Recent Advances in Device-Level Thermal Management Technologies for Wide Bandgap Semiconductor: A Review

Wide bandgap (WBG) and ultra-WBG (UWBG) semiconductor devices exhibit superior performance with higher breakdown voltage and lower on-resistance compared to Si-based devices, rendering them highly competitive in the field of electric energy conversion and communication. Especially, GaN, as one of the representative materials in WBG semiconductors, has progressed to the stage of industrial realization, and the new generation of UWBG semiconductors such as Ga2O3 has become a popular research focus in the last decade for power electronics applications. However, the primary challenge faced by these advanced semiconductor devices is thermal management, particularly in high-power application, which leads to a serious degradation in electrical performance and long-term reliability. Therefore, there is an urgent need for effective thermal management technologies. This review comprehensively summarizes recent advances in device-level thermal management techniques for WBG and UWBG semiconductors, ranging from internal device structure optimization to a series of external strategies for enhancing thermal diffusion. These strategies include enhancing the internal thermal dissipation through device architecture optimization, substrate thinning, high thermal conductivity substrate bonding and coverage, flip chip package, active method of microchannel cooling, and transient thermal management techniques. Finally, we discuss the existing technical challenges, potential solutions, and further development opportunities in thermal management techniques, with the aim of addressing the critical thermal dissipation issue to facilitate the further industrialization of WBG and UWBG semiconductors.