Simulation-Based Study About the Lifetime and Incident Light Properties Dependence of the Optically Triggered 4H-SiC Thyristors Operation

Junichi Hasegawa (1) , Loris Pace (2, 3) , Luong Viet Phung (2, 3) , Mutsuko Hatano (1) , Dominique Planson (2, 3)

1 TITECH - Tokyo Institute of Technology [Tokyo]
2 EE - Ampère, Département Energie Electrique
3 INSA Lyon - Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon

We investigated a methodology to design light-triggered thyristors thanks to TCAD. The simulation model accuracy, especially the holding current and the minimum incident light intensity to turn-ON, were compared with experimental results. The influence of SiC epitaxial layer lifetime and the incident light properties (wavelength and intensity) on the optically triggered 4H-SiC thyristor characteristics have been studied by simulation. We considered the wavelength dependence of quantum efficiency, penetration depth, and photon energy. The holding current and turn-ON time depends on the lifetime. The minimum intensity to turn-ON the device significantly depends on the wavelength. This intensity becomes less than 0.003 times when the wavelength changed from 380 to 325 nm. In addition, the breakover voltage is affected by the constant incident light even if the intensity is tiny.

Mots clés: minimum intensity; optically triggered thyristor; optical triggered thyristor; simulation model; wavelength dependence

Domaines: Micro et nanotechnologies/Microélectronique

Junichi Hasegawa, Loris Pace, Luong Viet Phung, Mutsuko Hatano, Dominique Planson. Simulation-Based Study About the Lifetime and Incident Light Properties Dependence of the Optically Triggered 4H-SiC Thyristors Operation. IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices, 2017, 64 (3), pp.1203-1208. ⟨10.1109/TED.2017.2657223⟩. ⟨hal-01636430⟩