WG 4 - TC 107/WG 4

IEC 62396-8:2020 is intended to provide awareness and guidance with regard to the effects of small particles (that is, protons, electrons, pions and muon fluxes) and single event effects on avionics electronics used in aircraft operating at altitudes up to 60 000 feet (18 300 m). This is an emerging topic and lacks substantive supporting data. This document is intended to help aerospace or ground level electronic equipment manufacturers and designers by providing awareness guidance for this new emerging topic.
Details of the radiation environment are provided together with identification of potential problems caused as a result of the atmospheric radiation received. Appropriate methods are given for quantifying single event effect (SEE) rates in electronic components.

IEC 62396-2:2017(E) aims to provide guidance related to the testing of electronic components for purposes of measuring their susceptibility to single event effects (SEE) induced by neutrons generated by cosmic ray interactions in the Earth’s atmosphere (atmospheric neutrons). Since the testing can be performed in a number of different ways, using different kinds of radiation sources, it also shows how the test data can be used to estimate the SEE rate of electronic components and boards due to atmospheric neutrons at aircraft altitudes. Although developed for the avionics industry, this process can be applied by other industrial sectors.

IEC 62396-1:2016(E) is available as IEC 62396-1:2016 RLV which contains the International Standard and its Redline version, showing all changes of the technical content compared to the previous edition.
IEC 62396-1:2016(E) provides guidance on atmospheric radiation effects on avionics electronics used in aircraft operating at altitudes up to 60 000 ft (18,3 km). It defines the radiation environment, the effects of that environment on electronics and provides design considerations for the accommodation of those effects within avionics systems. This International Standard helps aerospace equipment manufacturers and designers to standardise their approach to single event effects in avionics by providing guidance, leading to a standard methodology. This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition:
- incorporation of references to some new papers and issues which have appeared since 2011;
- addition of solar flares and extreme space weather reference to a proposed future Part 6;
- addition of reference to a proposed new Part 7 on incorporating atmospheric radiation effects analysis into the system design process;
- addition of a reference to a proposed future Part 8 on other particles including protons, pions and muons.