investigated. Proton irradiation creates G/R trap centers in SOI SiGe HBTs, creating positive charge at the buried oxide interface, effectively delaying the onset of the Kirk effect at high current density, which increases the frequency response of SOI SiGe HBTs following radiation. The thermodynamic stability of device-relevant epitaxial SiGe strained layers under proton irradiation is also investigated using x-ray diffraction techniques. Irradiation with 63 MeV protons is found to introduce no significant microdefects into the SiGe thin films, regardless of the starting stability condition of the SiGe film, and thus does not appear to be an issue for the use of SiGe HBT technology in emerging space systems. CMOS device reliability for emerging cryogenic space electronics applications is also assessed. CMOS device performance improves with cooling, however, CMOS device reliability becomes worse at decreased temperatures due to aggravated hot-carrier effects. The device lifetime is found to be a strong function of gate length, suggesting that design tradeoffs are inevitable.

The objective of this work was to design high-speed circuits using silicon-germanium (SiGe) heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) and complementary SiGe (C-SiGe) HBTs, as well as silicon (Si) complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) devices, for next-generation ultra-wideband (UWB) transceivers. The advantages of using UWB systems over conventional narrowband transceivers include their lower power requirements, higher data rate, more efficient spectrum usage, precise positioning capability, lower complexity, and lower cost. The two major components in a UWB transceiver IC are the radio frequency (RF) circuit and the analog-to-digital converter (ADC). In this work, circuit-level solutions to improve the speed and performance of critical building blocks in both the RF front-end and the ADC are presented. Device-related issues affecting SiGe HBTs for potential applications in UWB systems intended for use in extreme environments will also be investigated. This research envisions to realize various circuit blocks in a UWB transceiver including, a 3-10 GHz UWB low noise amplifiers (LNAs) in both the second (120 GHz) and third (200 GHz) SiGe technologies, an 8-bit 12 GSample/sec SiGe BiCMOS track-and-hold amplifier (THA), and a fifth order elliptic gm-c low-pass filter in C-SiGe HBT technology. This research will also focus on characterizing SiGe HBTs for UWB electronics for operation in extreme environments by investigating the proton radiation effects in the third generation SiGe HBTs.

This thesis describes the architecture, verification, qualification, and packaging of a 16-channel silicon-germanium (SiGe) Remote Electronics Unit (REU) designed for use in extreme environment applications encountered on NASA's exploration roadmap. The SiGe REU was targeted for operation outside the protective electronic "vaults" in a lunar environment that exhibits cyclic temperature swings from -180o.C to 120o.C, a total ionizing dose (TID) radiation level of 100 krad, and heavy ion exposure (single event effects) over the mission lifetime. The REU leverages SiGe BiCMOS technological advantages and design methodologies, enabling exceptional extreme environment robustness. It utilizes a mixed-signal Remote Sensor Interface (RSI) ASIC and an HDL-based Remote Digital Control (RDC) architecture to read data from up to 16 sensors using three different analog channel types with customizable gain, current stimulus, calibration, and sample rate with 12-bit analog-to-digital conversion. The SiGe REU exhibits excellent channel sensitivity throughout the temperature range, hardness to at least 100 krad TID exposure, and single event latchup immunity, representing the cutting edge in cold-capable electronic systems. The SiGe REU is the first example within a potential paradigm shift in space-based electronics.

Unfriendly to conventional electronic devices, circuits, and systems, extreme environments represent a serious challenge to designers and mission architects. The first truly comprehensive guide to this specialized field, Extreme Environment Electronics explains the essential aspects of designing and using devices, circuits, and electronic systems intended to operate in extreme environments, including across wide temperature ranges and in radiation-intense scenarios such as space. The Definitive Guide to Extreme Environment Electronics Featuring contributions by some of the world’s foremost experts in extreme environment electronics, the book provides in-depth information on a wide array of topics. It begins by describing the extreme conditions and then delves into a description of suitable semiconductor technologies and the modeling of devices within those technologies. It also discusses reliability issues and failure mechanisms that readers need to be aware of, as well as best practices for the design of these electronics. Continuing beyond just the "paper design" of building blocks, the book rounds out coverage of the design realization process with verification techniques and chapters on electronic packaging for extreme environments. The final set of chapters describes actual chip-level designs for applications in energy and space exploration. Requiring only a basic background in electronics, the book combines theoretical and practical aspects in each self-contained chapter. Appendices supply additional background material. With its broad coverage and depth, and the expertise of the contributing authors, this is an invaluable reference for engineers, scientists, and technical managers, as well as researchers and graduate students. A hands-on resource, it explores what is required to successfully operate electronics in the most demanding conditions.

Silicon-germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS technology platforms have proven invaluable for implementing a wide variety of digital, RF, and mixed-signal applications in extreme environments such as space, where maintaining high levels of performance in the presence of low temperatures and background radiation is paramount. This work will focus on the investigation of the total-dose radiation tolerance of a third generation complementary SiGe:C BiCMOS technology platform. Tolerance will be quantified under proton and X-ray radiation sources for both the npn and pnp HBT, as well as for an operational amplifier built with these devices. Furthermore, a technique known as junction isolation radiation hardening will be proposed and tested with the goal of improving the SEE sensitivity of the npn in this platform by reducing the charge collected by the subcollector in the event of a direct ion strike. To the author's knowledge, this work presents the first design and measurement results for this form of RHBD.

This work evaluates two SiGe BiCMOS technology platforms as candidates for implementing extreme environment capable circuitry, with an emphasis on applications requiring high sensitivity and low noise. In Chapter 1, applications requiring extreme environment sensing circuitry are briefly reviewed and the motivation for undertaking this study is outlined. A case is then presented for the use of SiGe BiCMOS technology to meet this need, documenting the benefits of operating SiGe HBTs at cryogenic temperatures. Chapter 1 concludes with a brief description of device radiation effects in bipolar and CMOS devices, and a basic overview of noise in semiconductor devices and electronic components. Chapter 2 further elaborates on a specific application requiring low-noise circuitry capable of operating at cryogenic temperatures and proposes a number of variants of band-gap reference circuits for use in said system. Detailed simulation and theoretical analysis of the proposed circuits are presented and compared with measurements, validating the techniques used in the proposed designs and emphasizing the need for further understanding of device level low-temperature noise phenomena. Chapter 3 evaluates the feasibility of using a SiGe BiCMOS process, whose response to ionizing radiation was previously uncharacterized, for use in unshielded electronic systems needed for exploration of deep space planets or moons, specifically targeting Europa mission requirements. Measured total ionizing dose (TID) responses for both CMOS and bipolar SiGe devices are presented and compared to similar technologies. The mechanisms responsible for device degradation are outlined, and an explanation of unexpected results is proposed. Finally, Chapter 4 summarizes the work presented and understanding provided by this thesis, concluding by outlining future research needed to build upon this study and fully realize SiGe based extreme environment capable precision electronic systems.

This book reviews the state of the art of very high speed digital integrated circuits. Commercial applications are in fiber optic transmission systems operating at 10, 40, and 100 Gb/s, while the military application is ADCs and DACs for microwave radar. The book contains detailed descriptions of the design, fabrication, and performance of wideband Si/SiGe-, GaAs-, and InP-based bipolar transistors. The analysis, design, and performance of high speed CMOS, silicon bipolar, and III-V digital ICs are presented in detail, with emphasis on application in optical fiber transmission and mixed signal ICs. The underlying physics and circuit design of rapid single flux quantum (RSFQ) superconducting logic circuits are reviewed, and there is extensive coverage of recent integrated circuit results in this technology. Contents: Preface (M J W Rodwell); High-Speed and High-Data-Bandwidth Transmitter and Receiver for Multi-Channel Serial Data Communication with CMOS Technology (M Fukaishi et al.); High-Performance Si and SiGe Bipolar Technologies and Circuits (M Wurzer et al.); Self-Aligned Si BJT/SiGe HBT Technology and Its Application to High-Speed Circuits (K Washio); Small-Scale InGaP/GaAs Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors for High-Speed and Low-Power Integrated-Circuit Applications (T Oka et al.); Prospects of InP-Based IC Technologies for 100-Gbit/S-Class Lightwave Communications Systems (T Enoki et al.); Scaling of InGaAs/InAlAs HBTs for High Speed Mixed-Signal and mm-Wave ICs (M J W Rodwell); Progress Toward 100 GHz Logic in InP HBT IC Technology (C H Fields et al.); Cantilevered Base InP DHBT for High Speed Digital Applications (A L Gutierrez-Aitken et al.); RSFQ Technology: Physics and Devices (P Bunyk et al.); RSFQ Technology: Circuits and Systems (D K Brock). Readership: Researchers, industrialists and academics in electrical and electronic engineering.