# US 12,000,883 B2 · Semiconductor device and power conversion device

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- Number: US 12,000,883 B2
- Document ID: US12000883B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/606,048
- Filed: 2019-06-25
- Published: 2022-06-30
- Granted: 2024-06-04
- Earliest claimed: 2019-06-25
- Assignees: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
- Applicants: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
- Inventors: Yukihiko Wada
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12000883B2

## CPC

- G01R 31/2608: {for testing bipolar transistors}
- G01R 31/2619: {for measuring thermal properties thereof}
- G01R 31/2642: {Testing semiconductor operation lifetime or reliability, e.g. by accelerated life tests}
- G01R 31/2853: {Electrical testing of internal connections or -isolation, e.g. latch-up or chip-to-lead connections (G01R31/31717 takes precedence; test of chip-to-PCB or lead-to-PCB connections G01R31/66)}
- H02M 1/08: Circuits specially adapted for the generation of control voltages for semiconductor devices incorporated in static converters
- H02M 7/53871: {with automatic control of output voltage or current}
- H10D 12/411: {Insulated-gate bipolar transistors [IGBT]}
- H10W 42/00: Arrangements for protection of devices (arrangements for thermal protection H10W40/00)
- H10W 70/481: {for devices being provided for in groups H10D8/00 - H10D48/00}
- H10W 90/00: Package configurations
- H02P 27/08: with pulse width modulation
- H10W 72/07336: {Soldering or alloying}
- H10W 72/07533: {Ultrasonic bonding, e.g. thermosonic bonding}
- H10W 72/07552: {changes in structures or sizes}
- H10W 72/07553: {changes in shapes}
- H10W 72/07554: {changes in dispositions}
- H10W 72/352: {comprising metals or metalloids, e.g. solders}
- H10W 72/527: {Multiple bond wires having different sizes}
- H10W 72/5363: {the connected ends being wedge-shaped}
- H10W 72/537: {Multiple bond wires having different shapes}
- H10W 72/547: {Dispositions of multiple bond wires}
- H10W 72/5475: {multiple bond wires connected to common bond pads at both ends of the wires}
- H10W 72/884: {Die-attach connectors and bond wires}
- H10W 72/926: {Multiple bond pads having different sizes}
- H10W 90/736: {between a chip and a stacked lead frame, conducting package substrate or heat sink}
- H10W 90/755: {between a chip and a laterally-adjacent insulating package substrate, interpose or RDL}
- H10W 90/756: {between a chip and a stacked lead frame, conducting package substrate or heat sink}
- G01R: MEASURING ELECTRIC VARIABLES; MEASURING MAGNETIC VARIABLES (indicating correct tuning of resonant circuits H03J3/12)
- H02M: APPARATUS FOR CONVERSION BETWEEN AC AND AC, BETWEEN AC AND DC, OR BETWEEN DC AND DC, AND FOR USE WITH MAINS OR SIMILAR POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; CONVERSION OF DC OR AC INPUT POWER INTO SURGE OUTPUT POWER; CONTROL OR REGULATION THEREOF (transformers H01F; dynamo-electric converters H02K47/00; controlling transformers, reactors or choke coils, control or regulation of electric motors, generators or dynamo-electric converters H02P)
- H10D: INORGANIC ELECTRIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES
- H10W: GENERIC PACKAGES, INTERCONNECTIONS, CONNECTORS OR OTHER CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H02P: CONTROL OR REGULATION OF ELECTRIC MOTORS, ELECTRIC GENERATORS OR DYNAMO-ELECTRIC CONVERTERS; CONTROLLING TRANSFORMERS, REACTORS OR CHOKE COILS

## Abstract

A deteriorated section identifying unit refers to correspondence information that defines a deteriorated section of a plurality of bonding sections to the emitter electrode surface to which the first bonding wires are connected, for a combination of temporal change of a first voltage that is a difference between a potential at a collector main terminal and a potential at the emitter main terminal and temporal change of a second voltage that is a difference between a potential at the emitter reference terminal and a potential at the emitter main terminal, and identifies the deteriorated section corresponding to a combination of temporal change of the first voltage measured by a first voltage measuring circuit and temporal change of the second voltage measured by a second voltage measuring circuit.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A semiconductor device comprising:
a power semiconductor element;
a collector substrate electrically connected to the power semiconductor element;
a collector main terminal electrically connected to the collector substrate;
an emitter main terminal connected to an emitter electrode surface of the power semiconductor element by a plurality of first bonding wires;
an emitter reference terminal connected to the emitter electrode surface of the power semiconductor element by a second bonding wire;
a first voltage measuring circuit to measure a first voltage that is a difference between a potential at the collector main terminal and a potential at the emitter main terminal;
a second voltage measuring circuit to measure a second voltage that is a difference between a potential at the emitter reference terminal and a potential at the emitter main terminal; and
a deteriorated section identifier to refer to correspondence information that defines a deteriorated section of a plurality of bonding sections to the emitter electrode surface to which the first bonding wires are connected, for a combination of temporal change of the first voltage and temporal change of the second voltage, and to identify the deteriorated section corresponding to a combination of temporal change of the first voltage measured by the first voltage measuring circuit and temporal change of the second voltage measured by the second voltage measuring circuit.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising a recorder to record history of the identified deteriorated section.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The semiconductor device according to claim 2, wherein
when none of the bonding sections deteriorate, the deteriorated section identifier refers to first correspondence information for no deterioration as the correspondence information and identifies the deteriorated section, and
when any of the bonding sections deteriorates, the deteriorated section identifier refers to second correspondence information corresponding to the deteriorated section as the correspondence information and identifies the deteriorated section.

### Claim 4 (depends on 2)

The semiconductor device according to claim 2, further comprising a lifetime estimator to estimate lifetime of the semiconductor device, based on history of the deteriorated section and a driving method of the power semiconductor element.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The semiconductor device according to claim 4, wherein the lifetime estimator switches a driving method of the power semiconductor element, based on the estimated lifetime.

### Claim 6 (depends on 4)

The semiconductor device according to claim 4, wherein the lifetime estimator gives a notice to a user to recommend switching of a driving method of the power semiconductor element, based on the estimated lifetime.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising a temperature sensor to measure temperature of the power semiconductor element.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising a temperature estimator to estimate temperature of the power semiconductor element, based on the second voltage, a standard temperature, and a standard voltage that is the second voltage at the standard temperature, when collector current flowing through the power semiconductor element is constant.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The semiconductor device according to claim 8, wherein when a rate of temporal change of the second voltage is equal to or greater than a reference value, the temperature estimator updates the standard voltage in accordance with the rate of temporal change of the second voltage.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The semiconductor device according to claim 9, wherein when the rate of temporal change of the second voltage is ΔVee, the temperature estimator sets a value obtained by multiplying the standard voltage at present by (1+ΔVee) as a new standard voltage.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising a temperature estimator to estimate temperature of the power semiconductor element, based on a second resistance obtained by dividing the second voltage by collector current flowing through the power semiconductor element, a standard temperature, and a standard resistance that is the second resistance at the standard temperature.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The semiconductor device according to claim 11, wherein when a rate of temporal change of the second resistance is equal to or greater than a reference value, the temperature estimator updates the standard resistance in accordance with the rate of temporal change of the second resistance.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The semiconductor device according to claim 12, wherein when the rate of temporal change of the second resistance is ΔRee, the temperature estimator sets a value obtained by multiplying the standard resistance at present by (1+ΔRee) as a new standard resistance.

### Claim 14 (depends on 7)

The semiconductor device according to claim 7, wherein
the correspondence information defines a deteriorated section of the bonding sections, for a combination of temporal change of the first voltage and temporal change of the second voltage at a standard temperature, and
the deteriorated section identifier corrects temporal change of the measured first voltage and temporal change of the measured second voltage in accordance with temperature of the power semiconductor element and refers to the correspondence information to identify the deteriorated section corresponding to a combination of the corrected temporal change of the first voltage and the corrected temporal change of the second voltage.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

A power conversion device comprising:
the semiconductor device according to claim 1;
a main conversion circuit to convert input power and output the converted power; and
a control circuit to output a control signal for controlling the main conversion circuit to the main conversion circuit.