Statistical simulation of IC technology: A bipolar process example

Statistical simulation using design of experiments has been employed for integrated circuit technology development. A software program called STADIUM was developed to implement this statistical methodology. The software has been designed to be user friendly and to guide the engineer who is not a statistics expert through the process of deriving a valid statistical answer. Inputs to the STADIUM system include integrated circuit fabrication variations and when coupled with semiconductor process and device simulators can estimate the expected variations of device parameters such as transistor gain and threshold voltage. This paper presents the detailed procedure and results of a statistical simulation of a bipolar transistor technology.