Thermal-Electrical-Mechanical Modeling of IGBT Module Failure Modes

Sponsor: Huazhong University of Science and Technology

PI: Fang Luo, Dushan Boroyevich

Performance Period: August 8, 2014 – July 31, 2017

Summary: Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBT) are one of the major players in modern
power conversion, especially for medium and high power applications. The reliability of these
devices remains to be a major concern, topic which Huazhong University of Science and
Technology (HUST) has been studying jointly with Techsem Semiconductor Co., and now is
interested in pursuing jointly with CPES. The primary goal of this research will be to investigate
the possible failure modes of commercial IGBTs, including: 1) module layout and its influence
on the electric field and thermal distribution; 2) wire bond structure and its impacts on the
internal current distribution; 3) Direct Bond Copper (DBC) substrate preparation and its
reliability; 4) thermal interface material (TIM) selection and its influence on the module
reliability; 5) encapsulation of high voltage IGBT modules.