RECENT DEVELOPMENTS OF DIRECT BONDED COPPER(DBC)SUBSTRATES FOR POWER MODULES

DBC substrates are the standard circuit boardsfor power modules. Using the DBC technologythick copper foils (0.125mm - 0.Tmm) arecladded to Alumina or Aluminum Nitride,The strong adhesion of the copper to ceramicbond reduces the thermal expansion coefficientin horizontal direction only slightly above theTEC of the ceramic itself. This allows directsilicon attach of large dies without using TECcontrolling layers.As DBC technology is using copper foils,integralleads overhanging the ceramic can be realized...

A Novel Multiple DBC-staked units Package to Parallel More Chips for SiC Power Module

Silicon carbide(SiC) power modules play an essential role in the electric vehicle drive system. To improve their performance, reduce their size, and increase production efficiency, this paper proposes a multiple staked direct bonded copper(DBC) unit based power module packaging method to parallel more chips. This method utilizes mutual inductance cancellation effect to reduce parasitic inductance. Because the conduction area in the new package is doubled, the overall area of power module can be reduced. Entire power module is divided into smaller units to enhance manufacture yield, and improve design freedom. This paper provides a detailed design, analysis and fabrication procedure for the proposed package structure. Additionally, this paper offers several feasible solutions for the connection between power terminals and DBC untis. With the structure, 18dies were paralleled for each phase-leg in a econodual size power module. Both simulation and double pulse test results demonstrate that, compared to conventional layouts, the proposed package method has 74.8% smaller parasitic inductance and 34.9% lower footprint.

Review of Thermal Design of SiC Power Module for Motor Drive in Electrical Vehicle Application

In the current vehicle electric propulsion systems,the thermal design of power modules heavily relies on empirical knowledge,making it challenging to effectively optimize irregularly arranged Pinfin structures,thereby limiting their performance.This paper aims to review the underlying mechanisms of how irregularly arranged Pinfins influence the thermal characteristics of power modules and introduce collaborative thermal design with DC bus capacitor and motor.Literature considers chip size,placement,coolant flow direction with the goal of reducing thermal resistance of power modules,minimizing chip junction temperature differentials,and optimizing Pinfin layouts.In the first step,algorithms should efficiently generating numerous unique irregular Pinfin layouts to enhance optimization quality.The second step is to efficiently evaluate Pinfin layouts.Simulation accuracy and speed should be ensured to improve computational efficiency.Finally,to improve overall heat dissipation effectiveness,papers establish models for capacitors,motors,to aid collaborative Pinfin optimization.These research outcomes will provide essential support for future developments in high power density motor drive for vehicles.

Trap Characteristics and Their Temperature-dependence of Silicone Gel for Encapsulation in IGBT Power Modules

Silicone gel is a prevailing material for encapsulation in insulated gate bipolar transistor(IGBT)power modules.The space charge transport behavior in silicone gel is significant to evaluate the electrical insulation characteristics.This paper focuses on the trap characteristics and electrical properties of the silicone gel,which were rarely studied before.The experiments are performed on the surface potential decay of silicone gel after the charge injection.Then,the energy distributions of electron or hole traps are determined by a double-trap energy level model,which can be fitted by the Gaussian distribution.In addition,the mobilities of positive and negative charges are determined,which are 1.38×10^(-12) m^(2)·V^(-1)·s^(-1) and 1.74×10^(12) m^(2)·V^(-1)·s^(-1),respectively.Furthermore,considering the heat as a byproduct resulting in thermal issues,the temperature-dependence of surface potential decay characteristics are also studied in this paper.When temperature rises,the decay rate of surface potential increases,especially when the temperature is higher than 80℃.Finally,the contrastive analysis illustrates that the trap characteristics of silicone gel are between the trap characteristics in liquid-state material and solid-state material,which supports the phenomenon that silicone gel is more resistive to the sharp edges in power modules.This work can provide a useful reference for the design of encapsulation in high-voltage IGBT power modules.

PS-modules over Rings of Generalized Power Series

Let R be a commutative ring and (S, ≤) a strictly totally ordered monoid which satisfies the condition that 0 ≤ s for every s ∈ S. In this paper we show that if RM is a PS-module, then the module [[MS≤]] of generalized power series over M is a PS [[RS,≤]]-module.

A Study of Efficient Power Consumption Wireless Communication Techniques/ Modules for Internet of Things (IoT) Applications

A study of wireless technologies for IoT applications in terms of power consumption has been presented in this paper. The study focuses on the importance of using low power wireless techniques and modules in IoT applications by introducing a comparative between different low power wireless communication techniques such as ZigBee, Low Power Wi-Fi, 6LowPAN, LPWA and their modules to conserve power and longing the life for the IoT network sensors. The approach of the study is in term of protocol used and the particular module that achieve that protocol. The candidate protocols are classified according to the range of connectivity between sensor nodes. For short ranges connectivity the candidate protocols are ZigBee, 6LoWPAN and low power Wi-Fi. For long connectivity the candidate is LoRaWAN protocol. The results of the study demonstrate that the choice of module for each protocol plays a vital role in battery life due to the difference of power consumption for each module/protocol. So, the evaluation of protocols with each other depends on the module used.

Failure Analysis of Ceramic Substrates Used in High Power IGBT Modules

High voltage power modules are used in numerous applications to build high power converters. Technically, these modules are made of different materials and among them, dielectric materials are organic and inorganic. Organic insulators (gels) are used to avoid corona discharges in the vicinity of connecting wires and high voltage dies (diodes and transistors) and to protect them from moisture and contaminants. Inorganic insulators (ceramic substrates) are used to insulate the high voltage which dies from the grounded elements and to transfer heat to the heat sink. Despite being used since the late 90s, there is a lack of fundamental knowledge about the electrical properties of these substrates. Consequently, manufacturers tend to assure the reliability by over sizing them. As there are no clear rules for how to do that, failures occur, leading to the converter shutdown. The aim of this study is to bring new information about the understanding of the dielectric strength of ceramic materials used in these modules. We have focused our work on the correlation between the mechanical and the dielectric properties of ceramics by using relevant experiments. We provide new information about the impact of existing cracks on the ceramic dielectric failure, according to the electromechanical breakdown model. Our conclusions bring crucial information about the precautions to be taken during manufacturing and implementation of these substrates in power modules to reduce the likelihood of the particular causes of failure.

Performance and Stability of Supercapacitor Modules based on Porous Carbon Electrodes in Hybrid Powertrain

Hybrid power sources have attracted much attention in the electric vehicle area. Particularly, electric-electric hybrid powertrain system consisting of supercapacitor modules and lithium-ion batteries has been widely applied because of the high power density of supercapacitors. In this study, we design a hybrid powertrain system containing two porous carbon electrode-based supercapacitor modules in parallel and one lithium ion battery pack. With the construction of the testing station, the performance and stability of the used supercapacitor modules are investigated in correlation with the structure of the supercapacitor and the nature of the electrode materials applied. It has been shown that the responding time for voltage vibration from 20 V to 48.5 V during charging or discharging process decreases from about 490 s to 94 s with the increase in applied current from 20 A to 100 A. The capacitance of the capacitor modules is nearly independent on the applied current. With the designed setup, the energy efficiency can reach as high as 0.99. The results described here provide a guidance for material selection of supercapacitors and optimized controlling strategy for hybrid power system applied in electric vehicles.

Integrated power electronics module based on chip scale packaged power devices

High performance can be obtained for the integrated power electronics module（IPEM） by using a three-dimensional packaging structure instead of a planar structure. A three- dimensional packaged half bridge-IPEM （HB-IPEM）, consisting of two chip scale packaged MOSFETs and the corresponding gate driver and protection circuits, is fabricated at the laboratory. The reliability of the IPEM is controlled from the shape design of solder joints and the control of assembly process parameters. The parasitic parameters are extracted using Agilent 4395A impedance analyzer for building the parasitic parameter model of the HB- IPEM. A 12 V/3 A output synchronous rectifier Buck converter using the HB-IPEM is built to test the electrical performance of the HB-IPEM. Low voltage spikes on two MOSFETs illustrate that the three-dimensional package of the HB-IPEM can decrease parasitic inductance. Temperature distribution simulation results of the HB-IPEM using FLOTHERM are given. Heat dissipation of the solder joints makes the peak junction temperature of the chip drop obviously. The package realizes three-dimensional heat dissipation and has better thermal management.

Thermal fatigue behaviors of SiC power module by Ag sinter joining under harsh thermal shock test

The excellent properties of SiC bring new challenges for the device packaging.In this study,the bonding strength,fracture behaviors and microstructural evolution of micron-porous Ag joint were elevated during thermal cycling(–50 ℃–250 ℃) in SiC/DBC(direct bonding copper) die attachment structure for different time.During harsh thermal shock test,the strength of sintered joint deceased gradually with the increase of cycling number,and the value just was half of the value of as-sintered after 1 000 cycles.Coarsening of Ag grains was observed in micron-porous joint with the structure inhomogeneity and defects increasing,which were the reasons of the strength decease.In addition,it was also found that the fracture behavior of sintered joints was changed from ductile deformation of Ag grain to brittle fracture of crack propagation after 1 000 cycles.This study will add the understanding in the mechanical properties of Ag sinter joining and its applications at high temperature.

Improving thermal efficiency and stability of laser welding process for magnesium alloy by combining power modulation and subatmospheric pressure environment

The laser welding(LW)process of highly reflective materials presents low thermal efficiency and poor stability.To solve the problem,the effects of subatmospheric environment on LW process,technological parameters in subatmospheric environment on weld formation and welding with sinusoidal modulation of laser power on the stability of LW process in subatmospheric environment were explored.The AZ31magnesium(Mg)alloy was used as the test materials.The test result revealed that the weld penetration in subatmospheric environment can increase by more than ten times compared with that under normal pressure.After the keyhole depth greatly rises,significantly periodic local bulge is observed on the backwall surface of the keyhole and the position of the bulge shifts along the direction of the keyhole depth.Eventually,the hump-shaped surface morphology of the welded seam is formed;moreover,the weld width in local zones in the lower part of the welded seam remarkably grows.During LW in subatmospheric environment,the weld penetration can be further greatly increased through power modulation.Besides,power modulation can inhibit the occurrence of bulges in local zones on the backwall of the keyhole during LW in subatmospheric environment,thus further curbing the significant growth of the weld widths of hump-shaped welding beads and local zones in the lower part of welded seams.Finally,the mechanism of synchronously improving the thermal efficiency and stability of LW process of highly reflective materials through power modulation in subatmospheric environment was illustrated.This was conducted according to theoretical analysis of recoil pressure and observation results of dynamic behaviors of laser induced plasma clouds and keyholes in the molten pool through high speed photography.

Development of 8 MW Power Supply Based on Pulse Step Modulation Technique for Auxiliary Heating System on HL-2A

The high voltage power supply （HVPS） based on pulse step modulation （PSM） has already been developed for the auxiliary heating system on HL-2A. This power supply consists of many switch power supplies, and its output voltage can be obtained by modulating their delay time and pulse widths. The PSM topology and control principle are presented in this paper. The simple algorithms for the control system are explained clearly. The switch power supply （SPS） module has been built and the test results show it can meet the requirements of the auxiliary heating system. Now, 112 SPS modules and the whole system have already been developed. Its maximum output is about 72 kV/93 A. The protection time is less than 5 t＊s. The different outputs of this power supply are used for the electron cyclotron resonant heating （ECRH） system with different duty ratios. The experimental results of the entire system are presented. The results indicate that the whole system can meet the requirements of the auxiliary heating system on HL-2A.

Application and Research of High-Power Electric Servo System on Launch Vehicle

The 30 kW high-power electric servo system used in the solid booster of the Long March 6 A(LM-6 A)launch vehicle is introduced,and the function,composition of the system as well as its constituent equipments are detailed.To solve the problem of out-of-tolerance in the system dynamic characteristics,an advanced correction network algorithm architecture and double notch filter were designed.Experimental verification was conducted to prove that the dynamic characteristics requirement under multiple operating conditions could be met.

Experimental Determination of the ICRF Power Depositing on the Electrons in HT-7

This paper reports for the first time an experimental study on the power deposition profile of the ion cyclotron range frequencies （ICRF） power depositing on electrons in HT-7. The fast Fourier transform （FFT） analysis and the break in slope （BIS） method are utilized to obtain the information of the power deposition. The results indicate that the electrons were heated directly, and the electrons absorbed around 20% of the input power of the discharge of interest.

Optimization Design for a High Voltage DC Power Supply Module Based on PSM Technology

Pulse step modulator （PSM） topology is applied to the EAST auxiliary heating system, which consists of a neutral beam injection （NBI） and the related microwave heating system. This paper firstly analyzes the merits and demerits of the traditional PSM modules adopted by other international companies, and then optimizes the topology of the module using the analysis results. Finally, a new topology for the PSM module （a three-phase neutral-point diode-clamped rectifier） is proposed. This new module overcomes the problems of traditional modules and has better cost-effective performance. The experimental results verify that the new module is feasible for engineering applications.

MULTICARRIER DS-CDMA WITH ADAPTIVE MODULATION AND POWER ALLOCATION

Adaptive modulation and power allocation is introduced into the multicarrier DS-CDMA system to improve the system performance and bandwidth efficiency. First, the systemdesign appropriate for adaptive modulation and power allocation is given, then the algorithmof adaptive modulation and power allocation is applied. Simulation results demonstrate greatperformance improvement compared with the fixed modulated one.

Dynamic Performance of Fuel Cell Power Module for Mobility Applications

Fuel cell powered vehicles have been developed as another alternative to internal combustion engine powered vehicles for some applications including passenger cars, buses, trains, motorcycles, forklifts, electric wheelchairs, electric trolleybuses, medical carts, military engines, personal sports craft, mobility devices and other self propelled equipment. Up to now, many researches have focused on the development of the power module in the Fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) and the components of these systems such as membranes, bipolar plates, and electrodes. However, our work in this study focuses on operating the integrated fuel cell power module system efficiently for various operating conditions such as pressure, relative humidity and operating modes. In our validation we have utilized PEMFC single cell, with active area geometry 16 cm2 and of 120 cm2. Some results obtained in our study shown significant performance indicators for PEMFC stack (composed of 2 cells and 4 cells in a series) at different humidification levels.

Electric Vehicle IM Controller Based on Voltage-Fed Inverter

A novel electric vehicle (EV) induction motor (IM) controller based on voltage-fed inverter is presented. It is shown that the proposed adaptive control algorithm effectively both simplifies the structure and expands the capacity of controller. The relationship between stator's voltage and that of current under rotor's flux-oriented-coordinates is first introduced, and then the structure of vector control is analyzed, in which voltage compensation is inducted as the core feedback procedure. Experiments prove that, together with a facility for realization, a smooth transition, a prompt torque response and small concussion are gained. Extensive research conducted by varying parameters that result in practical ripple is proposed in conclusion.

Ceramic-copper substrate technology introduction

Ceramic-copper substrate is used to achieve the combination between copper and ceramic(Al_(2)O_(3) or AlN)under high temperatures by bonding or brazing process,then through dedicate lamination–etching technology to develop the designed layout in copper surface,finally parts go with plating and singulation process for surface treatment before shipping to the end-user.Ceramic-copper substrate has perfect performance in terms of insulation,thermal conductivity,solderability,and adhesion strength.Besides,the copper on surface can afford huge current due to the fact that ceramic has good reliability and thermal-cycling performance.According to technical visit and audit to suppliers’manufacturing process and based on several years’experience of mass production for electric vehicle power module package,this article introduces two mainstream ceramic-copper substrate processing methods currently on the market:direct bond copper(DBC)and active metal brazing(AMB)which can be widely used for the intelligent power module and electric vehicle power module,also introduces the major failure mode during application and analyzes the root cause for each failure mode,clarifies key incoming monitoring method,like crosshatch,silver plating thickness measurement and blister test.This article also clarifies the Incoming Quality Control system,which can provide guidance to process engineer during the application.

A Compact Dual-Port Multi-Band Rectifier Circuit for RF Energy Harvesting

This paper presents a compact multi-band rectifier with an improved impedance matching bandwidth.It uses a combination of–matching network(MN)at Port-1,with a parallel connection of three cell branch MN at Port-2.The proposed impedance matching network(IMN)is adopted to reduce circuit complexity,to improve circuit performance,and power conversion efficiency(PCE)of the rectifier at low input power.The fabricated rectifier prototype operates at 0.92,1.82,2.1,2.46 and 2.65 GHz covering GSM/900,GSM/1800,UMTS2100,and Wi-Fi/2.45–LTE2600.The size of the compact rectifier on the PCB board is 0.13λ_(g)×0.1λ_(g).The fabricated rectifier achieved an RF-to DC(radio frequency direct current)PCE of 31.8%,24%,22.7%,and 15%,and 14.1%for−20 dBm at the five respective measured operating frequencies.The circuit attains a peak RF-to-DC PCE of 82.3%for an input power of 3 dBm at 0.92 GHz.The proposed rectifier realizes an ambient output dc voltage of 454 mV for multi-tone input signals from the two ports.The rectifier drives a bq25504-674 power management module(PMM)to achieve 1.21 V from the two-port connection.The rectifier has the ability to exploit both frequency domain through the multi-band operation with good impedance bandwidth and a spatial domain using dual-port configuration.Hence,it is a potential candidate for various applications in radio frequency energy harvesting(RFEH)system.