Single-Event Effects Analysis of a Pulse Width Modulator IC in a DC/DC Converter

Alpha particles, neutrons and laser-beam test results on an integrated pulse width modulation (PWM) controller operating in a DC/DC converter are presented in this paper. The PWM is fabricated on a 600-nm Bi-CMOS technology. Single-Event Transient (SET) derived from a bandgap circuit was amplified by a filter capacitor in the propagation path. Finally, a constant 6-μs SET pulse was observed on PGOOD pin which is a supervisory signal. This glitch caused system resets. Pulsed laser technology was adopted to locate the origin of the SET. 3D TCAD and circuit simulation tools were used to analyze the root cause. System and circuit level hardening approaches to mitigate the SET are also presented.