Study on changes in electrical and switching characteristics of NPT-IGBT devices by fast neutron irradiation

Abstract

We studied the irradiation effects of fast neutron generated by a 30 MeV cyclotron on the electrical and switching characteristics of NPT-IGBT devices. Fast neutron fluence ranges from 2.7 × 109 to 1.82 × 1013 n/cm2. Electrical characteristics of the IGBT device such as I–V, forward voltage drop and additionally switching characteristics of turn-on and -off were measured. As the neutron fluence increased, the device's threshold voltage decreased, the forward voltage drop increased significantly, and the turn-on and turn-off time became faster. In particular, the delay time of turn-on switching was improved by about 35% to a maximum of about 39.68 ns, and that of turn-off switching was also reduced by about 40%–84.89 ns, showing a faster switching.

Keywords

• Insulated gate bipolar transistor
• Fast neutron irradiation
• Total ionizing dose effect
• Displacement damage effect