Reliability and Lifetime Estimation of Power Electronic Modules

Abstract: Advanced packaging technologies are currently being designed and developed by the power electronics industry however, the maximum operating temperature is still limited to 175°C for the silicon carbide devices. Bonded materials such as sintered silver, sintered copper, and polymeric materials are potential candidates for high temperature operation, but it is critical to characterize and evaluate its reliability under harsh operating conditions. In the first part of this webinar, the accelerated experiments and thermomechanical modeling results of these bonded materials, and their lifetime prediction models developed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are discussed. Failure mechanisms that occur within these materials are identified through destructive evaluations. In the second half, the modeling approach adopted at NREL to create a design-for-reliability framework to optimize various power module configurations is presented. Although the initial focus in creating this framework is focused only on thermal and thermomechanical objectives, the end-goal is to consider the multiphysics environment and create an application that engineers and researchers can leverage to rapidly identify opportunities to improve the lifetime of power electronic modules.