Title :
Design considerations for large-current GTOs
Author :
Yatsuo, Tsutomu ; Kimura, Shin ; Sato, Yuuki
Author_Institution :
Hitachi Ltd., Ibaraki, Japan
fDate :
6/1/1989 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
The current crowding of a GTO during turn-off operation and the limits to operating without breakdown were investigated by a newly developed measurement method of current distribution and by computer simulation. Design considerations for large-current GTOs were clarified as follows: to increase the maximum turnoff current, current crowding is suppressed by a gate structure optimized for the distribution of a steady on-state current, and the maximum current flowing into a unit GTO is reduced in a safe operating area by optimizing the number of unit GTOs. The characteristics of a 4000-A GTO trial-fabricated under these design considerations are shown to confirm the validity of the design assumptions
Keywords :
semiconductor device models; semiconductor technology; thyristors; 4 kA; computer simulation; current crowding; current distribution; design assumptions; design considerations; gate structure; gate turn off thyristors; large-current GTOs; limits to operating without breakdown; maximum turnoff current; measurement method; number of unit GTOs; safe operating area; turn-off operation; Computer simulation; Current distribution; Current measurement; Design optimization; Electric breakdown; Electrodes; Proximity effect; Semiconductor optical amplifiers; Thyristors; Voltage;
Journal_Title :
Electron Devices, IEEE Transactions on
