System to protect electrical fuses
First Claim
1. An electrical fuse circuit with electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection comprising:
- at least one electrical fuse;
a programming device coupled in series with the electrical fuse having a first transistor for receiving a control signal for controlling a programming current flowing through the electrical fuse;
a voltage source coupled to the fuse and the programming device for providing the programming current;
a protection module comprising a zero threshold voltage transistor, a first end of the zero threshold voltage transistor coupled to a gate of the first transistor for reducing charges accumulated at the gate of the first transistor due to electric static charges arriving at the voltage source, thereby preventing the programming device from programming the fuse, and a second end of the zero threshold voltage transistor coupled to ground or VSS for diverting the charges accumulated; and
a driver coupled to a pre-driver protection circuit for providing the control signal, the pre-driver protection circuit including an NMOS transistor and a pull-up resistance device, the NMOS transistor configured to receive a programming signal at its gate, the resistance device being a gate-grounded PMOS device,wherein the pre-driver protection circuit prevents an erroneous control signal from being generated during a power on process, thereby preventing the fuse from accidentally being programmed by the erroneous control signal, and wherein the electrical fuse is sized such that when high voltage is applied during the programming stage, the programming device is turned on and a programming current can flow through and break the fuse.
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Abstract
A method and system is disclosed for protecting electrical fuse circuitry. A electrical fuse circuit with electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection has at least one electrical fuse, a programming device coupled in series with the electrical fuse having at least a transistor for receiving a control signal for controlling a programming current flowing through the electrical fuse, a voltage source coupled to the fuse and the programming device for providing the programming current, and a protection module coupled to a gate of the transistor at its first end for reducing charges accumulated at the gate of the transistor due to electric static charges arriving at the voltage source, thereby preventing the programming device from accidentally programming the fuse.
15 Citations
15 Claims
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1. An electrical fuse circuit with electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection comprising:
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at least one electrical fuse; a programming device coupled in series with the electrical fuse having a first transistor for receiving a control signal for controlling a programming current flowing through the electrical fuse; a voltage source coupled to the fuse and the programming device for providing the programming current; a protection module comprising a zero threshold voltage transistor, a first end of the zero threshold voltage transistor coupled to a gate of the first transistor for reducing charges accumulated at the gate of the first transistor due to electric static charges arriving at the voltage source, thereby preventing the programming device from programming the fuse, and a second end of the zero threshold voltage transistor coupled to ground or VSS for diverting the charges accumulated; and a driver coupled to a pre-driver protection circuit for providing the control signal, the pre-driver protection circuit including an NMOS transistor and a pull-up resistance device, the NMOS transistor configured to receive a programming signal at its gate, the resistance device being a gate-grounded PMOS device, wherein the pre-driver protection circuit prevents an erroneous control signal from being generated during a power on process, thereby preventing the fuse from accidentally being programmed by the erroneous control signal, and wherein the electrical fuse is sized such that when high voltage is applied during the programming stage, the programming device is turned on and a programming current can flow through and break the fuse. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An electrical fuse circuit with electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection comprising:
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at least one electrical fuse; a programming device coupled in series with the electrical fuse having a transistor for receiving a control signal for controlling a programming current flowing through the electrical fuse; a driver coupled to a pre-driver protection circuit for providing the control signal, wherein the driver is an inverter and the pre-driver protection circuit has a pull-up resistance device and a NMOS device coupled in series with an input of the driver coupled to a node between the resistance device and the NMOS device, wherein while programming the fuse, the NMOS device pulls the input to ground or VSS, and during a power up process when the NMOS device is floating, the resistance device includes a gate grounded PMOS device for protecting the driver from providing a high control signal; a voltage source coupled to the fuse and the programming device for providing the programming current; and a protection module coupled to a gate of the transistor at the first end of the transistor for reducing charges accumulated at the gate of the transistor due to electric static charges arriving at the voltage source, wherein the protection module prevents the programming device from accidentally programming the fuse, the pre-driver protection circuit prevents an erroneous control signal from being generated during a power on process; and
the driver is sized to ensure that the control signal has a short transition rise time from low to high such that the electrical fuse can be programmed effectively. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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Specification