Integrated Circuit Region Swapping to Mitigate Aging Effects
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Solution Overview
Problem
Integrated circuits, particularly programmable logic devices, suffer from reliability degradation due to aging effects like bias temperature instability (BTI) and hot carrier injection (HCI), which cause transistor degradation and performance reduction over time, especially in regions with constant signal application.
Innovation Solution
Generating multiple configuration images that implement the same design, where non-toggling and toggling regions are swapped or statistically relocated, and heavily-used metal routing paths are swapped with lightly-used paths, using CAD tools to mitigate stress and electromigration, thereby reducing device-level degradation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If voltage stress is reduced to mitigate BTI effects, then transistor reliability is improved, but circuit performance is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by periodically toggling previously quiet (non-toggling) circuit regions to active states. Instead of maintaining static configuration, the system dynamically switches between different configuration images, causing regions that were under voltage stress to become inactive and other regions to become active, thereby distributing the stress over time and space while maintaining overall circuit functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements periodic action through time-multiplexed reconfiguration of circuit regions. Configuration images are switched at periodic intervals, creating alternating active and inactive periods for different circuit regions. This periodic toggling mitigates BTI effects by preventing continuous voltage stress on any single region while maintaining circuit performance through alternating operation.
2Stability of the object's composition
If circuit regions are kept in static states for long periods, then circuit functionality is maintained, but aging effects like BTI and HCI cause drive current degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces dynamics by periodically reconfiguring circuit regions between active and inactive states. Regions that were statically active are switched to inactive states in subsequent configuration images, preventing prolonged exposure to voltage stress that causes BTI and HCI degradation, while maintaining overall circuit functionality through alternating operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies discarding and recovering by temporarily deactivating (discarding) the function of regions under stress through reconfiguration, allowing them to recover from voltage stress. Previously active regions are switched off to recover, while other regions take over their functionality, ensuring continuous circuit operation while preventing cumulative degradation.
3Reliability
If multiple configuration images are generated and reconfigured, then reliability degradation is reduced, but device complexity and reconfiguration overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies copying by creating multiple configuration images that are copies of the original circuit configuration. These configuration copies contain equivalent logic functionality but with different spatial arrangements of active and inactive regions. The copying approach allows reliability improvement through distribution of stress without requiring fundamental changes to the circuit design or control logic.
Data Source
AI summary
An integrated circuit with programmable logic circuitry is provided. The integrated circuit may include quiet regions, toggling regions, or unused regions. An integrated circuit may also include heavily-used metal routing paths, lightly-used metal routing paths, and unused metal routing paths. Circuit design tools may be used to generate multiple configuration images that replace the quiet regions with toggling or unused regions, that swap the heavily-used metal routing paths with lightly-used or unused metal routing paths, or that use random fitter seeds of improve the usage coverage to statistically reduce the always quiet regions on the integrated circuit. The multiple configuration images implement the same design and can be used to reconfigure the integrated circuit upon startup to reduce aging effects and improve circuit performance.