Electrothermal Modelling and Measurements of Parallel-Connected V_TH Mismatched SiC MOSFETs under Inductive Load Switching

Abstract:

In high current applications that use several parallel-connected SiC MOSFETs (e.g., automotive traction inverters), optimal current sharing is integral to overall system reliability. Threshold voltage (VTH) variation in SiC MOSFETs is a prevalent reliability issue that can cause current mismatch in parallel-connected devices. Using experimental measurements and compact modelling, a technique has been developed for characterising the impact of VTH variation in up to 8 parallel-connected SiC MOSFETs. This model can predict the allowable VTH variation for optimal current sharing. It can also be used to evaluate the impact of other parameters, including gate driver synchronisation, on current sharing in parallel devices.

• Periodical: Materials Science Forum (Volume 1062)
• Pages: 533-538
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/p-z4mz75
• Online since: May 2022
• Authors: Simon Mendy*, Rui Zhu Wu, Jose Ortiz-Gonzalez, Olayiwola Alatise
• Keywords: Current Sharing, Device Under Test - DUT, FET, Gate Synchronisation, Inductive Load Switching, Parallel-Connected MOSFETs, SiC-MOSFET, Threshold Voltage Mismatch

References

[1] R. Wu, S. Mendy, J. O. Gonzalez, S. Jahdi and O. Alatise, Current Sharing of Parallel SiC MOSFETs under Short Circuit Conditions," 2021 23rd European Conference on Power Electronics and Applications (EPE,21 ECCE Europe), 2021, pp.1-9.

DOI: 10.23919/epe21ecceeurope50061.2021.9570690

[2] R. Wu, S. Mendy, N. Agbo, J. Ortiz Gonzalez, S. Jahdi, and O. Alatise. 2021. Performance of Parallel Connected SiC MOSFETs under Short Circuits Conditions, Energies 14, no. 20: 6834.

DOI: 10.3390/en14206834

[3] R. Wu, S. N. Agbo, S. Mendy, E. Bashar, S. Jahdi, O. Gonzalez, et al., Measurement and simulation of short circuit current sharing under parallel connection: SiC MOSFETs and SiC Cascode JFETs,, Microelectronics Reliability, vol. 126,p.114271, (2021).

DOI: 10.1016/j.microrel.2021.114271

[4] J. Hu et al., Robustness and Balancing of Parallel-Connected Power Devices: SiC Versus CoolMOS,, in IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, vol. 63, no. 4, pp.2092-2102, April 2016,.

DOI: 10.1109/tie.2015.2500187

[5] J. Hu, O. Alatise, J. A. O. González, R. Bonyadi, L. Ran and P. A. Mawby, The Effect of Electrothermal Nonuniformities on Parallel Connected SiC Power Devices Under Unclamped and Clamped Inductive Switching,, in IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics, vol. 31, no. 6, pp.4526-4535, June 2016,.

DOI: 10.1109/tpel.2015.2477831

[6] 2016. Power MOSFET Basics: Understanding Gate Charge and Using it to Assess Switching Performance. [ebook] Vishay, pp.1-2. Available at: <https://www.vishay.com/docs/73217/an608a.pdf> [Accessed 18 October 2021].

[7] Li, W., Mao, S., Yang, S., Ding, Y. and Zeng, K., 2021. Modeling and Analysis of the Switching Characteristics Difference for Paralleling SiC MOSFETs in Multichip Power Modules,. 2021 IEEE Workshop on Wide Bandgap Power Devices and Applications in Asia (WiPDA Asia). [online] Wuhan: IEEE, p.217,222.

DOI: 10.1109/wipdaasia51810.2021.9656044

[8] Li, H., Munk-Nielsen, S., Wang, X., Maheshwari, R., Beczkowski, S., Uhrenfeldt, C. and Franke, W., 2015. Influence of Device and Circuit Mismatch on Paralleling Silicon Carbide MOSFETs,. IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics ( Volume: 31, Issue: 1, Jan. 2016). [online] IEEE, pp.621-633.

DOI: 10.1109/tpel.2015.2408054

[9] Wei, Y., Woldegiorgis, D., Du, X., Machireddy, V. and Mantooth, A., 2021. Comprehensive Investigations on Paralleling Operation of SiC MOSFETs based on Subbcircuit Model in MATLAB/SIMULINK,. 2021 IEEE Workshop on Wide Bandgap Power Devices and Applications in Asia (WiPDA Asia). [online] Wuhan: IEEE, p.176.

DOI: 10.1109/wipdaasia51810.2021.9656101

[10] M'Sirdi, Nacer et al. (2019). State Space Models for Power SiC MOSFET: ICEERE (2018).

[11] M. Jin et al. A Temperature-Dependent SiC MOSFET Modeling Method Based on MATLAB/Simulink,, in IEEE Access, vol. 6, pp.4497-4505, (2018).

DOI: 10.1109/access.2017.2776898

[12] H. Linewih and S. Dimitrijev, Channel-carrier mobility parameters for 4H SiC MOSFETs,, 2002, pp.425-430 vol.2.

DOI: 10.1109/miel.2002.1003290

[13] J. O. Gonzalez, R. Wu, S. Jahdi and O. Alatise, Performance and Reliability Review of 650 V and 900 V Silicon and SiC Devices: MOSFETs, Cascode JFETs and IGBTs,, in IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, vol. 67, no. 9, pp.7375-7385, Sept. 2020,.

DOI: 10.1109/tie.2019.2945299