Emulating Interaction of Charged-Particle Radiation with Semiconductor Devices Using Non-Linear Optical Processes

During this effort, significant advances have been made towards understanding the use of non-linear optical processes to emulate the interaction of charged particle radiation with semiconductor devices. These advances necessitated improvements in the dosimetry and characterization procedure of the PL SEE system, which were developed under this effort. Pulsed-laser data have been collected at the device and circuit level for a variety of conditions, and compared with results obtained at particle accelerators. One important finding of this work is that for Si/SiGe devices, utilizing the optimal range of wavelengths might be required for these optical processes to properly emulate the effects of charged particles. This effort has resulted in an improved understanding of the nuances in charge deposition from non-linear optical processes that will inform new approaches to better emulate the effects of charged particles on semiconductor devices. This result will, in turn, enable a wider range of PL-SEE experiments and test campaigns that would alleviate the strain imposed by the limited availability of particle accelerators on the development of robust electronics for space environments. Increased access to alternative testing techniques will result in a shorter timeline from development to deployment of critical space assets.