High-Temperature Impact-Ionization Model for 4H-SiC

Silicon carbide (4H-SiC) devices experiencing avalanche conditions can reach temperatures above 1500 K. Simulation of impact ionization in devices should, therefore, include models valid up to such high temperatures. However, calibrations of impact ionization coefficients are available only up to 580 K, and simulations of switching show deviations from measurements at higher temperatures. In this paper, a more accurate model based on the underlying physics of high temperature and anisotropic avalanche generation is proposed. This model enables calibrations performed at room temperature along the ${c}$ -axis to be more precisely extrapolated to any temperature of interest in 2-D device simulations. The model provides an excellent fit to the measurements of breakdown voltages during unclamped inductive switching tests of power MOSFETs, enabling a more accurate prediction of ruggedness. The more comprehensive physics included in the model makes it also applicable to other wide bandgap semiconductors such as GaN, diamond, and Ga2O3, which also exhibit a high critical electric field.