HOT-ELECTRON PROGRAMMABLE LATCH FOR INTEGRATED CIRCUIT FUSE APPLICATIONS AND METHOD OF PROGRAMMING THEREFOR

A method and apparatus for conditioning an integrated circuit to always enter a desired operating state when actuated by permanently altering at least one component device. An integrated circuit is provided with at least one component transistor wherein a constant high voltage is applied only once to the drain electrode of the transistor for one predetermined period of time while concurrently a constant voltage lower than the high voltage is applied only once to the gate electrode of the transistor, thus causing a permanent channel hot-electron alteration of a gate oxide of the transistor. The integrated circuit may include a plurality of programmable circuits, each capable of assuming a plurality of readable data states when powered up, and each including a plurality of programmable devices for permanently biasing its corresponding programmable circuit to assume one of the readable states upon subsequent power ups.