A survey of reliability-prediction procedures for microelectronic devices

The author reviews six current reliability prediction procedures for microelectronic devices. The device models are described and the parameters and parameter values used to calculate device failure rates are examined. The procedures are illustrated by using them to calculate the predicted failure rate for a 64 K DRAM; the resulting failure rates are compared under a variety of assumptions. The models used in the procedures are similar in form, but they give very different predicted failure rates under similar operating and environmental conditions, and they show different sensitivities to changes in conditions affecting the failure rates