Repetitive surge current test of SiC MPS diode with load in bipolar regime

Abstract

The reliability of power diodes under surge current is an important factor that has to be taken into account for power electronic applications. In this work, latest generation SiC MPS (Merged Pin Schottky) diodes (650V, 1200V, 1700V) with different current classes from Infineon are exposed to repetitive high surge current stress. Furthermore, the temperature was estimated using different methods including direct measurement, Sentaurus TCAD simulation, Cauer network and an analytical model using temperature dependent mobility. It was found that the diodes could withstand a high number of high-current pulses. However, before reaching final destruction, different ageing phenomenon were observed at the unipolar and bipolar regime of the MPS diode. A detailed investigation on the aging mechanisms including failure analysis was performed.