Characterization of the Evolution of IC Emissions After Accelerated Aging

TLDR

EMC is a growing challenge for IC manufacturers, yet its evolution over time remains uncharacterized and unpredictable. The study investigates how circuit aging affects electromagnetic emissions. The authors applied various standard and accelerated life tests to a mixed‑power automotive circuit. Measured emissions before and after testing revealed variations, with different aging procedures affecting emission levels differently.

Abstract

With the evolving technological development of integrated circuits, ensuring electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) is becoming a serious challenge for electronic circuit and system manufacturers. Although electronic components must pass a set of EMC tests to ensure safe operations, the evolution of EMC over time is not characterized and cannot be accurately forecast. This paper presents an original study about the consequences of the aging of circuits on electromagnetic emissions. Different types of standard applicative and accelerated life tests are applied on a mixed power circuit dedicated to automotive applications. Its conducted emissions are measured before and after these tests, showing variations in EMC performance. Comparisons between each type of aging procedure show that the emission level of the circuit under test is differently affected.