Single-event upsets in microelectronics

This article introduces the February 2003 issue of MRS Bulletin on "Single-Event Upsets (SEUs) in Microelectronics." These radiation effects in devices and circuits have been recognized in recent years as a key reliability concern for many current and future silicon-based technologies. This introduction sets the scope for critical discussions on this subject. The articles in the issue reflect the interdisciplinary nature of SEU research. The contributing authors include experts from several specializations: technology reliability, materials sciences, device physics, circuit designs, and theoretical and experimental nuclear physics. We review the current understanding of SEU problems from the perspectives of radiation physics, circuit design issues, and global technology developments. The discussions cover the key areas of modeling, circuit analyses, accelerator tests and experiments, basic nuclear data, and environmental neutron measurements.