Possible noise failure modes in static and dynamic circuits

Abstract

This paper investigates possible failure modes in both dynamic and static CMOS digital circuits due to noise disturbance. In current VLSI circuits, where mixture of static and dynamic implementation is very common, it is important to identify possible noise failure modes to help designers develop techniques to prevent such failures. Injection of noise causes temporary or permanent signal deviation on a circuit node depending on the level of noise and the affected circuit. The deviation of signal level of the circuit node may lead to functional failure in digital circuits, particularly in dynamic circuit families. Static circuits are inherently robust and can effectively restore the signal deviation before having undesired logic shift. However, some static circuits with a feedback loop cannot recover from noise-induced errors.