Electrostatic discharge circuit and method therefor

Details Electrostatic discharge circuit and method therefor Electrostatic discharge circuit and method therefor

2005-04-12

2005-04-12

Leja, Ronald (Department: 2836)

Electricity: electrical systems and devices

Safety and protection of systems and devices

Load shunting by fault responsive means

Reexamination Certificate

active

06879476

ABSTRACT:
An ESD protection circuit (81) and a method for providing ESD protection is provided. In some embodiments, an N-channel transistor (24), which can be ESD damaged, is selectively turned on and made conducting. The purpose of turning on the N-channel transistor (24) is to maximize the Vt1of the N-channel transistor (24). Vt1is the drain-to-source voltage point at which the parasitic bipolar action of the N-channel transistor (24) first occurs. In some embodiments, the ESD protection circuit (81) includes a diode (64) which provides an additional current path from the I/O pad31to a first power supply node (76).

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