Investigation for Single-Event Upset in MSI Devices

This paper describes the results of the first known test for cosmic-ray effects exclusively directed towards several MSI logic families containing flip-flops, since Binder et al postulated the explanation for anomalous bit flips in 1975. The test was performed as a result of a joint effort between the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and MIT Lincoln Laboratory using the University of California (Berkeley) 88" Cyclotron. Five (5) technologies were tested for their susceptibility to both "hard" and "soft" failure mechanisms attributable to cosmic rays. Each of these types (low-power TTL, standard TTL, low-power Schottky, Schottky, and CMOS) exhibited differing degrees of susceptibility to singleevent upsets.