TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE OF LATCHUP

RECENT TESTS AT IRT CORPORATION THAT WERE PERFORMED ON ADVANCED SCHOTTKEY LOGIC DEVICES HAVE PRODUCED SOME ANOMALOUS RESULTS. DURING ROUTINE LATCHUP TESTS, LATCHUP WAS OBSERVED IN SOME OF THE DEVICES WHEN TESTED AT ROOM TEMPERATURE. HOWEVER, WHEN THE TEMPERATURE OF THE TEST WAS ELEVATED, LATCHUP DID NOT OCCUR IN SOME OF THE DEVICES WHICH HAD LATCHED AT ROOM TEMPERATURE. THIS RESULT IS CONTRARY TO WHAT THEORY WOULD PREDICT. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY IMPORTANT RESULT SINCE CURRENT TEST PROCEDURES REQUIRE THAT LATCHUP TESTS BE PERFORMED AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES TO SIMULATE WORST CASE CONDITIONS. THIS PROPOSAL DESCRIBES A PROGRAM WHICH ADDRESSES THE ANOMALOUS LATCHUP BEHAVIOR AND ATTEMPTS TO DEFINE THE MECHANISM WHICH HAS CAUSED THIS BEHAVIOR.