This thesis investigates the impact of package-related aging mechanisms, like bond-wire lift-off and chip-solder degradation, on the short-circuit robustness and repetitive application-close switching events for differently housed IGBTs. Various IGBT technologies, voltage and current classes in different packages were therefore aged by active load and passive temperature cycles or artificially, by bond-wire cuts. The limitation of short-circuit robustness was investigated for thermal runaway and the formation of destructive filaments. A novel test concept was developed to investigate repetitive switching events under adjustable load currents and switching frequencies.
The temperature development and switching stability for pristine and aged devices were discussed in detail utilizing various TSEPs and infrared measurements.
Spice and FEM-based simulations were used to support findings throughout the thesis.