Architectures of bulk built-in current sensors for detection of transient faults in integrated circuits

Today's integrated circuits are liable to operate under transient faults created either by radiation or malicious sources of perturbation. Among the many techniques for the detection of transient faults, Bulk Built-In Current Sensors (BBICS) present attractive low-cost and efficient features for the protection of circuits. This article provides a survey of published BBICS architectures and compares them with regard to their sensitivities in detecting transient faults. Moreover, a new dynamic BBICS architecture is introduced with improved detection sensitivity, negligible power consumption, and reduced area overhead.