Statistics and methodology of multiple cell upset characterization under heavy ion irradiation

Mean and partial cross-section concepts and their connections to multiplicity and statistics of multiple cell upsets (MCUs) in highly-scaled digital memories are introduced and discussed. The important role of the experimental determination of the upset statistics is emphasized. It was found that MCU may lead to quasi-linear dependence of cross-sections on linear energy transfer (LET). A new form of function for interpolation of mean cross-section dependences on LET has been proposed.