Synergies gained from smart combinations of silicon carbide power devices with silicon components

The paper will sketch ideas as well as experimental evidence how SiC devices should be designed in order to be ideal partners for modern silicon devices. After a short introduction into SiC power semiconductors, examples will be described. Based on the performance description of SiC diodes it will be shown like the use of such devices as freewheeling diodes can open up new horizons for dynamic performance of silicon IGBTpsilas. However, for being the ideal partner of IGBTpsilas, besides the virtually zero reverse recovery additional features are required like an enlarged breakdown ruggedness as well as a stable surge mode ability in order to achieve the bench-mark like performance offered by silicon devices today. As a next example for a powerful combination of silicon with SiC devices the cascode solution where the MOS part of a power MOSFET is realized by silicon and the VJFET part by SiC will be discussed. The paper will highlight some aspects regarding the design and technology of SiC VJFETs used in cascodes in order to offer for the final user a device which behaves practically like established silicon MOSFETs, but having a much higher blocking voltage. Among them belong a pentode like output characteristic as well as a low resistive gate metallization.