Why IC designers need custom ESD cells
BiCMOS technology combines CMOS technology with efficient bipolar devices. At first sight, those bipolar transistors could also be employed as ESD clamps. However the bipolar circuits are sensitive to ESD stress and need effective protection too.
Sofics IP for BiCMOS technology
Process technology covered
Foundries covered
GlobalFoundries 9HP
IDM fab
GlobalFoundries
IDM fab
Key focus areas
High-speed interfaces
Beyond standard voltage levels
Sofics IP is used in high bandwidth communication interfaces networks. These interfaces need ESD clamps with low parasitic capacitance. Sofics clamps provide standard ESD robustness and do not require a resistance in the signal path.
Our IP was used for sensor interfaces. We have delivered solutions for high voltage tolerance (5V or higher) thanks to a flexible but deterministic solution set.
Battery powered applications
Customers have integrated Sofics ESD in different applications. The leakage of our ESD cells is 100x lower compared to conventional approach.
IC products from our customers
Our customers have designed different types of products on BiCMOS technology like optical communication for data centers.
Further reading
Blog article “optimized local I/O protection for SOI, BiCMOS and FinFET nodes“
Blog article “ESD protection for Space applications“