Abstract
The junction termination extension (JTE) structures for ultrahigh-voltage (UHV) devices consumes a considerable part of the semiconductor chip area. The JTE area is closely related to chip performance, process yield and ultimately device cost. The JTE lengths for UHV devices (i.e., > 30 kV) are still unknown, not visible in the scientific literature and have therefore been predicted in this study by means of two-dimensional numerical simulations using the Sentaurus based technology computer-aided design (TCAD) tool. A previously reported space-modulated, two-zone JTE (SM-JTE) structure has been used as an input to set up a suitable TCAD model, which is further scaled to JTE lengths required for 40 kV class and 50 kV class SiC PiN diodes. The simulation results indicate that the SM-JTE requires an 1800 μm one-sided JTE length with 27 guard rings for a 40 kV theoretical PiN diode and 2700 μm with 36 guard rings for a 50 kV device, resulting in breakdown voltages of 41.4 kV and 51.7 kV, respectively. Moreover, the design considerations of different JTE categories are discussed with focus on the adaptability of the termination structures in ultrahigh-voltage devices, e.g., VB > 30 kV, which results in a comparison of the SM-JTE structure with other high-voltage JTE designs.
Highlights
High-Voltage semiconductor devices are required in various power electronic applications (e.g., in high-voltage directcurrent (HVDC) systems, flexible AC transmission systems (FACTS), solid-state transformers (SST), and solidstate circuit breakers (SSCB)), where devices with high blocking voltage capability may reduce the number of medium-voltage devices in series connection and simplify the converter system in several aspects [1], [2]
This paper aims to predict the one-sided junction termination extension (JTE) length required for UHV devices (i.e., 20–50 kV Silicon Carbide (SiC) PiN diodes), determine the active area for devices in the different UHV blocking voltage classes, which is a fundamental requirement for benchmarking studies between e.g., medium voltage devices and UHV devices
The one-sided JTE length for UHV SiC PiN diodes has been determined by numerical simulations using the Sentaurus based technology computer-aided design (TCAD) design platform
Summary
High-Voltage semiconductor devices are required in various power electronic applications (e.g., in high-voltage directcurrent (HVDC) systems, flexible AC transmission systems (FACTS), solid-state transformers (SST), and solidstate (hybrid) circuit breakers (SSCB)), where devices with high blocking voltage capability may reduce the number of medium-voltage devices in series connection and simplify the converter system in several aspects (i.e., reduce the total amount of devices and gate drivers, system complexity, cooling-requirement, and station foot-print with better environmental impact) [1], [2]. Long-term visionary device candidates with ultrahigh blocking capability may have sufficiently high nominal voltage to facilitate low-complexity converter systems with e.g., two-level or three-level converter topologies aiming for LV/MV SST applications etc. The material properties of (4H-) Silicon Carbide (SiC) allow manufacturing of devices that withstand higher electric fields than Silicon (Si) based counterparts and achieves higher breakdown voltage, VB, capabilities, theoretically up to 50 kV [3]–[5]. The persistent research effort in developing SiC material processing and semiconductor device design, has demonstrated bipolar charge-carrier devices with blocking voltage capabilities as high as 27 kV [6]–[9].
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