Experimental studies of single-event gate rupture and burnout in vertical power MOSFETs

Numerous studies have revealed that vertical power MOSFETs are susceptible to single-event burnout (SEB) and single-event gate rupture (SEGR), resulting in degraded performance or even catastrophic failure when operated in a cosmic-ray environment like space. This paper summarizes many of those experimental studies and examines the problems, test methodologies, and experimental results. Previously unavailable information on SEGR is also provided.