Single Event Upset

[Altera_Forum]

Hi  

 I am designing a control system that is intended to be used in a safety critical system. I am aware that SEU affect FPGAs in the atmosphere but do they pose a threat at ground level and below ground level?  Also can radio frequency cause any problems for FPGAs?     I’m not sure if microcontrollers suffer from the effects of SEU?  Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated    Thanks    Steve

[Altera_Forum]

All electronic components are susceptible to SEU's at some point. I suggest you read 

 www.altera.com/literature/wp/wp-01135-stxv-seu-mitigation.pdf and www.altera.com/literature/wp/wp-01012.pdf  In general, on the ground it's not a big deal, but in aircraft, and space, it's a significant concern. Flash based devices are more robust than ram based devices, so if you can fit the design in a flashed based CPLD, it would be less likely to have issues. (IE Max series)  If you need more functionality than a CPLD, Actel (Now MicroSemi) makes flashed based and fuse based fpgas. They are on the smaller scale, but some of the fuse based guys are certified for space applications.  Pete