Multi-chip circuit designs for silicon carbide power electronics

Abstract:
As the chip sizes of commercially available silicon carbide power transistors will remain smaller than for silicon counterparts in the next five to ten years, multi-chip circuit designs will be necessary in order to reach power levels exceeding 10 kW. In the present paper, therefore, experiences from parallel connected discrete devices, multi-chip modules, and parallel-connected multi-chip modules are presented. It is concluded that new multi-chip circuit designs are necessary if the high switching speeds of silicon carbide power transistors should be exploited. In the opinion of the authors, each chip must be contacted by means of individual current paths, and internal bus bars conducting the whole current of the module must be avoided.