SPICE-Aided Nonlinear Electrothermal Modeling of an IGBT Module

The paper proposes a compact electrothermal model of the IGBT module in the form of a subcircuit for SPICE. This model simultaneously takes into account electrical phenomena occurring in the module components and thermal phenomena occurring in this module. In the description of electrical phenomena, the previously formulated models of the IGBT and the diode are used, whereas the description of thermal phenomena is original. While describing thermal phenomena, self-heating in each component, mutual thermal couplings between each pair of these components, and the influence of the dissipated power on the efficiency of heat removal are taken into account. The form of the proposed model and the results of its experimental verification for the IGBT module operating under different cooling conditions are presented. The DC characteristics of the module and the characteristics of the half-bridge converter containing the considered module are presented.