Design and technology considerations for SiC bipolar devices: BJTs, IGBTs, and GTOs

Abstract

There has been a rapid improvement in SiC materials and power devices during the last few years. SiC unipolar devices such as Schottky diodes, JFETs and MOSFETs have been developed extensively and advantages of insertion of such devices in power electronic systems have been demonstrated [1, 2]. However, unipolar devices for high voltage systems suffer from high drift layer resistance that gives rise to high power dissipation in the on-state. For such applications, bipolar devices are preferred due to their low on-resistance. In this article, the physics and technology of SiC bipolar devices, namely Bipolar Junction Transistors (BJTs), Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs), and Gate Turn Off Thyristors (GTOs), are discussed. A detailed review of the current status and future trends in these devices is given with an emphasis on the device design and characterization. © 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.