CONNECTION ARRANGEMENT FOR SEMICONDUCTOR POWER MODULES

• US 20110233608A1
• Filed: 04/28/2011
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ABB Power Grids Switzerland AG (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: ABB Research Ltd. (ABB Limited)
• Inventors: Linder, Stefan, COTTET, Didier, Asplund, Gunnar
• Granted Patent: US 9,024,421 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/140
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 25/072 the devices being arranged next to each other
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00

Abstract

A semiconductor power module includes at least two sub modules. The sub modules include at least one respective transistor having a collector, an emitter, and a gate. The module includes a connection arrangement having a collector terminal unit for connecting the collectors of the at least two sub modules collectively to external circuit components, at least two emitter terminal units for connecting the respective emitters of the at least two sub modules individually to external circuit components, and at least two gate terminal units for connecting the respective gates of the at least two sub modules individually to external circuit components.

Claims

1. A semiconductor power module comprising:

at least two sub modules, sub module including at least one respective transistor having a collector, an emitter, and a gate; and

a connection arrangement, wherein said connection arrangement comprises;

a collector terminal unit for connecting the collectors of the at least two sub modules collectively to external circuit components;

at least two emitter terminal units for connecting the respective emitters of the at least two sub modules individually to external circuit components; and

at least two gate terminal units for connecting the respective gates of the at least two sub modules individually to external circuit components.

2. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, wherein each of the at least two sub modules includes six individual transistors.

3. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, wherein each of the at least two sub modules includes a plurality of transistors having mutually similar electrical characteristics.

4. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, includes six sub modules.

5. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, wherein sub units having mutually similar electrical characteristics are grouped into a respective group of sub units, wherein each group of sub units has a respective connection arrangement comprising:

a sub module group collector terminal unit for connecting the collector terminal units of the sub modules of the group collectively to external circuit components;

a sub module group emitter terminal unit for connecting the at least two emitter terminal units of the sub modules of the group individually to external circuit components; and

a sub module group gate terminal unit for connecting the at least two gate terminal units of the at least two sub modules of the group individually to external circuit components.

6. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, wherein the at least one respective transistor is an Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor.

7. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, wherein the at least one respective transistor is a bipolar transistor.

8. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, comprising:

emitter-gate terminal pairs of the at least two sub modules for each sub module.

9. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, comprising:

an emitter-gate terminal pair of a sub module of the semiconductor power module,

wherein emitters of at least two transistors within the sub module are connected to each other and gates of at least two transistors within the sub module are connected to each other.

10. The semiconductor power module in accordance with claim 1, comprising:

an emitter-gate terminal pair of a group of transistors having a mutually similar current sharing behavior, wherein the emitters of the group of transistors having a mutually similar current sharing behavior are connected to each other, and wherein the gates of the group of transistors having a mutually similar current sharing behavior are connected to each other.

11. A method for connecting a semiconductor power module including at least two sub modules, the sub modules having at least one respective transistor having a collector, an emitter, and a gate, and a connection arrangement, to external circuit components, the method comprising:

connecting the collectors of the at least two sub modules collectively to the external circuit components by means of a collector terminal;

connecting the respective emitters of the at least two sub modules individually to the external circuit components by means of at least two emitter terminal units; and

connecting the respective gates of the at least two sub modules individually to the external circuit components by means of at least two gate terminal units.