System and method for measuring circuit performance degradation due to PFET negative bias temperature instability (NBTI)
US6731179B2 · kind B2 · utility
72Cited by
12References
20Claims
0Family size
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Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 9, 2002 |
| Grant date | May 4, 2004 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 9, 2022 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01R31/30
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A ring oscillator (and test circuit incorporating the ring oscillator and test method therefor) includes an odd number of elements interconnected in a serially-connected infinite loop, each oscillator element having an associated programmable delay feature. The circuit can be used to measure effects of Negative Bias Temperature Instability (NBTI) in p-channel MOSFETs (PFETs).
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.