International audienceUnder realistic switching conditions, SiC MOSFETs reliability issues remain as a challenge that requires further investigation. In this letter, a specific aging test has been developed to monitor and characterize the electrical parameters of the SiC MOSFET. This allows estimations of the health state and predictions of the remaining lifetime prior to its failure. The gate leakage current seems to be a relevant runaway parameter just before failure. This leakage indicates deterioration of the gate structure. This hypothesis has been validated through analysis of scanning electron microscopy pictures, with a focused ion beam cut showing cracks within the polysilicon

In this work, non-functional radio frequency identification pad-free chips are analyzed by modulating its powering scheme and noninvasively sensing their surface infrared (IR) emission with an IR camera following lock-in strategies. This approach is justified by the chip wireless powering strategy and its pad-free design. As a result, latch-up triggering has been identified as the failure mechanism, also showing that electrical figures of merit can be extracted non-invasively (i.e., coils coupling frequency and its bandwidth).

This paper analyses how a single metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) can be employed as a thermal sensor to measure on-chip dynamic thermal signals caused by a power-dissipating circuit under test (CUT). The measurement is subjected to two low-pass filters (LPF). The first LPF depends on the thermal properties of the heat-conduction medium (i.e. silicon) and the CUT-sensor distance, whereas the second depends on the electrical properties of the sensing circuit such as the bias current and the dimensions of the MOSFET sensor. This is evaluated along the paper through theoretical models, simulations, and experimental data resulting from a chip fabricated in 0.35 mu m CMOS technology. Finally, the proposed thermal sensor and the knowledge extracted from this paper are applied to estimate the linearity of a radio-frequency (RF) amplifier. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

 Abstract-The viability of using off-chip single-shot imaging techniques for local thermal testing in integrated Radio Frequency (RF) power amplifiers (PA's) is analyzed. With this approach, the frequency response of the output power and power gain of a Class A RF PA is measured, also deriving information about the intrinsic operation of its transistors. To carry out this case study, the PA is heterodynally driven, and its electrical behavior is down converted into a lower frequency thermal field acquirable with an InfraRed Lock-In Thermography (IR-LIT) system. After discussing the theory, the feasibility of the proposed approach is demonstrated and assessed with thermal sensors monolithically integrated in the PA. As crucial advantages to RF-testing, this local approach is noninvasive and demands less complex instrumentation than the mainstream commercially available solutions.