Semiconductor device module with solder layer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9508700-B2
Application number	US-201315022408-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 4, 2013
Priority date	Dec 4, 2013
Publication date	Nov 29, 2016
Grant date	Nov 29, 2016

Abstract

The present invention relates to a semiconductor device used in power equipment. The semiconductor device includes: a base plate; an insulating substrate mounted on the base plate; a power switching element bonded to the insulating substrate with a solder layer; and the base plate, the insulating substrate, and the power switching element forming a module, a control substrate located above the module. The control substrate includes a variable gate voltage circuit measuring a collector-emitter voltage of the power switching element and changing a gate voltage such that the power switching element is supplied with given target power determined by a product of the collector-emitter voltage and a collector current.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A semiconductor device, comprising:
a base plate;
an insulating substrate mounted on said base plate;
a power switching element bonded to said insulating substrate with a solder layer; and
said base plate, said insulating substrate, and said power switching element forming a module,

a control substrate located above said module,
wherein said control substrate includes a variable gate voltage circuit measuring a collector-emitter voltage of said power switching element and changing a gate voltage such that said power switching element is supplied with given target power determined by a product of said collector-emitter voltage and a collector current.

2. The semiconductor device according to claim 1 , wherein said variable gate voltage circuit adjusts said gate voltage such that power for melting said solder layer is supplied as said given target power.

3. The semiconductor device according to claim 2 , wherein
said module further includes at least one temperature detecting element disposed on an upper surface of said power switching element, and
said variable gate voltage circuit includes a microcomputer configured to adjust said gate voltage such that said power switching element is supplied with said given target power in a case where an upper-surface temperature of said power switching element during normal operations detected by said at least one temperature detecting element is compared to a predetermined threshold value, and said upper-surface temperature is greater than said threshold value.

4. The semiconductor device according to claim 3 , wherein
said power switching element has a rectangular shape in a plan view, and
said at least one temperature detecting element is disposed on each of four corners of the upper surface of said power switching element.

5. The semiconductor device according to claim 2 , wherein
said module further includes:
a first temperature detecting element disposed on an upper surface of said power switching element; and
a second temperature detecting element disposed on a main surface of said base plate in said module, and

said variable gate voltage circuit includes a microcomputer configured to:
adjust a gate voltage such that a constant collector current flows through the power switching element while said first temperature detecting element measures an upper-surface temperature of said power switching element, and obtain collector-emitter voltage characteristics in relation to a temperature change,
respectively obtain a first collector-emitter voltage and a second collector-emitter voltage by passing, during a first period before passing a first collector current and during a second period after passing said constant collector current, a second current being 1/m (in which m is a whole number) of said first collector current,
calculate, from said collector-emitter voltage characteristics, a first upper-surface temperature and a second upper-surface temperature of said power switching element respectively corresponding to said first collector-emitter voltage and said second collector-emitter voltage,
obtain, using said second temperature detecting element, a first base-plate temperature and a second base-plate temperature respectively being a temperature of said base plate in said first period and a temperature of said base plate in said second period,
calculate a heat resistance of a lower portion of said power switching element from expression (1) based on information of said first and second upper-surface temperatures, said first and second base-plate temperatures, said first collector current, a collector-emitter voltage when said first collector current flows, and a third period in which said first collector current is supplied

Heat
⁢

⁢

Resistance
⁢

[

K
⁢

/

⁢
W

]

=

(

T
j

⁢
2

-

T
j

⁢
1

)

-

(

T
c

⁢
2

-

T
c

⁢
1

)

I
×

V
CE

×

(

t
4

-

t
3

)

(
1
)

where I represents a first collector current, VCE represents a collector-emitter voltage, T j 1 represents a first upper-surface temperature, T j 2 represents a second upper-surface temperature, T c 1 represents a first base-plate temperature, T c 2 represents a second base-plate temperature, and t 4 −t 3 represents a third period, and
adjust said gate voltage such that said power switching element is supplied with said given target power in a case where said heat resistance is compared to a predetermined threshold value, and said heat resistance is greater than said threshold value.

6. The semiconductor device according to claim 2 , wherein
said module further includes:
a first t

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Electric Corp

Inventors

• KOMO Hideo
• Omaru Takeshi
• Saito Shoji

Classifications

• H10W72/884

  Die-attach connectors and bond wires · CPC title

• H10W90/754

  between a chip and a stacked insulating package substrate, interposer or RDL · CPC title

• H10W90/753

  between laterally-adjacent chips · CPC title

• H10W72/30

  Die-attach connectors · CPC title

• H10W72/07331

  Connecting techniques · CPC title