GaNTT - Gallium Nitride Trench-FET Development for Automotive Power Applications

该项目汇集了化合物半导体（CS）供应链内学术和工业合作伙伴的互补能力，以推动基于新型氮化镓（GaN）的汽车电力电子工艺平台的开发，该平台符合先进推进中心最近代表英国汽车委员会发布的路线图“迈向2040：汽车推进技术指南”。半导体供应链在当地直接雇佣了1200多名员工。这种新的平台技术将有助于加速行业从主要的硅器件制造向更高利润、更具创新性的CS器件的过渡，并为英国提供一种新的自主GaN能力。它还支持开发新的厚GaN外延材料，用于制造由斯旺西大学电子系统设计中心设计的垂直GaN晶体管。该中心在半导体器件建模方面处于世界领先地位，并于2016年获得了TechWorks大学年度研究小组奖。CS应用弹射器和涡轮动力系统（TPS）将评估在车载应用中开发的新型GaN功率器件。我们的愿景是，开发的平台技术将提供符合电力电子路线图的性能改进，该路线图为现有硅基技术无法满足的未来功率器件设定了具有挑战性的成本和性能目标。2035年逆变器和DC-DC转换器50kW/kg的功率密度目标是雄心勃勃的，只有通过使用宽带隙（WBG）材料（如GaN）才能实现。该提案概述了通过英国供应链交付所需能力的明确路线。主要重点领域包括垂直器件所需的英国厚GaN外延基板的开发，这也需要无损伤的GaN蚀刻以形成垂直通道，并成功地将栅极电介质和栅极材料集成。从设计角度来看，该项目具有很高的创新性，斯旺西大学已经为该设备的设计申请了专利。外延生长在使用多个衬底平台，独特的阶梯级配层和p体区域的原位掺杂方面也具有创新性。新设备将在车载应用中进行验证，并提供成本和性能数据。最初的200V应用将被评估，但通过并行材料和工艺开发，该平台将被证明在项目时间框架内可扩展到600V。

This project brings together the complementary capability of academic and industrial partners within the Compound Semiconductor (CS) supply chain to drive the development of a new Gallium Nitride (GaN) based process platform for Automotive Power Electronics in-line with the roadmap recently published by the Advanced Propulsion Centre on behalf of the Automotive Council UK "Towards 2040: A Guide to Automotive Propulsion Technologies".The semiconductor supply chain directly employs over 1200 people in the local region. This new platform technology would help accelerate the transition of the industry from mainly silicon device manufacture to higher margin, more innovative CS devices and provide the UK with a novel sovereign GaN capability. It also supports the development of new thick GaN epitaxial materials needed to manufacture the vertical GaN transistors designed by Swansea University's Electronic Systems Design Centre. The Centre is a world-leader in semiconductor device modelling and received the TechWorks University Research Group of the Year award in 2016.The CS Applications Catapult and Turbo Power Systems (TPS) will evaluate the new GaN power devices developed in an on-vehicle application. Our vision is that the developed platform technology will deliver performance improvements in line with the Power Electronics Roadmap which sets challenging cost and performance targets for future power devices that can't be met with existing silicon based technology. The 2035 power density targets of 50kW/kg for inverters and DC-DC converters are ambitious and will only be possible through the use of wide band gap (WBG) materials, such as GaN. This proposal outlines a clear route to delivering the required capability through a UK supply chain.The main areas of focus include the development of a UK source of thick GaN epi substrates required for the vertical device, which also requires damage free GaN etching to form a vertical channel and successful materials integration of the gate dielectrics and gate electrode.The project is highly innovative from a design perspective and Swansea University have filed a patent application for the device design. The epitaxy growth is also innovative in the use of multiple substrate platforms, the unique step grading layers and the in-situ doping of the p-body region.The new device will be proven in an on-vehicle application, and provide cost and performance data. An initial 200V application will be evaluated, but by parallel materials and process development, the platform will be demonstrated to be scaleable to 600V within the project timeframe.