Ruggedness of Silicon Power MOSFETs—Part I: Cell Structure Design Related Failure: A Review

Power metal-oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) play a vital role in numerous everyday applications that require an extended lifetime. Therefore, it is important to understand and, if possible, to avoid the related failure mechanisms occurring during operation of the power MOSFETs. In this work, the ruggedness of power MOSFETs has extensively been reviewed considering the underlying physics of the cell structure. Different measurement setups used to investigate the failure mechanisms are discussed, as well as the interactions between failure modes. Finally, guidelines to prevent failure are provided.