Performance of 4H-SiC Bipolar Diodes as Temperature Sensor at Low Temperatures

Abstract:

In this paper we report on the performance of 4H-SiC bipolar diodes as temperature sensors far beyond 273K. The sensor is measured from 150K to 445K covering a temperature range of 295K. In this operating temperature range, the sensor characteristic V_D-T is highly linear and it is dominated by the typical dependence of the p-i-n diode voltage on the temperature. The sensor sensitivity is -4.48mV/K for a diode current of 2nA with a maximum error of 4.3K across the full temperature range. Although 4H-SiC p-i-n are mainly focused on very high temperature applications, our analysis on the performance of bipolar diodes at low temperatures highlights its feasibility as temperature sensor for aerospace and high altitude applications where cryogenic temperatures are achieved.

• Periodical: Materials Science Forum (Volume 963)
• Pages: 572-575
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/MSF.963.572
• Online since: July 2019
• Authors: Luigi di Benedetto*, C.D. Matthus, Tobias Erlbacher, Anton J. Bauer, Gian Domenico Licciardo, Alfredo Rubino, Lothar Frey
• Keywords: 4H-SiC Electron Device Sensors, Semiconductor Device Modeling, Temperature Sensors, Thermal Electrical Characterization

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