Recent developments in superjunction power devices

Abstract:Superjunction(SJ)is one of the most innovative concepts in the field of power semiconductor devices and is often referred to as a"milestone"in power MOS.Its balanced charge field modulation mechanism breaks through the strong dependency between the doping concentration in the drift region and the breakdown voltage V_(B)in conventional devices.This results in a reduction of the trade-off relationship between specific on-resistance R_(on,sp)and V_(B)from the conventional R_(on,sp)∝V_(B)^(2.5)to R_(on,sp)∝W·V_(B)^(1.32),and even to R_(on,sp)∝W·V_(B)^(1.03).As the exponential term coefficient decreases,R_(on,sp)decreases with the cell width W,exhibiting a development pattern reminiscent of"Moore's Law".This paper provides an overview of the latest research developments in SJ power semiconductor devices.Firstly,it introduces the minimum specific on-resistance R_(on,min)theory of SJ devices,along with its combination with special effects like 3-D depletion and tunneling,discussing the development of R_(on,min)theory in the wide bandgap SJ field.Subsequently,it discusses the latest advancements in silicon-based and wide bandgap SJ power devices.Finally,it introduces the homogenization field(HOF)and high-K voltage-sustaining layers derived from the concept of SJ charge balance.SJ has made significant progress in device performance,reliability,and integration,and in the future,it will continue to evolve through deeper integration with different materials,processes,and packaging technologies,enhancing the overall performance of semiconductor power devices.

Preface to Special Issue on Towards High Performance Ga_(2)O_(3) Electronics: Epitaxial Growth and Power Devices(Ⅰ)

There is currently great optimism within the electronics community that gallium oxide(Ga_(2)O_(3)) ultra-wide bandgap semiconductors have unprecedented prospects for eventually revolutionizing a rich variety of power electronic applications. Specially, benefiting from its ultra-high bandgap of around 4.8 eV, it is expected that the emerging Ga_(2)O_(3) technology would offer an exciting platform to deliver massively enhanced device performance for power electronics and even completely new applications.

Review on failure analysis of interconnections in power devices

Interconnections in microelectronic packaging are not only the physical carrier to realize the function of electronic circuits,but also the weak spots in reliability tests.Most of failures in power devices are caused by the malfunction of interconnections,including failure of bonding wire as well as cracks of solder layer.In fact,the interconnection failure of power devices is the result of a combination of factors such as electricity,temperature,and force.It is significant to investigate the failure mechanisms of various factors for the failure analysis of interconnections in power devices.This paper reviews the main failure modes of bonding wire and solder layer in the interconnection structure of power devices,and its failure mechanism.Then the reliability test method and failure analysis techniques of interconnection in power device are introduced.These methods are of great significance to the reliability analysis and life prediction of power devices.

Modulating properties by light ion irradiation:From novel functional materials to semiconductor power devices

In this review,the application of light ion irradiation is discussed for tailoring novel functional materials and for improving the performance in SiC or Si based electrical power devices.The deep traps and electronic disorder produced by light ion irradiation can modify the electrical,magnetic,and optical properties of films(e.g.,dilute ferromagnetic semiconductors and topological materials).Additionally,benefiting from the high reproducibility,precise manipulation of functional depth and density of defects,as well as the flexible patternability,the helium or proton ion irradiation has been successfully employed in improving the dynamic performance of SiC and Si based PiN diode power devices by reducing their majority carrier lifetime,although the static performance is sacrificed due to deep level traps.Such a trade-off has been regarded as the key point to compromise the static and dynamic performances of power devices.As a result,herein the light ion irradiation is highlighted in both exploring new physics and optimizing the performance in functional materials and electrical devices.

Recent advances in NiO/Ga_(2)O_(3) heterojunctions for power electronics

Beta gallium oxide(β-Ga_(2)O_(3)) has attracted significant attention for applications in power electronics due to its ultrawide bandgap of ~ 4.8 eV and the large critical electric field of 8 MV/cm. These properties yield a high Baliga's figures of merit(BFOM) of more than 3000. Though β-Ga_(2)O_(3) possesses superior material properties, the lack of p-type doping is the main obstacle that hinders the development of β-Ga_(2)O_(3)-based power devices for commercial use. Constructing heterojunctions by employing other p-type materials has been proven to be a feasible solution to this issue. Nickel oxide(NiO) is the most promising candidate due to its wide band gap of 3.6–4.0 eV. So far, remarkable progress has been made in NiO/β-Ga_(2)O_(3) heterojunction power devices. This review aims to summarize recent advances in the construction, characterization, and device performance of the NiO/β-Ga_(2)O_(3) heterojunction power devices. The crystallinity, band structure, and carrier transport property of the sputtered NiO/β-Ga_(2)O_(3) heterojunctions are discussed. Various device architectures, including the NiO/β-Ga_(2)O_(3) heterojunction pn diodes(HJDs), junction barrier Schottky(JBS) diodes, and junction field effect transistors(JFET), as well as the edge terminations and super-junctions based on the NiO/β-Ga_(2)O_(3) heterojunction, are described.

Novel high-voltage, high-side and low-side power devices with a single control signal

Novel high-voltage, high-side and low-side power devices, whose control circuits are referred to as the tub, are proposed and investigated to reduce chip area and improve the reliability of high-voltage integrated circuits. By using the tub circuit to control a branch circuit consisting of a PMOS and a resistor, a pulse signal is generated to control the low-side n-LDMOS after being processed by a low-voltage circuit. Thus, the high-voltage level-shifting circuit is not needed any more, and the parasitic effect of the conventional level-shifting circuit is eliminated. Moreover, the specific on-resistance of the proposed low-side device is reduced by more than 14.3% compared with the conventional one. In the meantime, integrated low-voltage power supplies for the low-voltage circuit and the tub circuit are also proposed. Simulations are performed with MEDICI and SPICE, and the results show that the expectant functions are achieved well.

The effects of radiation damage on power VDMOS devices with composite SiO_2-Si_3N_4 films

Total dose effects and single event effects on radiation-hardened power vertical double-diffusion metal oxide semiconductor（VDMOS） devices with composite SiO2-Si3N4 film gates are investigated.The relationships among the important electrical parameters of the samples with different thickness SiO2-Si3N4 films,such as threshold voltage,breakdown voltage,and on-state resistance in accumulated dose,are discussed.The total dose experiment results show that the breakdown voltage and the on-state resistance barely change with the accumulated dose.However,the relationships between the threshold voltages of the samples and the accumulated dose are more complex,and not only positively drift,but also negatively drift.At the end of the total dose experiment,we select the group of samples which have the smaller threshold voltage shift to carry out the single event effect studies.We find that the samples with appropriate thickness ratio SiO2-Si3N4 films have a good radiation-hardening ability.This method may be useful in solving both the SEGR and the total dose problems with the composite SiO2-Si3N4 films.

Overview of High Voltage SiC Power Semiconductor Devices: Development and Application

Research on high voltage(HV)silicon carbide(SiC)power semiconductor devices has attracted much attention in recent years.This paper overviews the development and status of HV SiC devices.Meanwhile,benefits of HV SiC devices are presented.The technologies and challenges for HV SiC device application in converter design are discussed.The state-of-the-art applications of HV SiC devices are also reviewed.

A landscape of β-Ga_(2)O_(3) Schottky power diodes

β-Ga_(2)O_(3) Schottky barrier diodes have undergone rapid progress in research and development for power electronic applications.This paper reviews state-of-the-art β-Ga_(2)O_(3) rectifier technologies,including advanced diode architectures that have enabled lower reverse leakage current via the reduced-surface-field effect.Characteristic device properties including onresistance,breakdown voltage,rectification ratio,dynamic switching,and nonideal effects are summarized for the different devices.Notable results on the high-temperature resilience of β-Ga_(2)O_(3) Schottky diodes,together with the enabling thermal packaging solutions,are also presented.

The Advent of Wide Bandgap Green-Synthesized Copper Zinc Tin Sulfide Nanoparticles for Applications in Optical and Electronic Devices

Power-electronic devices are widely used in various applications, such as voltage and frequency control for transmitting and converting electric power. As these devices are becoming increasingly important, there is a need to reduce their losses and improve their performance to reduce electric power consumption. Current power semiconductor devices, such as inverters, are made of silicon (Si), but the performance of these Si power devices is reaching its limit due to physical properties and energy bandgap. To address this issue, recent developments in wide bandgap (WBG) semiconductor materials, such as silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN), offer the potential for a new generation of power semiconductor devices that can perform significantly better than silicon-based devices. In this research, a green synthesized copper-zinc-tin-sulfide (CZTS) nanoparticle is proposed as a new WBG semiconductor material that could be used for optical and electronic devices. Its synthesis, consisting of the production methods and materials used, is discussed. The characterization is also discussed, and further research is recommended in the later sections to enable the continual advancement of this technology.

X-Band GaN Power HEMTs with Power Density of 2.23 W/mm Grown on Sapphire by MOCVD

The growth, fabrication, and characterization of 0. 2μm gate-length AlGaN/GaN HEMTs, with a high mobility GaN thin layer as a channel,grown on （0001） sapphire substrates by MOCVD,are described. The unintentionally doped 2.5μm thick GaN epilayers grown with the same conditions as the GaN channel have a room temperature electron mobility of 741cmz^2（V· s） at an electron concentration of 1.52 × 10^16 cm^-3. The resistivity of the thick GaN buffer layer is greater than 10^8Ω· cm at room temperature. The 50mm HEMT wafers grown on sapphire substrates show an average sheet resistance of 440.9Ω□ with uniformity better than 96%. Devices of 0.2μm× 40μm gate periphery exhibit a maximum extrinsic transconductance of 250mS/mm and a current gain cutoff frequency of 77GHz. The AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with 0.8mm gate width display a total output power of 1.78W （2.23W/mm） and a linear gain of 13.3dB at 8GHz. The power devices also show a saturated current density as high as 1.07A/mm at a gate bias of 0.5V.

The Research and Application of the Anti-Interference Techniques of Electronic Device in Power System

This paper presents the study and application of the electronic device anti-interference techniques underhigh voltage and/or heavy current electro-magnetic circumstance in power system.[

Investigation on the Oscillating Buoy Wave Power Device

An oscillating buoy wave power device (OD) is a device extracting wave power by an oscillating buoy. Being excited by waves, the buoy heaves up and down to convert wave energy into electricity by means of a mechanical or hydraulic device. Compared with an Oscillating Water Column (OWC) wave power device, the OD has the same capture width ratio as the OWC does, but much higher secondary conversion efficiency. Moreover, the chamber of the OWC, which is the most expensive and difficult part to be built, is not necessary for the OD, so it is easier to construct an OD. In this paper, a numerical calculation is conducted for an optimal design of the OD firstly, then a model of the device is built and, a model test is carried out in a wave tank. The results show that the total efficiency of the OD is much higher than that of the OWC and that the OD is a promising wave power device.

Progress of power field effect transistor based on ultra-wide bandgap Ga_2O_3 semiconductor material

As a promising ultra-wide bandgap semiconductor, gallium oxide(Ga_2O_3) has attracted increasing attention in recent years. The high theoretical breakdown electrical field(8 MV/cm), ultra-wide bandgap(～ 4.8 eV) and large Baliga's figure of merit(BFOM) of Ga_2O_3 make it a potential candidate material for next generation high-power electronics, including diode and field effect transistor(FET). In this paper, we introduce the basic physical properties of Ga_2O_3 single crystal, and review the recent research process of Ga_2O_3 based field effect transistors. Furthermore, various structures of FETs have been summarized and compared, and the potential of Ga_2O_3 is preliminary revealed. Finally, the prospect of the Ga_2O_3 based FET for power electronics application is analyzed.

Experimental Study on Hydrodynamic Characteristics of Vertical-Axis Floating Tidal Current Energy Power Generation Device

To study the characteristics of attenuation, hydrostatic towage and wave response of the vertical-axis floating tidal current energy power generation device （VAFTCEPGD）, a prototype is designed and experiment is carried out in the towing tank. Free decay is conducted to obtain attenuation characteristics of the VAFTCEPGD, and characteristics of mooring forces and motion response, floating condition, especially the lateral displacement of the VAFTCEPGD are obtained from the towing in still water. Tension response of the #1 mooring line and vibration characteristics of the VAFTCEPGD in regular waves as well as in level 4 irregular wave sea state with the current velocity of 0.6 m/s. The results can be reference for theoretical study and engineering applications related to VAFTCEPGD.

Hydrodynamic Analysis of a Semi-submersible Wind-Tidal Combined Power Generation Device

Energy shortages and environmental pollution are becoming increasingly severe globally. The exploitation and utilization of renewable energy have become an effective way to alleviate these problems. To improve power production capacity, power output quality, and cost effectiveness, comprehensive marine energy utilization has become an inevitable trend in marine energy development. Based on a semi-submersible wind-tidal combined power generation device,a three-dimensional frequency domain potential flow theory is used to study the hydrodynamic performance of such a device. For this study, the RAOs and hydrodynamic coefficients of the floating carrier platform to the regular wave were obtained. The influence of the tidal turbine on the platform in terms of frequency domain was considered as added mass and damping. The direct load of the tidal turbine was obtained by CFX.FORTRAN software was used for the second development of adaptive query workload aware software, which can include the external force. The motion response of the platform to the irregular wave and the tension of the mooring line were calculated under the limiting condition(one mooring line breakage). The results showed that the motion response of the carrier to the surge and sway direction is more intense, but the swing amplitude is within the acceptable range. Even in the worst case scenario, the balance position of the platform was still in the positioning range, which met the requirements of the working sea area. The safety factor of the mooring line tension also complied with the requirements of the design specification. Therefore, it was found that the hydrodynamic performance and motion responses of a semi-submersible wind-tidal combined power generation device can meet the power generation requirements under all design conditions, and the device presents a reliable power generation system.

Massive Power Device Condition Monitoring Data Feature Extraction and Clustering Analysis using MapReduce and Graph Model

Effective storage,processing and analyzing of power device condition monitoring data faces enormous challenges.A framework is proposed that can support both MapReduce and Graph for massive monitoring data analysis at the same time based on Aliyun DTplus platform.First,power device condition monitoring data storage based on MaxCompute table and parallel permutation entropy feature extraction based on MaxCompute MapReduce are designed and implemented on DTplus platform.Then,Graph based k-means algorithm is implemented and used for massive condition monitoring data clustering analysis.Finally,performance tests are performed to compare the execution time between serial program and parallel program.Performance is analyzed from CPU cores consumption,memory utilization and parallel granularity.Experimental results show that the designed framework and parallel algorithms can efficiently process massive power device condition monitoring data.

A Review of Gallium Nitride Power Device and Its Applications in Motor Drive

Wide band-gap gallium nitride(GaN)device has the advantages of large band-gap,high electron mobility and low dielectric constant.Compared with traditional Si devices,these advantages make it suitable for fast-switching and high-power-density power electronics converters,thus reducing the overall weight,volume and power consumption of power electronic systems.As a review paper,this paper summarizes the characteristics and development of the state-of-art GaN power devices with different structures,analyzes the research status,and forecasts the application prospect of GaN devices.In addition,the problems and challenges of GaN devices were discussed.And thanks to the advantages of GaN devices,both the power density and efficiency of motor drive system are improved,which also have been presented in this paper.

A review of manufacturing technologies for silicon carbide superjunction devices

Superjunction technology is believed to reach the optimal specific on-resistance and breakdown voltage trade-off.It has become a mainstream technology in silicon high-voltage metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor devices.Numerous efforts have been conducted to employ the same concept in silicon carbide devices.These works are summarized here.

Traction power substation balance and losses estimation in AC railways using a power transfer device through Monte Carlo analysis

The high dynamic power requirements present in modern railway transportation systems raise research challenges for an optimal operation of railway electrification. This paper presents a Monte Carlo analysis on the application of a power transfer device installed in the neutral zone and exchanging active power between two sections. The main analyzed parameters are the active power balance in the two neighbor traction power substations and the system power losses. A simulation framework is presented to comprise the desired analysis and a universe of randomly distributed scenarios are tested to evaluate the effectiveness of the power transfer device system. The results show that the density of trains and the relative branch length of a traction power substation should be considered in the evaluation phase of the best place to install a power transfer device, towards the reduction of the operational power losses, while maintaining the two substations balanced in terms of active power.