Terminal strength test of TO-220 packaged Schottky barrier diode using finite element method

• Published in: Microelectronics and reliability 2023-12, Vol.151, p.115235, Article 115235
• Main Authors: Choi, Na-Yeon, Zhang, Sung-Uk
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Finite element method; Power semiconductor; Terminal strength test; TO-220
• ISSN: 0026-2714; 1872-941X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.microrel.2023.115235

Power semiconductors are used in various industries owing to their high energy efficiency and controllability. Recently, their use in the aerospace and automotive industries has given rise to the need for high reliability in the market. Individual power semiconductor devices have a major impact on the reliability of the entire power system as they are the most basic elements. To ensure the reliability of semiconductors, various reliability tests are required to be conducted according to various international evaluation standards. This study evaluates the terminal strength testing of TO-220 package according to Method 2036 of MIL-STD 750E document. Finite element analysis was utilized to perform axial tensile tests and compared with actual experiments. Additionally, transverse tensile, torque, and bending tests were performed to evaluate the safety factors for different components of the package. Moreover, the failure mechanism of wire bonding according to various terminal strength tests using the finite element method is discussed. •Numerical evaluation of terminal strength test is proposed.•Leadframes of TO-220 package assume to be elastic-perfectly-plastic material.•Wire bonding reliability under terminal strength tests is evaluated.