Power Semiconductor Devices

Applications of Power Electronics

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Introduction
• Power electronics circuits convert electric power
from one form to another using electronic devices.
• Power electronics circuits function by using
semiconductor devices as switches, thereby
controlling or modifying a voltage or current.
• Power electronics includes applications in which
circuits process milliwatts or megawatts.
• Power electronics includes applications of circuit
theory, control theory, electronics,
electromagnetics, microprocessors (for control),
and heat transfer.
• Advances in semiconductor switching capability
combined with the desire to improve the
efficiency and performance of electrical devices
have made power electronics an important and
fast-growing area in electrical engineering.
Converter classification
• The objective of a power electronics circuit
is to match the voltage and current
requirements of the load to those of the
source.
• Power electronics circuits convert one type
or level of a voltage or current waveform to
another and are hence called converters.
• ac input/dc output – rectifier
• dc input/ac output – inverter
• dc input/dc output - dc-dc converter
• ac input/ac output – AC voltage controller, induction motor
drive, cycloconverter
Power semiconductor
switches classification
• Uncontrolled- eg Diode, Diac
• Semi controlled- eg thyristor, triac
• Fully controlled- MOSFET, GTO,
IGBT
• Direction of conduction- Diode,
thyristor conduct in one direction;
MOSFET, IGBT conduct in both
direction
• Voltage blocking capability- Block
voltage of only one polarity eg. BJT,
MOSFET; Thyristor and GTO can
block both polity voltage.
Power Electronics Systems
 Converter classification
• Some converter circuits can operate in
different modes, depending on circuit and
control parameters.
• For example, some rectifier circuits can be
operated as inverters by modifying the control
on the semiconductor devices.
• In such cases, it is the direction of average
power flow that determines the converter
classification.
• Power conversion can be a multistep process
involving more than one type of converter..
 Concept building
• Consider the design problem of creating a 3-V dc voltage level from a 9-V
battery.

Voltage divider

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Power semiconductor switches
• These are the work-horses of power electronics (PE).
• PE switches works in two states only
• Fully on (conducting)
• Fully off (blocking)

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Basic principal of Analog Electronics vs Power electronics

• Power converter semiconductor devices (BJT) works in the cut-off (OFF) and saturations (ON)

• Amplifier works in the linear region

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Characteristics of a good power switch
 No power loss when ON
 No power loss when OFF
 No power loss during turning ON or OFF
 Little power required to turn it ON or OFF
Fast turn-on and turn-off
 Bi- directional?
 Adequate voltage and current ratings
 Low Turn-on and Turn-off times
Large breakdown voltages
Large power dissipation capability

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Power Components
• Energy Storage Components
 Inductors, capacitors, transformers

• Passive Switching Devices

 Power Diodes
 General purpose diodes
 Ultra-fast recovery diodes
 Schottky barrier diodes

• Active Switching Devices Silicon based

 Thyristor devices
 Power transistors
 Bipolar junction transistor (BJT)
 Metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET)
 Insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT)

• Active Switching Devices based Wide band gap devices (WBG)

 Silicon carbide (SiC)
 Gallium Nitride (GaN)
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Introduction to commonly used PE switching devices

Sic and GaN devices

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SIT – Static Induction transitor
SIT – Static Induction thyristor
MCT-MOS controlled thyristor
IGCT-Integrated Gate Commutated Thyristor
ETO- Emitter Turn Off Thyristor
Triac- Triode for alternating current
• Officially, power electronics was born in
1901 by the invention of glass-bulb mercury-
arc rectifier by Peter Cooper Hewitt of USA

• Then, it went through the eras of gas tube

electronics in the 1930s and saturable core
magnetic amplifiers in the 1940s. Hot
cathode thyratron was introduced in 1926
and the ignitron rectifier in 1933.
• Bell laboratories of USA published the historical paper on p-n-p-n triggering transistor in 1956

• The invention of the Silicon Controlled Rectifier (SCR) in the late 1950s, today known as thyristor has led to
the revolution in the control of electric power

• In 1957 the three-terminal p-n-p-n device was introduced by GE as the Silicon controlled rectifier.

• Once the SCR came onto the world stage, many people in various places played important roles in further
developing it into the revolutionary device that it became. However, the name SCR was not the one
chosen by GE for the device but rather some at GE chose the name “silicon controlled rectifier” or SCR.

• In July 1959, Westinghouse announced a solid-state controlled rectifier called “trinistor”. By 1966, L. F.
Stringer and L. R. Tresino used the name thyristor.

• Some in Europe adopted the name thyristor more quickly than others elsewhere. This was partly due to
IEC TC47 formed in 1960. It was several years before the name thyristor became universally accepted.
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Basics of Physics behind Power Electronics
 METALS, INSULATORS, AND SEMICONDUCTORS
• In metals such as copper or silver, the free-electron density is on the order
of 1023/cm-3
• In insulators such as quartz or aluminum oxide the free-electron density is
less than 103/cm-3
• A material such as silicon or gallium arsenide, which has a free-carrier
density intermediate between that of an insulator and a metal is termed a
semiconductor.
• This ability to manipulate the free-carrier density by large amounts is
what makes the semiconductor such a unique and useful material for
electrical applications.

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 ELECTRONS AND HOLES
• The thermal ionization
mechanism generates an
equal number of electrons
and holes.

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 DOPED SEMICONDUCTORS
• Boron have only three electrons (valance electrons) available
for bonding to other atoms in a crystal.
• When boron is introduced into a silicon crystal, it needs an
additional electron to bond to the four neighboring silicon
atoms
• Silicon now has more free holes, now termed majority carriers,
than free electrons, now termed minority carriers.
• The silicon is said to be doped p-type with an acceptor
impurity.
• Phosphorus, have five valance electrons but only four are
needed for bonding in a silicon lattice.
• The resulting positive charge on the donor impurity (so named
because it donates the fifth electron to the silicon lattice)
represents a trapped or bound hole.
• Electrons are now the majority carriers and holes are the
minority carriers. The silicon is said to be doped n-type.
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Antimony is a chemical element with the symbol Sb
B-Boron
Si-Silicon
DOPED SEMICONDUCTORS

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 PN Junction- Diode
Objectives
•
Understand when the P type and N type material is attached
• Diffusion , drift recombination and generation when P and N type material
is attached (Physics behind this)
• Space charge region (Depletion layer)
• Electric field
DRIFT AND DIFFUSION

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 DRIFT AND DIFFUSION

• If there is a variation in the spatial density of

the free carriers, then there will be a
movement of carriers from regions of higher
concentration to regions of lower
concentration. This movement is termed
diffusion and is due to the random thermal
velocity that each free carrier has.
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 The negative terminal of the battery supplies
large number of free electrons to the n-type
semiconductor and attracts or accepts large
number of holes from the p-type semiconductor.
In other words, the large number of free
electrons begins their journey at the negative
terminal whereas the large number of holes
finishes their journey at the negative terminal.
• +ve terminal takes the electrons from
P type material leaves holes there.
These holes travel up to PN junction
and neutralize partly the negative
charge.
• Similarly –ve charge injects the
electrons into n layer. Move through N
type material, reach at PN junction
therby neutralize partly the +ve charge
As per the above discussion depletion
layer reduced
PN JUNCTION DIODE
Normal PN junction
diode

xp xn
Device
physics

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E(x + dx) – E(x) = d E(x)
Applying gauss’s law
(𝑑𝑞)
Φ = 𝑑 𝐸(𝑥). 𝑑𝐴 = total charge
𝑑𝑥𝑑𝑦,𝑑𝑦𝑑𝑧,𝑑𝑧𝑑𝑥
𝜉
FLUX
−𝑞𝑁𝐴 𝑋(𝑑𝑥𝑑𝑦 𝑑𝑧 )
dE (𝑥 ) 𝑑𝑦𝑑𝑧=
𝜉
𝑑𝐸 𝑥 −𝑞 𝑁𝐴
= (1) {-xp < x < 0}
𝑑𝑥 𝜉

𝑑𝐸 (𝑥) +𝑞 𝑁𝐷
Similarly
𝑑𝑥
= 𝜉
(2) {0 < x < xn}

From eqn (1)

−𝑞 𝑁𝐴 𝑥 −𝑞 𝑁𝐴 (𝑥+𝑥𝑝 )
E(x)= 𝑑𝐸 𝑥 = 𝜉 −𝑥 𝑝
𝑑𝑥 = 𝜉
{-xp < x < 0}
𝑞 𝑁𝐷 𝑥
E(x)= 𝑑𝐸 𝑥 = 𝑥𝑛
𝑑𝑥 == 𝑞𝑁𝐷 (𝑥−𝑥
𝜉
𝑛)
{0 < x < xn}
𝜉

Using (1) & (2) and substitute x=0

−𝑞 𝑁𝐴 (𝑥𝑝 ) −𝑞 𝑁𝐷 (𝑥𝑛 )
Emax =
𝜉
=
𝜉
= 𝑁𝐴 𝑥𝑝 = 𝑁𝐷 (𝑥𝑛 ) (3) Contact potential
 1
𝐵𝑉𝐵𝑂 = 2 𝑥𝑝 + 𝑥𝑛 𝐸𝐵𝐷 ….. Y1 xp xn
𝑞𝑁𝐴
𝐸𝐵𝐷 = 𝑥𝑝
𝜉
𝐸𝐵𝐷 𝜉
𝑥𝑝 = …………………..X
𝑞 𝑁𝐴

So, 𝑥𝑛 =
𝐸𝐵𝐷 𝜉
𝑞𝑁𝐷
…………..Y • HOW TO CALCULATE
THE BREAKDOWN
Substitute ‘X’ & ‘Y’ in ‘Y1’
VOLTAGE?
1 𝐸𝐵𝐷 𝜉 𝐸𝐵𝐷 𝜉
𝐵𝑉𝐵𝑂 = + 𝐸𝐵𝐷
2 𝑞𝑁𝐴 𝑞𝑁𝐷
1 1 1
= 2𝑞 +𝑁 𝐸𝐵𝐷 2 𝜉
𝑁𝐴 𝐷

1
= 2𝑞𝑁 𝑁𝐴 + 𝑁𝐷 𝐸𝐵𝐷 2 𝜉 -----X1
𝐴 𝑁𝐷
Power Diode
Power Diode
Two reasons having different
doping
1. Required high Forward
current
2. High Breakdown voltage
BVBD

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 Substitute ‘X’ & ‘Y’ in ‘Y1’
Non punch through Power
1 𝐸 Diode
𝜉 𝐸 𝜉 𝐵𝐷 𝐵𝐷
𝐵𝑉𝐵𝑂 = + 𝐸
• If the length wd of the lightly doped drift region
2 𝑞𝑁𝐴is longer
𝑞𝑁𝐷 than 𝐵𝐷
the depletion layer
width at breakdown, then the structure is termed a non-punch-through diode, that is,
1 1 1 2
the depletion layer has not reached through
=
2𝑞 𝑁𝐴
+
(or 𝐸
punched
𝐵𝐷 𝜉
through) the lightly doped drift
𝑁𝐷
region and reached the highly doped n+ substrate.
1 2
• Using eq. X1 neglecting ND =
2𝑞𝑁 𝑁
𝑁𝐴 + 𝑁 𝐷 𝐸 𝐵𝐷 𝜉
𝐴 𝐷
• .

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Punch through Power Diode

With increase in applied

reverse voltage

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Punch through Power Diode

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Punch through Power Diode

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 Conductivity modulation

•In estimating the power dissipated in

the drift region, care must be
exercised because the effective value
of resistance of this region
in the on state is much less than the
apparent ohmic value calculated on
the basis of the geometric size and the
thermal equilibrium carrier densities

•But at high injection levels, p > no the

hole space charge is large enough to attract
electrons from the n+ region into the drift
region. This leads to the injection of
electrons across the n+n- interface into the
drift region with densities Sn = Sp.

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Diode Switching characteristics

General purpose diodes-IN5408

Ultra-fast recovery diodes-UF5408, PFR
SERIES
Schottky barrier diodes-MBR160G
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Diode Switching characteristics

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