High Total Ionizing Dose and Temperature Effects on Micro- and Nano-electronic Devices

Abstract : This paper investigates the vulnerability of several micro- and nano-electronic technologies to a mixed harsh environment including high total ionizing dose at MGy levels and high temperature. Such operating conditions have been revealed recently for several applications like new security systems in existing or future nuclear power plants, fusion experiments, or deep space missions. In this work, the competing effects already reported in the literature of ionizing radiations and temperature are characterized in elementary devices made of MOS transistors from several technologies. First, devices are irradiated using a radiation laboratory source up to MGy dose levels at room temperature. Devices are grounded during irradiation to simulate a circuit which waits for a wake up signal, actually most of the lifetime of an integrated circuit operating in a harsh environment. Devices are then annealed at several temperatures to discuss the post-irradiation behavior and to balance if an elevated temperature is whether an issue or not for circuit function in mixed harsh environments.