ESD protection circuit design for ultra-sensitive IO applications in advanced sub-90nm CMOS technologies

This paper presents a protection strategy for ultra-sensitive I/O containing thin gate oxides, while combining two complementary ESD design approaches: (1) low-voltage diode-chain triggered SCR clamps that allow for efficient voltage clamping; (2) active-source-pump circuits applied for effective expansion of narrow ESD design windows for ultra-thin GOX protection. The focus of the paper is on the ASP schemes while some RF aspects are covered as well.