The Past, Present, and Future of IGBT Technology

1 The Past, Present, and Future of IGBT TechnologyJohn ShenGrainger Endowed Chair Professor Department of Electrical & Computer EngineeringIllinois Institute of TechnologyChicago, 7, 2014 Outline Applications and market of power semiconductor devices History of IGBT Technology Very high power IGBTs Future trends of IGBT Technology Summary2 Application of Power SemiconductorsSilicon limit3 Frequency [Hz]100M10M1M100k10k1k1001001k10k100k1 MPower [VA]BJT10 MMOSFET100 MThyristorsIGBT(Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor)Power ICWorldwide Market of Power Semiconductors4$ of discrete power devices in 2010 (Yano and IMS)2008 market data from iSupplyMarket Segments of Power Semiconductors5 Outline Applications and market of power semiconductor devices History of IGBT Technology Very high power IGBTs Future trends of IGBT Technology Summary6 History of IGBT Technology 71980199020002010PT IGBT by GEand RCA Toshiba solved latch up issueEveryone is on PT IGBTS iemens NPT IGBTT rench IGBTT oshiba s IEGT (or 4500V IGBT)

2 IGBT Power ModuleEveryone is on thin wafer Field Stop IGBTM itsubishi s CS IGBTIGBT Press PackTheoretical limit of IGBTSiC IGBTW afer scale IGBTNano IGBTMCTD esign Trade-off of IGBT8 VCE(ON)Other factors short circuit capability, EMI, dynamic breakdown, temp coefficient, etc. EOFFIGBT turn-offIGBT turn-onImproved Conductivity Modulation of IGBT9N N+P+N PiN DiodeP+N P+ConventionalIGBTE nhancedIGBTR esistive BottleneckCarrier DistributionImproved Conductivity Modulation of IGBT10M. Rahimo et al. 2006 Trench Gate IGBT Concept11 Shen & Omura, Proceedings of the IEEE, April 2007 Thin Wafer Field Stop IGBT Concept12 Shen & Omura, Proceedings of the IEEE, April 2007 Evolution of 1200V Thin Wafer IGBTs131995300 m2008 100 m1999185 m2001128 mJ.

3 Vobecky, ISPSd2008J. Vobeckt, ISPSD2008 IGBT Performance Trend010203040506070801980199020002010GE Infineon Siemens ONSEMI (Motorola)STMicroelectronicsFairchild (Samsung) 14 Specific RDS(ON)=Vce(on)/Current DensityRDS(ON)(m cm2)EOFF~ , Vcc= 600V1200V IGBT @125oCTo s h i b aMitsubishiFuji ElectricOutline Applications and market of power semiconductor devices History of IGBT Technology Very high power IGBTs Future trends of IGBT Technology Summary15 Very High Power IGBTs 3300/4500/6500V 500-5000A MV voltage source inverters replacing GTO or IGCT)16 New steel mill installations TMEC 2012 Applications of High Power IGBTs HVDC light FACTS MV drives (wind generators, PV, oil & gas pumps, etc.

4 17 Source ABB Topologies of HP-IGBT Converters Cascade H-bridge NPC-MLC IGBT series-connection18 Expanding the Power Range of IGBT19 Silicon limitFrequency [Hz]100M10M1M100k10k1k1001001k10k100k1 MPower [VA]BJT10 MMOSFET100 MGTOIGBT(Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor)Power ICTechnical Barrier of HP-IGBT IGBT chip size <2cm2 current rating <150A, much more sensitive to defects than GTO Multi-chip IGBT power modules parallel IGBT chips through bondwires with a current and thermal capability inferior to pressure pack GTO20 Parallel IGBT chips in power modulesWafer scale thyristorsConcept of Wafer Scale IGBTs21 Emitter Gate Emitter Pad Ceramic Casing Collector Collector Pad IGBT WaferGate SpringContact Pin Laser TrimmerCollector Emitter 1 GateIGBTZone 1 Defective IGBT ZoneIsolation of DefectiveZones with laser trimmingOutline

5 Applications and market of power semiconductor devices History of IGBT Technology Very high power IGBTs Future trends of IGBT Technology Summary22 Theoretical Limit of IGBT Performance23 A. Nakagawa 2006 Nanoscale IGBT Structure24 M. Sumitomo, 2012 Superjunction IGBT25 K. Oh et al 2006 1200V IGBT simulationSiC IGBT 15000V 24 m -cm2 4H-SiC P-IGBT 12500V m -cm2 4H-SiC N-IGBT26 Cree 2012 Summary IGBT is the device of choice for medium power applications We have not reached the theoretical limit of the fundamental silicon IGBT structure yet even after 30 years of amazing Technology advancement!

6 Still a lot of potential and return of investment in silicon (and BWG) power device research! Emerging opportunity to push IGBT into megawatt (1-100MW) high power applications27