Interference-induced Electromagnetic Emission in Functioning Operating States of Integrated Circuits

In this paper, we propose a method for characterizing electromagnetic emission (EME) of integrated circuits (ICs) caused by electromagnetic interference (EMI). Typically, emission and immunity of ICs are evaluated independently, which does not reflect real-world scenarios where ICs are always subject to disturbances at their inputs. Therefore, we show how the EME changes with the presence of an interference signal at one of the pins of an IC. In this paper we focus on non functional failure cases, i.e. the IC is still operating in its desired way. To illustrate on the one hand the full spectrum of the disturbance, on the other hand, the full spectrum of the EME, we introduce the ELectromagnetic InTerference and Emission (ELITE) plot. The proposed method involves applying a disturbance signal in the frequency range of 1 MHz to 1 GHz to one IC pin while measuring the EME at another pin between 150 kHz to 1 GHz. We do this by using a measurement setup combining the direct power injection (DPI) and 150 Ohm method. As a device under test (DUT), a smart power high-side switch is used. Overall, this new approach offers a more realistic measurement of IC emission behavior also considering disturbances on its inputs.