Effect of Si segregation at grain boundaries on the mechanical behaviours of ageing Al metallization layer in insulated gate bipolar transistor module

T An and XX Chen and Q Wang and J Han and F Qin and YW Dai and P Chen and YP Gong, MOLECULAR SIMULATION, 49, 1281-1292 (2023).

DOI: 10.1080/08927022.2023.2225632

In this study, the evolution of the Si atom distribution within an Al metallization layer in an insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) module during power cycling is studied experimentally through electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) observations, X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) characterization. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are applied to study the effects of Si segregation on the mechanical properties of the Al metallization layer. The results show that Si segregation toward the Al grain boundaries occurs as the number of power cycles increases, and this behaviour strongly influences the recrystallization, texture, grain size and mechanical performance of the Al metallization layer.

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