Translating and Supplementing Si Based Radiation Effects Knowledge to the Wide Band-Gap Devices of Tomorrow’s Space Flight Missions
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Jason Osheroff↗
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Results for “wide band-gap devices”
Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
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Wide Band-Gap (WBG) and Power Device Testing Update 2022
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Jason Osheroff↗
Schottky barrier solar cell promises improved efficiency
Higher current and higher voltage can be obtained by using Schottky barrier device with wide band-gap semiconductor as top layer and lower band-gap semiconductor underneath. Significant amount of solar radiation that is not absorbed by side band-gap material will be absorbed by narrow band-gap material.
Stirn, R. J.↗
Basic Equations for the Modeling of Gallium Nitride (gan) High Electron Mobility Transistors (hemts)
Gallium nitride (GaN) is a most promising wide band-gap semiconductor for use in high-power microwave devices. It has functioned at 320 C, and higher values are well within theoretical limits. By combining four devices, 20 W has been developed at X-band. GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors (HEMTs) are unique in that the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) is supported not by intentional doping, but instead by polarization charge developed at the interface between the bulk GaN region and the AlGaN epitaxial layer. The polarization charge is composed of two parts: spontaneous and piezoelectric. This behavior is unlike other semiconductors, and for that reason, no commercially available modeling software exists. The theme of this document is to develop a self-consistent approach to developing the pertinent equations to be solved. A Space Act Agreement, "Effects in AlGaN/GaN HEMT Semiconductors" with Silvaco Data Systems to implement this approach into their existing software for III-V semiconductors, is in place (summer of 2002).
Freeman, Jon C.↗
A Simple Control to Reduce the Voltage Stress of Non-Conducting Switches in Three-Level ANPC Converter
With the development of wide band-gap (WBG) technology, the switching speed of power semiconductor devices is increased, which makes circuits more sensitive to parasitics. For three-level active neutral point clamped (3L-ANPC) converters, the over-voltage of non-conducting switches can be an issue. This paper analyzes the multiple commutation loops in 3L-ANPC converter and summarizes the impact factors of the over-voltage for the non-conducting switch. It is found that the nonlinearity of the output capacitance of the device can significantly influence the over-voltage. A simple control without introducing any additional hardware circuit is proposed to attenuate the impact of the nonlinearity. With the proposed control, the peak over-voltage of the non-conducting switch can be reduced significantly. Multi-pulse test is conducted for a 3L- ANPC converter built with silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs. The testing results show that the peak over-voltage decreases from 892 V to 624 V with the proposed control. More detailed analysis and experimental results will be provided in the final paper.
SiC MOSFET↗
Metallization for Yb14MnSb11-Based Thermoelectric Materials
Thermoelectric materials provide a means for converting heat into electrical power using a fully solid-state device. Power-generating devices (which include individual couples as well as multicouple modules) require the use of ntype and p-type thermoelectric materials, typically comprising highly doped narrow band-gap semiconductors which are connected to a heat collector and electrodes. To achieve greater device efficiency and greater specific power will require using new thermoelectric materials, in more complex combinations. One such material is the p-type compound semiconductor Yb14MnSb11 (YMS), which has been demonstrated to have one of the highest ZT values at 1,000 C, the desired operational temperature of many space-based radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs). Despite the favorable attributes of the bulk YMS material, it must ultimately be incorporated into a power-generating device using a suitable joining technology. Typically, processes such as diffusion bonding and/or brazing are used to join thermoelectric materials to the heat collector and electrodes, with the goal of providing a stable, ohmic contact with high thermal conductivity at the required operating temperature. Since YMS is an inorganic compound featuring chemical bonds with a mixture of covalent and ionic character, simple metallurgical diffusion bonding is difficult to implement. Furthermore, the Sb within YMS readily reacts with most metals to form antimonide compounds with a wide range of stoichiometries. Although choosing metals that react to form high-melting-point antimonides could be employed to form a stable reaction bond, it is difficult to limit the reactivity of Sb in YMS such that the electrode is not completely consumed at an operating temperature of 1,000 C. Previous attempts to form suitable metallization layers resulted in poor bonding, complete consumption of the metallization layer or fracture within the YMS thermoelement (or leg).
Firdosy, Samad↗
Zinc Alloys for the Fabrication of Semiconductor Devices
ZnBeO and ZnCdSeO alloys have been disclosed as materials for the improvement in performance, function, and capability of semiconductor devices. The alloys can be used alone or in combination to form active photonic layers that can emit over a range of wavelength values. Materials with both larger and smaller band gaps would allow for the fabrication of semiconductor heterostructures that have increased function in the ultraviolet (UV) region of the spectrum. ZnO is a wide band-gap material possessing good radiation-resistance properties. It is desirable to modify the energy band gap of ZnO to smaller values than that for ZnO and to larger values than that for ZnO for use in semiconductor devices. A material with band gap energy larger than that of ZnO would allow for the emission at shorter wavelengths for LED (light emitting diode) and LD (laser diode) devices, while a material with band gap energy smaller than that of ZnO would allow for emission at longer wavelengths for LED and LD devices. The amount of Be in the ZnBeO alloy system can be varied to increase the energy bandgap of ZnO to values larger than that of ZnO. The amount of Cd and Se in the ZnCdSeO alloy system can be varied to decrease the energy band gap of ZnO to values smaller than that of ZnO. Each alloy formed can be undoped or can be p-type doped using selected dopant elements, or can be n-type doped using selected dopant elements. The layers and structures formed with both the ZnBeO and ZnCdSeO semiconductor alloys - including undoped, p-type-doped, and n-type-doped types - can be used for fabricating photonic and electronic semiconductor devices for use in photonic and electronic applications. These devices can be used in LEDs, LDs, FETs (field effect transistors), PN junctions, PIN junctions, Schottky barrier diodes, UV detectors and transmitters, and transistors and transparent transistors. They also can be used in applications for lightemitting display, backlighting for displays, UV and visible transmitters and detectors, high-frequency radar, biomedical imaging, chemical compound identification, molecular identification and structure, gas sensors, imaging systems, and for the fundamental studies of atoms, molecules, gases, vapors, and solids.
Ryu, Yungryel↗