Single-event multiple transients in guard-ring hardened inverter chains of different layout designs

Single-event multiple transients (SEMTs) measurement based on an on-chip self-triggered method is performed. Measurement results for guard-ring hardened inverter chains of two layout designs, including a source/drain sharing design and a conventional design, are compared under pulsed laser irradiation. Pulsed laser exposures with different energies show that the guard-ring hardened inverter chain with a source/drain sharing design is more sensitive to single-event double transients (SEDTs). It is found that SEDTs with small temporal differences can be merged into single-event single transients (SESTs) thanks to the pulse broadening effect. A layout-hardened design for SEDTs in the guard-ring hardened inverter chain is also suggested.