Microelectronics & VLSI Design

M-Tech program’s curriculum

E3 200: Microelectronics & VLSI Design Lab (1:2)

  1. Device TCAD and Device Design Basics using TCAD: Device TCAD Models, Device Simulation Approach, Design of CMOS (nMOS/pMOS) devices using TCAD device simulations, Design of FinFET using device simulations, Analysis of Physical Parameters and Device Physics using TCAD, Parameter extraction from simulation results
  2. CMOS Process Technology, Process Development, Integration and Simulation: Processing Steps – Lithography, Etching, Dopant Implantation, Material Deposition, Thermal annealing / Dopant Diffusion and Backend Metallization. TCAD Process simulation – Unit process simulation, process calibration, process integration, simulation of basic CMOS devices. TCAD simulation of standard cell library element, Advance CMOS device design, process simulation and process integration, Basics of 3D process simulation, Layout design for test chips development, Details of Mask writing and device fabrication
  3. Semiconductor Device Characterization: Non-destructive and destructive characterization. Discussions on electrical, optical, and material characterization. Hands-on on Measurement systems – Probe stations, source-measurement units, function generators, cables and adapters, pulse generators, VNA, Oscilloscopes, power supplies. Hands-on: Characterization of range of FETs and Diodes. Various types of measurements (Extraction of terminal characteristics, Two-probe and four-probe measurements, Hall measurements, Low-voltage and low-current measurements, High-voltage and high-current measurements, Noise measurements, High-frequency/RF measurements, AC, DC, pulse, CV, transient measurements, Low-temperature, low-pressure measurements, Electro-optical measurements – on-the-fly Raman, EL/PL.) Extraction of Various Parameters (Threshold voltage, transconductance, contact resistance, Schottky barrier height, subthreshold slope, ON resistance, ON current, Junction temperature, doping profile, trap density, capacitance profile)
  4. Library / PDK Development: Model Card Extraction (using TCAD data) using ICCAP, Standard Cell Library Design (Cell View), Standard Cell Library Characterization and Library simulation using ADS

Background: We have been covering aspects related to device physics and circuit design (analog/digital/RF) in our program. While there is lab available in core circuit courses, a similar laboratory training for device aspects like design, fabrication and test gives students a first-hand hands-on training to semiconductor devices and also bridge the gap between device physics and circuit design. It should be highlighted that some of the components like PDK development, device design, process integration, etc are taught at a very few places, which however are covered in this lab course together with regular content. This also brings uniqueness to IISc program in a sense that it offers practical semiconductor training to our students. In summary this course (i) bridge gap between device physics and circuit design, (ii) to develop a key skill required for students who wish to work in semiconductor companies and (iii) learn the entire spectrum of technology development.

E3 275: Physics and Design of Transistors

  1. The Ideal MOS Capacitor: The Silicon/Silicon Dioxide System, Band Bending in the MOS Capacitor, Solution of Poisson’s Equation for the MOS Capacitor, Depletion Approximation, Threshold Voltage, Capacitance-Voltage (CV) Plot of the Ideal MOS Capacitor, Small-signal Capacitance and Equivalent Circuit, Low-frequency Capacitance-Voltage (LFCV) Characteristics, High-frequency Capacitance-Voltage (HFCV) Characteristics and Deep Depletion.
  2. The Non-Ideal MOS Capacitor: Work Function Difference, Oxide and Interface Charges, Nature of Defects in the Oxide and at the Si/SiO2 Interface, Effect of Oxide Charges, Effect of Interface States, Stretchout in the HFCV Characteristic, Interface State Capacitance and Equivalent Circuit, LFCV Characteristic with Interface States, Effect of Border States, Series Resistance, Non-Uniform Doping, Lateral Non-Uniformities, Polysilicon Depletion Effects, Failure of Maxwell-Boltzmann Statistics, Quantum Effects and Tunnelling through the Insulator
  3. The MOS Capacitor as a Diagnostic Device: Determination of Basic MOS Parameters – Oxide Thickness, Substrate Doping, The Ideal HFCV Curve, Flat-band and Mid-gap Capacitances and Voltages, Threshold Voltage and Work Function Difference. Oxide Charge and Interface States, Determination of Interface State Density, The HF-LF CV Technique, Conductance Method, Continuum of States, Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (DLTS), Determination of Oxide Charge and Effects of Quantization on the Extraction of Parameters
  4. The Long Channel MOSFET: Simplified I-V models of the MOSFET. Various MOSFET models and aspects like body effect, threshold voltage model, sub-threshold swing model, sub-threshold conduction, OFF and ON state behaviour using band diagrams, LF and HF CV characteristics.
  5. The Short Channel MOSFET: Threshold voltage change with channel length scaling, Drain Induced Barrier Lowering, Channel Length Modulation, Velocity Saturation, Mobility Degradation, Punch-through, HC effects, parasitic bipolar effect, Gate Induced Drain Leakage, Effect of thin Gox, Transistor Scaling and scaling Implications.
  6. Double Gate MOSFET and FinFETs: FDSOI and PDSOI. Limitation of FDSOI technology. Why FinFETs? FinFET advantages over FDSOI, FinFET Design, SOI vs. Bulk FinFETs, band diagram, scaling and variability issues/advantages, effect of Fin Width, effect of S/D resistance, mobility, quantum confinement effects and bulk conduction. P and N conduction, impact of crystal plane. High-k & Metal Gate for FinFETs, Process flow and complexities, doping thin films, raised S/D, epitaxial S/D, stress and other mobility boosters. FinFET based circuit design advantages (Logic, SRAM, Analog/RF), limitations and other challenges. FinFET layout design rules. HV/ESD device and SoC design challenges in FinFETs. Basics of Nanowire FETs.

E3 282: Basics of Semiconductor Devices and Technology

  1. Introduction to semiconductor device physics: Review of quantum mechanics and quantum chemistry, electrons in periodic lattices, atomic orbital overlap theory and basics of hybridization, E-k diagrams, quasiparticles (electrons, holes and phonons) in semiconductors.
  2. Carrier statics and dynamics: Carrier transport under low electric and magnetic fields, mobility and diffusivity; carrier statistics; continuity equation, Poisson’s equation and their solution.
  3. Semiconductor Junctions: Schottky, p-n junction and hetero-junctions and related physics. High field effects: Velocity saturation, hot carriers and avalanche breakdown.
  4. Ideal and non-ideal MOS capacitor: Band diagrams and CVs; Effects of oxide charges, defects and interface states; Characterization of MOS capacitors: HF and LF CVs.
  5. MOSFETs: Physics of transistors and basics of semiconductor processing.

E3 220: Foundations of Nanoelectronic Devices

  1. Mathematical foundations of quantum mechanics – Hilbert space, observables, operators and operator algebra, commutators, bra and ket notation, representation theory, change of basis.
  2. Postulates of quantum mechanics, uncertainty principle, coordinate and momentum representation, quantum dynamics using unitary operator, Schrodinger and Heisenberg pictures, stationary states, time evolution.
  3. Free particle, wave packet, Hydrogen atom, Excitons.
  4. Electrons in solids – Drude and Sommerfield model, k-space quantization from periodic boundary condition, density of states, Fermi energy, derivation of Fermi-Dirac distribution, chemical potential and its relation with Fermi level.
  5. Crystal lattice, Reciprocal lattice space, Brillouin zone, Electron levels in periodic potential with BVK boundary condition, Bloch theorem and its proof, Bandstructure, Crystal momentum, band velocity, density of states, effective mass, bandstructure examples in common semiconductors (Si, Ge, III-V) and implications to device physics.
  6. Semiclassical theory of electron dynamics in periodic lattice, Bloch electrons and wave packets, Comments on the model including validity, conductivity of perfect crystal, conservation of energy, current carrying capability by empty, filled and partially filled bands, introduction to the concept of holes.
  7. Principles of operation of MOSFET, concept of top of the barrier, Short channel effects, Quantum effects in MOSFET – Coupled Poisson-Schrodinger equations and iterative solutions, quantization in MOSFET channel, quantum capacitance, Tunneling, One dimensional barrier transmission problem, Gate oxide tunneling, Direct source to drain tunneling, Band-to-band tunneling.
  8. Lattice vibrations, one dimensional chain of atoms, effect of introduction of a basis, acoustic and optical branches, quantum theory of linear harmonic oscillators, creation and annihilation operators, quantization of energies, phonons, phonon bandstructure and density of states, effects in devices due to electron-phonon scattering.
  9. Quantization of angular momentum, Ladder operators, possible eigenvalues of total angular momentum and its components, electron spin, Pauli spin matrices, spin-orbit coupling.

E0 284: Digital VLSI Circuits (2:1)

Introduction to MOS transistor theory, Circuit characterization & simulation, the theory of logical effort, interconnect design and analysis combinational circuit design, sequential circuit design. Design methodology & tools, testing & verification, datapath subsystems, array subsystems, power and clock distribution, introduction to Verilog and digital IC design CAD tools.

E3 238: Analog VLSI Circuits (2:1)

Review of MOS device characteristics, Long channel MOS, Second order effects, MOS small signal parameters and models, MOS capacitance. Concept of fT, Bipolar transistors, Small signal parameters of BJTs, Common Emitter/Common source Amplifiers, CB/CG Amplifiers Emitter/Source followers, Source Degeneration, Cascodes, emitter/Source coupled pairs, Current Mirrors, Differential Pairs, Frequency Response, Noise, Feedback, Linearity, Operational Amplifiers: Telescopic and Folded Cascode, Stability and Compensation, Slew rate and setting, Common Mode Feedback

E3 231: Digital System Design with FPGAs (2:1)

  1. Digital System Design: Introduction to Digital design; Hierarchical design, controller (FSM), case study, FSM issues, timing issues, pipelining, resource sharing, metastability, synchronization, MTBF Analysis, setup/hold time of various types of flip-flops, synchronization between multiple clock domains, reset recovery, proper resets.
  2. VHDL: Different models of description, simulation cycles, process, concurrent and sequential statements, loops, delay models, library, packages, functions, procedures, coding for synthesis, test bench.
  3. FPGA: Logic block and routing architecture, design methodology, special resources, Xilinx Spartan-6, Altera and Actel FPGAs, programming FPGA, constraints, STA, timing closure, case study.

E3 280: Carrier transport in nanoscale devices

  1. Review of basic quantum mechanics, crystal structure and Brillouin zone, electrons in crystalline solids, momentum space, Energy band structure in semiconductors, quantum confinement, semi-classical electroc dynamics in perfect crystal.
  2. Scattering of electrons, Derivation of Fermi Golden Rule.
  3. Concept of scattering rate and relaxation time, scattering by ionized impurity, different types of phonon scattering and calculation of corresponding relaxation times, electron-electron scattering, electron scattering for confined carriers, surface roughness scattering.
  4. Concept of distribution function – equilibrium versus non-equilibrium, Boltzmann transport equation(BTE) – derivation and implication, Relaxation time approximation, solution of BTE, special cases, numerical solutions, validity of BTE, coupled electrical and thermal transport.
  5. Quantum transport – conduction quantization, current flow in a one-level model, different regimes of transport including self-consistent field and Coulomb blockade, current carrying modes in quantum wire and 2D electron gas, ballistic versus non-ballistic transport.
  6. Open system versus closed system, concept of level broadening, Formal treatment of open system, coherent transport using Green’s function, ballistic current in a two-terminal device.

E3 225: Compact Modelling of Devices

Band theory of solids, carrier transport mechanism, P-N junction diode, MOS Capacitor Theory, C-V characteristics, MOSFET operation, Types of compact models, Input Voltage Equation, Charge Linearization, Charge Modeling, Concept of Core Model, Quasi-static and Non-quasi-static Model, Introduction to Verilog-A, Basic theory of circuit simulation, Brief overview of EKV and PSP

E7 214: Optoelectronic Devices

Introduction to Optoelectronic integrated circuits (OEICs), various components and applications, quick refresher into semiconductors and Electromagnetics at optical frequencies, optical processes in semiconductors, light sources (LEDs, various semiconductor lasers), light detectors (PMTs, photo-diodes, APDs), sensor arrays (CCD,CMOS), Noise processes in light detection and generation, photo-voltaic devices and light modulators (electro-optic, Franz-Keldysh/ Stark effect, acousto-optic and magneto-optic effects).

E3 237: Integrated Circuits for Wireless Communication

Wireless transceiver SNR calculations, modulation techniques, linearity and noise, receiver and transmitter Architectures, passive RF networks, design of active building blocks: low noise amplifiers, mixers, power amplifiers, VCOs, phase locked loops and frequency synthesizers, device models for RF design, mm-wave and THz communication systems

E3 245: Processor System Design

  1. Introduction: Basic Processor Architecture, Instruction Set Design, Datapath and Controller, Timing, Pipelining.
  2. CISC Processor Design: Architecture, hardware flowchart, implementing from flowchart, exception, control store, microcode design.
  3. RISC Processor Design: Single cycle implementation, multi cycle implementation, pipelined implementation, exception and hazards handling, Superscalar organization, superscalar pipeline overview, VLSI implementation of dynamic pipelines, register renaming, reservation station, re-ordering buffers, branch predictor, and dynamic instruction scheduler etc
  4. Bus: Bus Topologies, AMBA Bus, Bus Interface and Bridge Design, Bus Function Models, Network-on-Chip

E8 241: Radio Frequency Integrated Circuits & Systems

  1. Review of Transmission line Theory, terminated transmission lines, smith chart, impedance matching, Microstrip and Coplanar waveguide implementations, microwave network analysis, ABCD parameters, S parameters, X parameters.
  2. Behavior of passive components and networks, resonant structures using distributed transmission lines, power dividers, couplers and filters; CRLH transmission line based components.
  3. Introduction to planar microwave antennas, definitions and basic principles, Smart antennas; Link plan and propagation studies
  4. Basics of high frequency amplifier design, biasing techniques, simultaneous tuning of 2 port circuits, noise and distortion, linearity, noise and large signal performance, Power amplifier design

E8 202: Computational Electromagnetics

Maxwel1l’s equations, Wave equations, scalar and vector potentials, fundamental theorems in EM Method of moments: Greens Functions; Surface equivalence principle; Electrostatic formulation; Magnetostatic formulation; Electric Field Integral Equation; Magnetic Field Integral Equation; Direct and Iterative Solvers; Finite difference time domain methods: 1D wave propagation, yee Algorithm, Numerical dispersion and stability, Perfectly matched absorbing boundary conditions, Dispersive materials. Antenna and scattering problems with FDTD, non-uniform grids, conformal grids, periodic structures, RF circuitAdvanced topics in numerical electromagnetics based on recent literature About the courseThe course will have programming assignments (using Matlab/Fortran/C++).

E7 211: Photonic Integrated Circuits

  1. Principles: Introduction to Photonics; optical waveguide theory; numerical techniques and simulation tools; photonic waveguide components – couplers, tapers, bends, gratings; electro-optic, acoustooptic, magneto-optic and non-linear optic effects; modulators, switches, polarizers, filters, resonators, optoelectronics integrated circuits; amplifiers, mux/demux, transmit receive modules
  2. Technology: materials – glass, lithium niobate, silicon, compound semiconductors, polymers; fabrication – lithography, ion-exchange, deposition, diffusion; process and device characterization; packaging and environmental issues
  3. Applications: photonic switch matrices; planar lightwave circuits, delay line circuits for antenna arrays, circuits for smart optical sensors; optical signal processing and computing; micro-optoelectro-mechanical systems; photonic bandgap structures; VLSI photonics

E3 271: Reliability of Nanoscale Circuits and Systems (1:2)

  1. Carrier transport and carrier energy fundamentals, avalanche multiplication and breakdown, hot carrier induced (HCI) degradation mechanism, NBTI/PBTI, TDDB, GOI and Electromigration
  2. ESD and latch-up phenomena, Test models and methods, ESD protection devices and device physics, Advance ESD protection devices, high current effects and filaments, Negative differential resistance, Physics of ESD failure.
  3. ESD protection methodology, ESD protection circuits, ESD protection for Analog/RF and mixed signal modules, General rules for ESD design, layout considerations for ESD and latch-up protection, understanding parasitic.
  4. ESD circuit simulation basics and requirements, ESD TCAD simulation methodology,
  5. System on Chip overview and system ESD aspects, case studies related to product failures and solutions use

E3 272: Advanced ESD devices, Circuits and Design Methods

History of key inventions in the field of ESD and latch-up protection, Review on various ESD testers and ESD test models, problems associated with ESD testers and progress on ESD tester development. High current injection, High field effects, Negative differential resistance and Current filaments, Drain extended MOS devices and associated week ESD robustness. ESD behavior of FinFET devices, SiGe-FETs and other quantum well devices, Impact of stress & strain on ESD behavior, ESD devices in advanced CMOS and BiCMOS technology, Impact of technology scaling on ESD behavior, Special analog and RF ESD protection devices and circuits. Impact of ESD stress on CNTs, Graphene and other 2D material based Nanoelectronic devices. ESD Device modeling for circuit simulations, State-of-the-art on CDM ESD protection, CDM tester models, modeling CDM behavior and CDM simulations, ESD verification flow and methodology, Towards full chip ESD simulation, Transient latch-up, System level ESD, System efficient ESD design (SEED), Case studies.

E3 274: Design of Power Semiconductor Devices (1:2)

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  1. Power device applications: Power electronic applications, High voltage and high-power circuits, RF power circuits and applications, On-chip circuits and power management system, high switching speed requirements for power system scaling.
  2. Semiconductor Physics under extreme conditions: Basics of semiconductor device physics, p-n junction, carrier transport under extreme conditions, avalanche breakdown, and thermal transport.
  3. Power Diodes: Various types of power diodes: Si diodes, Schottky diodes and P-i-N diodes; Physics of power diodes, power diode design essentials, breakdown voltage and ON-resistance trade-off, high current and ultra fast transient behavior.
  4. Si High Power MOS devices, design and Technology: VMOS, VDMOS, UMOS, DMOS, LDMOS, DeMOS and Dual trench MOS; Process flow, discrete and On-chip device manufacturing technology; High power MOS design essentials, breakdown voltage and on-resistance trade-off, parasitic capacitance and resistances, DC, RF and switching characteristics; quasi saturation behavior, high current effects, Negative differential resistance (NDR), self heating, filament formation and safe operating area (SOA).
  5. GaN and SiC Power MOS devices: Advantagtrade-off, parasitic capacitance and resistances, DC, RF and switching characteristics; quasi saturation behaviore of high bandgap materials, High bandgap material physics, various GaN/SiC devices, device physics and design essentials, GaN/SiC device manufacturing technology; breakdown voltage and on-resistance , self heating effects and safe operating area (SOA); state-of-the-art GaN/SiC devices and ongoing research.
  6. IGBTs and SCR: IGBTs and SCR device physics and device design essentials, breakdown voltage and on-resistance trade-off, self heating effects and filament formation.