Physics and design of a breakdown rugged Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor
E.Napoli, L.Maresca, M.Riccio
Easy driving, reduced on state losses, current saturation, and negative temperature coefficient for collector current are the characteristics that paved the success story of the Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor, IGBT (patented 1968-1978-1980, commercialized '80, still mainstream in 2020). The path to conquer new application fields led to successful device optimization but showed device limits in some harsh conditions. A noticeable example is the concurrent application of high voltage, load collector current, and impact ionization, that is present in breakdown condition. The following studies allowed the design of rugged devices able to sustain the breakdown condition for a significant amount of time.
In the paper the physics of the IGBT during the breakdown event is analyzed. Numerical and experimental tests confirm the theory and allow to devise design techniques for the design of rugged devices.