1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to a pulse test circuit, and more specifically, to a pulse test circuit using a transmission line.
2. Related Art
A Transmission Line Pulse (TLP) test system is commonly used to characterize electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection devices using rectangular high voltage/current pulses. Pulse reflections can occur in the TLP system due to changes in the signal line impedance, for example at one end of the transmission line or at the device under test (DUT). These reflections can cause parasitic pulses at the DUT in addition to the main test pulse. If the DUT exhibits a strongly nonlinear behavior, for example a diode that has a low resistance in forward mode and a high resistance in reverse mode, a parasitic pulse of opposite polarity can destroy the DUT due to reverse breakdown before the TLP test sequence reaches the actual DUT failure level in forward mode. This poses a significant problem for TLP device characterization.