The Role of RF Operational Life Testing in Evaluating III-V Devices Addressing RF Through Millimeter-wave Applications

Reliability assessment of MMICs is primarily addressed through DC stress analysis of individual components available in the process being utilized, throughout the industry. Typically those components include transistors, capacitors, resistors, diodes, metal interconnect lines, etcetera. Component DC accelerated life testing in conjunction with analytic projection to actual operating conditions is the dominant method to projecting operating lifetime of MMICs. During actual operation, stresses on components due to RF signals can dominate the DC stresses well understood and modeled. Sufficient analysis of RF-induced stress of complex circuitry and stimuli is problematic and may omit critical, failure inducing stresses. RF operational testing is a useful method to determine if the circuit function degradation is dominated by unforeseen mechanisms. Relevant mechanisms are discussed and illustrative examples are presented.