High holding current SCRs (HHI-SCR) for ESD protection and latch-up immune IC operation

摘要

This paper presents a novel Silicon Controlled Rectifier (SCR) for power line and local I/O ESD protection. The High holding current SCRs (HHI-SCR) exhibits a dual ESD clamp characteristic: low-current high-voltage clamping and high-current low-voltage clamping. These operation modes enable latch-up immune normal operation as well as superior full chip ESD protection. The minimum latch current can be controlled by specific SCR design. The HHI-SCR is demonstrated in a 0.10 μm-CMOS and in a 0.4 蘭-BiCMOS technology. The design is area efficient.