Nxp B.v.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

Taede Smedes

Paul Hendrik Cappon

Jen-Chou Tseng

Ming-Hsiang Song

Tzu-Heng Chang

Yu-Ying Hsu

Da-Wei Lai

Marcin Grad

Johannes Van Zwol

Albert Jan Huitsing

Kiran B Gopal

Andrea Scarpa

Peter C De Jong

As disclosed herein, a level shift circuit includes devices that are responsive to an ESD signal for placing those devices in a specific condition in response to the ESD signal indicating an ESD event. In some embodiments, the devices are transistors in current paths that are placed in a condition such that during an ESD event, voltage differentials in the current paths across voltage domain boundaries do not damage the circuitry of the level shift circuit. In some embodiments, some of the same devices that are responsive to the ESD event are also responsive to a signal to that detects the absence of a power supply voltage of one of the domains and places those devices in a condition to disable the level shift circuit if the power supply voltage is not present.

Level shifter with ESD protection

An integrated 'pull-down' driver circuit () is formed with a combination device consisting of an output driver transistor (N) electrically coupled between a current source circuit (Ns) and the conductive pad, and an ESD bypass transistor (N) electrically coupled in series with the output driver transistor, where one or more conductive interconnect layers connect the ESD bypass transistor in parallel with the current source circuit so that the ESD bypass transistor is in an off-state during normal operation and is activated to form a parasitic bipolar junction transistor with the output driver transistor to conduct ESD current between a first power supply conductor and the conductive pad during ESD events, and where a complementary integrated 'pull-up' driver circuit may be formed with three corresponding PMOS transistors (P, P, P) connected as shown between a second power supply conductor and the conductive pad.

ESD-robust stacked driver

Semiconductor devices with cross-domain electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection and related fabrication methods are provided. An exemplary semiconductor device includes first domain circuitry, second domain circuitry, and an interface coupled between an output node of the first domain driver circuitry and second domain receiver circuitry. The receiver circuitry includes a transistor having a gate electrode coupled to the interface, with a body electrode of the transistor being coupled to protection circuitry of the first domain circuitry. The body electrode is effectively biased to a reference voltage node of the first domain by the protection circuitry in response to an ESD event to protect the gate oxide of the transistor from a potentially damaging ESD voltage.

Cross-domain ESD protection

Embodiments of a method for providing electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection for an Input/Output (I/O) device, an ESD protection device for an I/O device, and an I/O device are described. In one embodiment, a method for providing ESD protection for an I/O device involves activating a switch device to turn off the I/O device during an ESD event and deactivating the switch device to turn on the I/O device in the absence of an ESD event. Other embodiments are also described.

I/O device, method for providing ESD protection for an I/O device and ESD protection device for an I/O device

Methods and apparatus for ESD structures. A semiconductor device includes a first active area containing an ESD cell coupled to a first terminal and disposed in a well; a second active area in the semiconductor substrate, the second active area comprising a first diffusion of the first conductivity type for making a bulk contact to the well; and a third active area in the semiconductor substrate, separated from the first and second active areas by another isolation region, a portion of the third active area comprising an implant diffusion of the first conductivity type within a first diffusion of the second conductivity type and adjacent a boundary with the well of the first conductivity type; wherein the third active area comprises a diode coupled to the terminal and reverse biased with respect to the well of the first conductivity type.

Methods and apparatus for ESD structures

An integrated circuit device provides electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection, as may be applicable to circuits susceptible to ESD in conjunction with, or prior to, activation of a primary ESD circuit for dissipating an ESD. In connection with various example embodiments, primary and secondary ESD circuits discharge electrostatic pulses as may be present at a power input pad, with the secondary ESD circuit separated from the input pad by an impedance circuit. The secondary ESD circuit is configured to actively mitigate an electrostatic pulse present in conjunction with, or before, the activation of the primary ESD circuit, in response to an input voltage level achieving a threshold level. In some implementations, the secondary ESD circuit activates to mitigate some or all of the presentation of an electrostatic pulse to a circuit that competes with the primary ESD circuit, for drawing charge from a common node (e.g., a power supply pad).

Secondary ESD circuit

In an example embodiment, there is a test module for testing the susceptibility of an integrated circuit design to latch-up. The test module comprises a plurality of test blocks, connected in parallel. Each test block includes an injector block for applying a stress current of voltage to the respective test block and a plurality of sensor blocks located at successively increasing distances from the respective injector block. Each sensor block includes a PNPN latch-up test structure. The present invention combines the respective advantages of IC stress current testing and latch-up parameter measurement using a standard PNPN latch-up test structure.

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Nijmegen, Netherlands

Taede Smedes