Abstract
Rapid miniaturization alongwith increasing heat loads in power electronics devices like insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) have necessitated the need for advanced thermal management technologies in the packaging of these devices. This study quantifies the benefits of key advanced thermal management solutions for packaging of power electronics packages. Thermal resistance network modeling is used to estimate the maximum heat flux that can be dissipated by an IGBT package, while maintaining the junction temperature below 125 °C and 200 °C for silicon and silicon carbide (wide bandgap material) devices, respectively. While the model is completely analytical, it does address important complexities associated with heat flow in packages via the use of a sub-model to account for thermal spreading. The advanced cooling technologies evaluated in this study include the use of high thermal conductivity polymer heat sinks, double-sided heat sinking of packages, liquid cooling (single and two-phase), jet impingement and spray cooling. Additionally, combinations of these cooling technologies are evaluated as well. The heat dissipation achievable from these technologies is compared with that from an air cooled copper heat sink (baseline). The results of this study provide insights and a starting point for selecting thermal management technologies (or combinations) based on the heat dissipation requirements of power electronics packages.
