Tolerance Against Terrestrial Neutron-Induced Single-Event Burnout in SiC MOSFETs

Abstract

SEB tolerance of SiC power MOSFETs against terrestrial neutrons is studied. It is shown that the failure probability increases exponentially with applied voltage and is several orders of magnitude lower than that of a Si MOSFET. The energetic secondary carbon atoms generated by the nuclear reactions and the collisions between the terrestrial neutrons and the lattice atoms of SiC devices may play important role in the SEB triggering mechanism in SiC power devices.Index Terms-Insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT), power device, power MOSFET, Schottky barrier diode (SBD), silicon carbide (SiC), single-event burnout (SEB), spallation neutron, terrestrial neutron.

Estimating Terrestrial Neutron-Induced SEB Cross Sections and FIT Rates for High-Voltage SiC Power MOSFETs

“…The simulation results presented in Table II for cross section as a function of bias are shown in Fig. 11 and compared to the previously published data [4].…”

“…There are limited data available for terrestrial neutron SEB of SiC power MOSFETs. Asai et al [4] published crosssection data for Wolfspeed 1200-V SiC power MOSFETs from an experiment designed to replicate the terrestrial neutron spectrum. Similar cross sections have been reported by Rashed et al [3].…”

“…Voltage-dependent neutron-induced SEB cross section for SiC Power MOSFETs, after Asai et al[4], compared to the method for simulating cross section based on basic mechanisms and Monte Carlo techniques developed in this paper.…”

Current Transport Mechanism for Heavy-Ion Degraded SiC MOSFETs

“…Additionally, Asai et al [11] performed studies with neutrons, concluding that there exists no consistent difference in SEB tolerance between SiC diodes and SiC MOSFETs and that the conventional SEB mechanisms developed in Si MOSFETs, such as parasitic bipolar transistor and tunneling assisted avalanche multiplication mechanism, may be suppressed in SiC devices [12].…”

Charge Transport Mechanisms in Heavy-Ion Driven Leakage Current in Silicon Carbide Schottky Power Diodes

“…For this reason space agencies are cautious in implementing SiC devices in their space systems [4], [5]. Also at ground level, SiC power devices can exhibit radiation-induced failures due to cosmic rays [10], [11].…”