NanoBridge-Based FPGA in High-Temperature Environments

The authors demonstrate a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) based on NanoBridge, a novel resistive-change switch. NanoBridge, which is integrated in the back end of line (BEOL), features a high on/off conductance ratio, weak temperature dependence of its resistance, nonvolatility, endurance against soft errors, and a small footprint. In place of static RAM (SRAM) and a pass transistor, NanoBridge is utilized as a configuration switch in the FPGA. In this article, the authors evaluate the NanoBridge-based FPGA (NB-FPGA) for applications in harsh environments. Specifically, they implemented NB-FPGA in a humanoid robot and compared its performance with that of the conventional FPGA. Results showed that NB-FPGA exhibits small variation in performance over a wide range of temperature, from -55 to 150 °C, and has high immunity for fluctuations in the power supply voltage.