A mechanism for surface flashover of semiconductors

Williams, P. F.; Peterkin, F.E.

doi:10.1109/ppc.1989.767632

Cited by 20 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…A simple calculation [6] shows that a uniform (nonfilamentary) heating process is unlikely to induce breakdown through thermal runaway at the surface on a time scale consistent with our results for "new" samples. For example, if heat flow out of the surface conduction layer is neglected, and a surface carrier density of 2 x 10'' cm-3 assumed, then for an applied field of 30 kV/cm and other parameters the same as the room temperature bulk values for silicon, ohmic heating would result in a rate of temperature rise of about 2.5 X 101ooC/s.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

“…This plasma may influence the course of the breakdown, but it does not appear to be the cause of the breakdown event. This evidence supports the earlier suggestion of Williams and Peterkin [6] that surface flashover might be caused by carrier accumulation at the semiconductor surface as a result of electric-field-induced band bending, and that of Thomas and Nunnally [ 101 that current filamentation in the semiconductor surface plays an important role in the process. 11.…”

Section: Introduction Here Has Been Considerable Interest Recently Insupporting

confidence: 91%

“…The most likely explanation of the effect is that a surface layer, probably an oxide, plays an important role in the breakdown. Charging of this layer could result in the surface-normal fields postulated by Williams and Peterkin [6]. Repeated flashover events might remove this layer and damage the silicon surface, thereby reducing the conductivity of this surface layer and delaying the onset of breakdown.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Williams and Peterkin have proposed the following model of surface breakdown in silicon [6]. Initially, there is a thin, conductive layer at the surface of the silicon sample.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…First, a layer of enhanced conductivity exists at the surface of the silicon, as discussed by Williams and Peterkin [6]. When voltage is applied to the sample, current flows in this layer, resulting in roughly uniform heating.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Surface flashover of silicon

Peterkin

Ridolfi

Buresh

et al. 1990

IEEE Trans. Electron Devices

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Abstract-The development of high-voltage semiconductor devices has been hampered by the occurrence of flashover at the surface of the semiconductor. The physical mechanisms responsible for this phenomenon are not understood. We present new empirical information which clarifies the processes responsible for surface flashover in a vacuum ambient by showing clearly that in flashover current flows primarily inside the semiconductor surface rather than in the ambient. This observation is in fundamental disagreement with the standard model for vacuum flashover of insulator surfaces.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Introduction Here Has Been Considerable Interest Recently Insupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Williams and Peterkin have proposed the following model of surface breakdown in silicon [6]. Initially, there is a thin, conductive layer at the surface of the silicon sample.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Surface flashover of silicon

Peterkin

Ridolfi

Buresh

et al. 1990

IEEE Trans. Electron Devices

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Flashover in Back-Triggered Photoconductive Semiconductor Switch

Shi¹,

Jia²,

Ji³

et al. 2011

Chinese Phys. Lett.

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Design of a new type of photoconductive semiconductor switches (PCSSs) is presented, and the withstand voltage is improved. The flashover voltage of the back-triggered PCSS is found to be higher than that of the front-triggered one. By analyzing the differences of the flashover voltage between the back-triggered PCSS and the front-triggered PCSS, a detailed statistics analysis and theoretical explanation are expounded. The experiments also prove that the PCSS we developed could resist a voltage as high as 20 kV under the repetition frequency of 30 Hz.

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Semiconductor enhanced plasma synthetic jet actuator

Miao¹,

Zhang²,

Wang³

et al. 2020

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

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Designing a plasma synthetic jet actuator (PSJA) with high efficiency and low driving voltage is a permanent and unchangeable pursuit for researchers. Based on the surface flashover phenomenon of semiconductors, a novel semiconductor enhanced PSJA (SEPSJA) is put forward. The electrical characteristics and jet performance of the SEPSJA are investigated based on electrical measurements and a high speed schlieren image system. The minimum driving voltage of the SEPSJA with a 6 mm electrode distance can be reduced to about 2.64 kV at 1 atm and kept fixed over a large range of air pressure. With the same input energy, the performance of the SEPSJA is better than the traditional PSJA with a short electrode distance restricted by high breakdown voltage. Owing to the long inter-electrode gap, the average discharge efficiency can be improved by 40%–50% compared with the PSJA. An increase of over 70% of the maximum jet velocity is validated by the schlieren image. The maximum shock wave velocity of the SEPSJA (545 m s−1) increased by about 24% more than that of the traditional PSJA (439 m s−1). It can be concluded that the SEPSJA is worthy to be further studied in flow control field.

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A mechanism for surface flashover of semiconductors

Cited by 20 publications

References 8 publications

Surface flashover of silicon

Surface flashover of silicon

Flashover in Back-Triggered Photoconductive Semiconductor Switch

Semiconductor enhanced plasma synthetic jet actuator

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