John A Zoutendyk

46756019, Jun 23, 1987

Nov 27, 1985

6/802769

John A. Zoutendyk - La Crescenta CA
Carl J. Malone - Los Angeles CA

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration - Washington DC

G01R 3126

324158R

Electric-field funneling length is measured while irradiating a semiconductor charge-collecting junction with electron-hole-pair generating charged particles at a first junction bias voltage. The bias voltage is then reduced to a second level in order to reduce the depth of the depletion region such that the total charge can no longer be collected by drift and measured in the energy band previously displayed in the multichannel analyzer. This is representative of the maximum electric field funnelling length which may be calculated by measuring the difference at the second bias voltage level of the depletion width and the ion penetration range. The bias voltage is further lowered to a third level at which the particles are collected over a spread of energy levels while at least some of the particles are still collected at the selected energy level. From this the different depths of penetration of the particles are determined while additional effects due to diffusion are minimized.

50721330, Dec 10, 1991

Feb 20, 1991

7/692801

John A. Zoutendyk - La Crescenta CA

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration - Washington DC

H03K 301
H03K 326
H03K 3284
G01T 124

3072962

Bipolar transistors fabricated in separate buried layers of an integrated circuit chip are electrically isolated with a built-in potential barrier established by doping the buried layer with a polarity opposite doping in the chip substrate. To increase the resistance of the bipolar transistors to single-event upsets due to ionized particle radiation, the substrate is biased relative to the buried layer with an external bias voltage selected to offset the built-in potential just enough (typically between about +0. 1 to +0. 2 volt) to prevent an accumulation of charge in the buried-layer-substrate junction.