Dependencies of Temperature Sensitive Electrical Parameters and Influence of Degradation in Silicon Carbide MOSFETs: A Review

SiC MOSFETs are widely used as the core component in various power converter applications. To ensure a consistent performance and maximising the operation lifetime of SiC MOSFETs, their reliability is a critical aspect to be considered and monitored throughout their operation. From this perspective, the junction temperature is an important factor determining the reliability of SiC MOSFETs as it is highly correlated to the failure of SiC MOSFETs. As a popular temperature monitoring method, the use of temperature sensitive electrical parameters (TSEPs) provides a noninvasive way to monitor the junction temperature during converter operation. This paper compares the threshold voltage, on-state resistance, turn-on and turn-off delay time as candidates for TSEPs. Their temperature dependency is discussed by reviewing previous studies. External dependencies, sensitivity and linearity of the TSEPs are also reviewed to identify the required packaging and challenges for online junction temperature measurement. Additionally, the impacts of gate-oxide and bond wire degradation on deviating the value of the four TSEPs are discussed. The comparison facilitates the selection of TSEPs for temperature and degradation monitoring in specific power electronics applications.