Impact of poly-crystalline diamond within power semiconductor device modules in a converter

This paper presents the finding of thermal characterization of polycrystalline diamond for power semiconductor device modules in a converter. Comparisons of measured thermal performance of two diamond demonstrators, consisting of metalized diamond tiles attached to aluminum and copper forced air cooled heat sinks; show that power dissipation can be increased from 278W to 535W when compared to commercial products operating at a case temperature of 100°C and a maximum junction temperature of 175°C. Detailed converter simulations of a two level three-phase inverter driving a 15kW permanent magnet machine shows that using diamond can increase active power density from 13kW/kg to 17kW/kg at a coolant temperature of 100°C and a flowrate of 6 liters per minute.