Reliability study of opto-coupled semiconductor devices and Light Emitting Diodes (LED)
Opto-coupler and light emitting diode (LED) failure mechanisms and associated activation energies were determind from the results of environmental and accelerated lift tests of over 2,400 devices. The evaluation program included LED phototransistor opto-couplers from three sources, LED photoamplifier opto-couplers from a single source, and discrete infrared emitting LEDs from two sources. Environmental tests to evaluate device mechanical integrity included power cycling (10,000 cycles), temperature cycling (500 cycles) and a sequence of monitored shock, monitored vibration and constant acceleration. Multiple temperature operating life tests were conducted at ambient temperatures between 25 C and 200 C. Opto-couplers were operated in both the 'on' and 'off' states during life testing.