Drawing Defendable Conclusions from Effects Tests using Pulse Illumination of Electronic Systems

Engineers spend a great deal of time and effort collecting effects data on the illumination of electronic systems by electromagnetic waves. The effects can include upset or damage to the devices. The overall goal of these data is to draw conclusions about conditions that will allow the prediction of future failures of electronic systems of the same type or application. Illumination sources can include lightning, electromagnetic interference or high-power microwaves. It is rare that the engineer is allowed to take sufficient data to meet the usual statistical tests for conclusions about the data, yet those tests limit the applicability of the conclusions. This paper will outline the general statistical requirements by presenting general models. Applicability of those models will be extended using physical constraints and examples will be shown