Degradation behavior of 600 V–200 A IGBT modules under power cycling and high temperature environment conditions

One challenge for automotive hybrid traction application is the use of high power IGBT modules that can withstand high ambient temperatures, from 90 °C to 120 °C, for reliability purpose. The paper presents ageing tests of 600 V–200 A IGBT modules subjected to power cycling with 60 °C junction temperature swings at 90 °C ambient temperature. Failure modes are described and obtained results on the module characteristics are detailed. Especially, physical degradations are described not only at the package level, like solder attach delaminations, but also at the chip level, with a shift on electrical characteristics such as threshold voltage. Finally, numerical investigations are performed in order to assess the thermal and thermo-mechanical constraints on silicon dies during power cycling and also to estimate the effect of ambient temperature on the mechanical stresses.     

Fast power cycling protocols implemented in an automated test bench dedicated to IGBT module ageing

This paper presents fast test protocols for ageing IGBT modules in power cycling conditions, and a monitoring device that tracks the on-state voltage V_CE and junction temperature T_J of IGBTs during ageing test operations. This device is implemented in an ageing test bench described in previous papers, but which has since been modified to perform fast power cycling tests.The fast test protocols described here use the thermal variations imposed on IGBT modules by a test bench operating under Pulse Width Modulation conditions. This test bench reaches the maximal values of power cycling frequencies attainable with a given module packaging in order to optimize test duration.The measurement device monitors V_CE throughout the ageing test that is needed to detect possible degradations of wire bonds and/or emitter metallization. This requires identifying small V_CE variations (a few dozen mV). In addition, the thermal swing amplitude of power cycling must be adjusted to achieve a given ageing protocol. This requires measuring junction temperature evolution on a power cycle, which is carried out by means of V_CE measurement at a low current level (100 mA).Experimental results demonstrate the flexibility of this test bench with respect to various power cycling conditions, as well as the feasibility of the proposed on-line monitoring methods.     

Tiny-scale “stealth” current sensor to probe power semiconductor device failure

“Stealth” electric current probing technique for power electronics circuits, power device modules and chips makes it possible to measure electric current without any change or disassembling the circuit and the chip connection for the measurement. The technique consists of a tiny-scale magnetic-field coil, a high speed analog amplifier and a digitizer with numerical data processing. This technique can be applied to a single bonding wire current measurement inside IGBT modules, chip scale current redistribution measurement and current measurement for surface mount devices. The “stealth” current measurement can be utilized in the failure mechanism understanding of power devices including IGBT short circuit destruction.     

Ageing defect detection on IGBT power modules by artificial training methods based on pattern recognition

The ageing of power insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) modules is mainly related to thermal and thermomechanical constraints applied to the device. This ageing causes degradation of the device performances and defects appearance which can lead to failures. To avoid these failures, the follow-up of the device operation and the detection of an ageing state remain a priority. This paper presents, at first, ageing tests of 1200 V-30 A IGBT module subjected to power cycling with the aim to highlight online and real-time measurable external indicators of ageing. Secondly, these indicators are used to develop a failure diagnosis method. The diagnosis is realized by artificial training methods based on pattern recognition.     

IGBT芯片参数对瞬态均流特性的影响

IGBT模块一般采用多芯片并联的方式进行封装,但由于模块参数、驱动控制等差异,模块内部存在电流分布不均衡的问题。相比于稳态电流分布,瞬态电流分布的影响因素众多,是研究的热点。针对IGBT的芯片参数开展了模块内部各支路瞬态电流分布特性的研究。通过建立IGBT芯片模型及芯片并联的瞬态电路分析模型,计算单一芯片参数与多种芯片参数作用下IGBT模块的瞬态电流分布,提出新的适用于芯片支路瞬态均流分析的评价指标,得到了IGBT芯片参数对并联瞬态均流影响的规律。研究结果表明阈值电压、跨导和栅极电阻是对瞬态均流影响最大的3个芯片参数,且需要关注阈值电压与跨导的共同影响。研究结果对IGBT的芯片筛选及并联后的瞬态均流计算具有指导意义。     

Enhanced power cycling performance of IGBT modules with a reinforced emitter contact

A typical emitter contact of an IGBT consists of a front metallization and bond wires. In this study, the power cycling performance of a special emitter contact design is experimentally verified. The emitter contact includes a metal plate, which is Ag-sintered to the metallization and wire bonded on the top surface. Either Cu or Al bond wires were implemented. Power cycling tests were performed to investigate the performance of such IGBT modules. The results were very promising and a cycling lifetime was achieved, which is about 20 times higher than the lifetime of typical IGBT modules. For a better understanding of the experimental results, the electrical and thermal response of the IGBT modules were simulated by FEM. The results of this study, provide a key for high-reliability designs of the emitter contact of IGBT modules with superior power cycling capability.     

Power cycling test and failure analysis of molded Intelligent Power IGBT Module under different temperature swing durations

Molded IGBT modules are widely used in low power motor drive applications due to their advantage like compactness, low cost, and high reliability. Thermo-mechanical stress is generally the main cause of degradation of IGBT modules and thus much research has been performed to investigate the effect of temperature stresses on IGBT modules such as temperature swing and steady-state temperature. The temperature swing duration is also an important factor from a real application point of view, but there is a still lack of quantitative study. In this paper, the impact of temperature swing duration on the lifetime of 600 V, 30 A, 3-phase molded Intelligent Power Modules (IPM) and their failure mechanisms are investigated. The study is based on the accelerated power cycling test results of 36 samples under 6 different conditions and tests are performed under realistic electrical conditions by an advanced power cycling test setup. The results show that the temperature swing duration has a significant effect on the lifetime of IGBT modules. Longer temperature swing duration leads to the smaller number of cycles to failure. Further, it also shows that the bond-wire crack is the main failure mechanism of the tested IGBT modules.     

The effect of electro-thermal parameters on IGBT junction temperature with the aging of module

This paper presents the effect of the change of electro-thermal parameters on IGBT junction temperature with module aging. Five IGBT modules are subjected to advance power thermal cycling, and IGBT I–V characterization, switching loss, and transient thermal impedance curve are measured every 1000 power thermal cycles. Then, electro-thermal models of IGBT module under power thermal cycles were built by change electro-thermal parameters, and the influence of various parameters of the electro-thermal model on the junction temperature was researched respectively. Experimental results demonstrate that IGBT collector-emitter voltage, switching loss and thermal resistance increase more quickly with the aging process of module. Simulation results indicate that the variations of electro-thermal parameters have crucial influences on the IGBT junction temperature. After 6000 power thermal cycles, the IGBT steady state junction temperature mean and variation are increased 1.97 K and 0.1656 K over its initial value, respectively. The relative temperature rise is 38.10% and relative temperature variation is 15.08% after 6000 power thermal cycles. The rise in switching loss increases both the steady state junction temperature mean and variation. The change of thermal impedance has great influence on the steady state junction temperature mean, but has little effect on steady state junction temperature variation.     

Temperature measurements and thermal modeling of high power IGBT multichip modules for reliability investigations in traction applications

To study the failure mechanisms induced on high power IGBT multichip modules by thermal cycling stress in traction environment, a good knowledge of the temperature distribution and variations on the chips and in the interfaces between the different layers of the packaging is necessary. This paper presents a methodology for contact temperature measurements on chips surface in power cycling conditions and a fast 3D thermal simulation tool for multilayered hybrid or monolithic circuits. The results of static and dynamic thermal simulation of a 1200A–3300V IGBT module are given and compared with the contact temperature measurements results. The investigation has been done within the RAPSDRA (Reliability of Advanced High Power Semiconductor Device for Traction Applications) European project.     

Reliability and lifetime evaluation of different wire bonding technologies for high power IGBT modules

IGBT modules for power transmission, industrial and traction applications are operated under severe working conditions and in harsh environments. Therefore, a consequent design, focused on quality, performance and reliability is essential in order to satisfy the high customer requirements. One of the main failure mechanisms encountered in high power IGBT modules subjected to thermal cycles is wire bond lift-off, which is due to the large thermal expansion coefficient mismatch between the aluminum wires and the silicon chips. The paper describes various bonding technologies using different wire materials directly bonded onto chip metallisation as well as the ABB solution where the wire is bonded on a thin molybdenum strain buffer soldered onto the chip. We assess in the present paper the potential of these technologies to enhance module reliability and lifetime through a power cycling test. Failure analysis results are presented and the failure mechanisms related to each technology are explained in detail.     

Performance and reliability testing of modern IGBT devices under typical operating conditions of aeronautic applications

As for railway traction applications, aeronautical power electronics implies high power density handling. Moreover typical aeronautical applications impose a harsh thermal environment. SiC technology has recently emerged for high power and high temperature application, but is not yet mature enough. Consequently it is still important to push the silicon devices temperature limits in order to increase the amount of switched power. Device ageing is accelerated and there exists the risk of catastrophic failure by thermal runaway. In order to design correctly high temperature power systems, knowing the IGBT characteristics at extended temperature ranges becomes essential. This paper describes an experimental setup and test procedure conceived to experiment with different available IGBT technologies at temperatures beyond the limits rated by manufacturers (?55 °C, +175 °C). The aim is to characterize the devices for a better understanding and optimized safe application. This will ease prototyping for future development of IGBT modules in aircraft.     

Substrate-to-base solder joint reliability in high power IGBT modules

Acoustic microscope imaging proved to be an excellent tool to detect and quantify solder fatigue of the substrate to base interface of high power IGBT modules. This technique was used to establish the dependence of the thermal cycling capability on the temperature swing of the module base for a A1N/Cu system. Results from temperature cycling tests were combined with results from power cycling tests to predict the solder joint reliability over a wide range of temperature excursions.     

Statistical analysis of characteristic of ageing precursor of IGBT based on synthetic effect of multi-physical fields

The IGBT power modules are widely used in photovoltaic power generation, high-voltage direct current transmission and other fields. Due to the need for high reliability in the application fields, the industry is very concerned about the reliability of IGBT power modules. Based on the two different working conditions of the three-level NPC photovoltaic inverter, this paper has monitored the health status of bonding wires of the IGBT modules inside the inverter. In addition, for the experimental results of monitoring, theoretical analysis and experimental demonstration from the perspective of multi-physics (temperature field, electromagnetic field, etc.) are innovatively introduced, which provides a new perspective for the research of power module reliability.     

1200V IGBT4-适用于大电流模块、具有优化特性的新一代技术

本文首次介绍了英飞凌的新一代IGBT——新型1200V IGBT4。IGBT4是一个产品系列,具有经过优化的垂直结构,分别对应于低电压、中等电压和高电压的应用,并且对不同功率级别的典型开关频率进行了优化。本文将重点讨论针对大电流模块进行的优化,解释最重要的设计目标。最后,利用测试数据对模块实现进行了讨论。     

Study of thermal cycling and temperature aging on PbSnAg die attach solder joints for high power modules

High power modules are still facing the challenges to increase their power output, increase the junction temperature, and increase their reliability in harsh conditions. Therefore this study is doing a detail analysis of the soldering joint between a direct copper bonded substrate and a high power IGBT made with the high lead solder alloy Pb_92.5Sn_5.0Ag_2.5. The intermetallic phases and the microstructure of standard chip to substrate solder joint will be analysed and compared to deteriorated joints coming from modules which have undergone an active thermal cycling. As expected, the as soldered joint was clearly different than solder joints made for ball grid array or small components on PCBs. The as soldered joint shows no sign of Cu₆Sn₅ intermetallic layer, but instead shows the presence of Ag₃Sn particles at the solder–chip interface. Furthermore, the failure mechanisms under active thermal cycling also seem to be different. There is no growth of intermetallic phases and no strong delamination of the device. Instead a large network of intermetallic particles (Ag₃Sn) is produced during aging and seems to degrade the solder thermal properties.     

Advanced IGBT modules for railway traction applications: Reliability testing

IGBT modules for railway traction applications have to be more intensively tested then those for industrial application. The paper describes the state of the art of already existing reliability test as well as a proposal for accelerated power cycling and temperature cycling tests. These tests are a result of the Brite EuRam research project RAPSDRA (reliability of advanced power semiconductor devices for railway traction application).     

压接型IGBT器件单芯片子模组功率循环试验仿真

压接型绝缘栅双极型晶体管(IGBT)器件因具有双面散热、短路失效和易于串联等优点,正逐步应用到柔性直流输电等领域.但其在工作过程中的热学、力学特性与传统焊接式IGBT模块相比有很大差异,故存在不同的长期可靠性问题.基于有限元法建立了压接型IGBT器件单芯片子模组多物理场耦合仿真模型,研究了三种功率循环仿真条件下器件的热学和力学特性,并且在功率循环过程中利用金属弹塑性模型来模拟材料的瞬态特性.仿真结果表明,IGBT芯片发射极表面与发射极钼片相接触的边缘是应力集中区域,芯片发射极表面栅极缺口和四周边角处有明显的塑性变形.同时,将仿真结果与实际失效的IGBT芯片进行了对比,进一步验证了仿真模型的有效性和适用性.     

Improving the power cycling performance of the emitter contact of IGBT modules: Implementation and evaluation of stitch bond layouts

The emitter (front metallization) of IGBTs is contacted by wire bonding. In this study, the influence of the wirebond layout on the power cycling performance of IGBT modules is investigated. Stitch bonding is implemented to modify the wirebond layout of the emitter contact. The different layouts are subjected to power cycling tests. For a better understanding of the experimental results, electrical and thermo-mechanical FEM simulations are run and the current distribution and induced mechanical stress is discussed. Based on the results of this study, the emitter contact of the new HiPak module platform is designed.     

Static and dynamic finite element modelling of thermal fatigue effects in insulated gate bipolar transistor modules

The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the use of finite element techniques for modelling thermal fatigue effects in solder layers of insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) – modules used in traction applications. The three-dimensional models presented predict how progressive solder fatigue, affects the static and dynamic thermal performance of such devices.Specifically, in this paper, the analysis of an 800 A–1800 V IGBT module is performed. In the first part, the static analysis is realised. The parameters assessed are thermal resistance, maximum junction temperature and heat flux distribution through the different layers comprising the module construction. In the second part of the paper, transient analyses are performed in order to study the dynamic thermal behaviour of the module. The constructed thermal impedance curves allow for calculation of the device temperature variations with time. Stress parameters, such as temperature excursion and maximal temperature at chip and solder interfaces, are determined. Calibration of all simulation models is achieved by comparison with alternative theoretical calculations and manufacturers’ measured values provided in the data sheet book.     

Uneven temperature effect evaluation in high-power IGBT inverter legs and relative test platform design

This paper presents a high-power IGBT testing platform for uneven temperature conditions and its design criteria. Considering the influence of layout parasitic parameters on the measurement results, commutation rules and independent junction temperature control, a universal high-power switching characterization platform is built and operated. Importantly, it is capable of 3.6 kA current level test requirement, which can cover the largest current level for the state-of-the-art IGBT modules. To improve the test accuracy of double pulse test method, a compensation algorithm is proposed to eliminate the circuit power loss under high current test conditions. Moreover, in order to simulate the uneven junction temperature effects occurring in real life, the junction temperatures of inspected IGBT and freewheeling diode are controlled independently. Quantitative analyses of the switching characteristics for junction temperatures up to 125 °C are performed.