Radiation Testing for Rad Hard Power Devices

Radiation testing is a crucial process for ensuring the reliability and safety of devices, particularly those used in high-radiation environments. For older generation devices, such as the R4, Single Event Effect (SEE) testing using heavy ions was conducted at Brookhaven National Laboratory's Tandem Van De Graff facility, with the goal of initiating an SEE event to establish a safe operating area.

However, with the limitation of beam energy up to 500 MeV, a higher energy beam became available at the Cyclotron Institute of Texas A&M University, allowing for testing of newer devices with beam energy of up to 2.2 GeV. This enables the range at Bragg's peak to be near the sensitive area of the device under test, providing more accurate results.

The devices tested, including IR HiRel's MOSFETs, are designed to withstand total ionizing dose from 100 krad to 1 Mrad without damage, and are subjected to heavy ions with a Linear Energy Transfer (LET) of 37-92 MeV·mg/cm2, with beam energy ranging from 300 MeV to 2.2 GeV. The Single Event Effects (SEEs) observed in MOSFETs include Single Event Burnout (SEB) and Single Event Gate Rupture (SEGR), while other components like gate-drivers and PWM controllers may be vulnerable to Single Event Transient (SET), Single Event Latchup (SEL), and Single Event Functional Interrupt (SEFI).

It is worth noting that SEB, SEGR, and SEL are destructive events, whereas SET and SEFI are typically non-destructive. The characterization of SEE is typically expressed as a function of LET, with typical testing levels for radiation-hardened devices ranging from 37-92 MeV·mg/cm2. Commonly used test ions include Krypton (84Kr), Xenon (129Xe), and Gold (197Au), with kinetic energy ranging from 100 MeV to 2.2 GeV.

Radiation Test FAQs
Rad Hard Assurance Test Program

Rad hard MOSFET Rad Reports

Rad hard MOSFET Rad Reports

Rad hard ICs Rad Reports

Rad hard ICs Rad Reports

Solid State Relay Rad Reports

Solid State Relay Rad Reports

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