Abstract: Power electronics plays an important role in a wide range of applications in order to achieve high efficiency and performance. Increasing efforts are being made to improve the reliability of power electronics systems to ensure compliance with more stringent constraints on cost, safety, and availability in different applications. This paper presents an overview of the major failure mechanisms of IGBT modules and their handling methods in power converter systems improving reliability. The major failure mechanisms of IGBT modules are presented first, and methods for predicting lifetime and estimating the junction temperature of IGBT modules are then discussed. Subsequently, different methods for detecting open- and short-circuit faults are presented. Finally, fault-tolerant strategies for improving the reliability of power electronic systems under field operation are explained and compared in terms of performance and cost.

Abstract: Obviously for the correct operation of conventional boost converters, all components should work correctly. Interleaved boost converters having several stages, can be used to increase the reliability. So in this paper, a reliability comparison is done between the conventional boost converter and the interleaved structure. Two different operation modes are defined for the interleaved boost converter: half-power and full-power operation modes. The reliability calculation is based on the Markov model of the converters. The power loss effect of converter components on their failure rates, and therefore, on the reliability of converter has been assessed. For the first time different failure rates have been considered for different operation modes. Also a laboratory prototype of a two-stage interleaved boost dc–dc converter has been built up and the failure rate of components in different operation modes are calculated practically. Results show that in addition to other benefits, interleaved structure has higher reliability and as the power increases, there will be a decrease in the reliability.

Abstract: A review of various proposed schemes to increase the reliability and life span of solid-state lighting (SSL) systems is presented in this article. Since the mainstream devices employed for such lighting systems are inorganic, high-power light-emitting diodes (LEDs), which are devices characterized by their very long life, most of the questions in reliability and endurability arise from the electronic offline circuit driving the LEDs. Issues regarding the limited reliability of specific components, such as electrolytic capacitors, are introduced. Several power-?conversion configurations aimed to capacitance reduction and capacitor technology exchange are put forward as alternative solutions for implementing long-life drivers, with remarks on both their benefits and drawbacks. An extensive literature review on the topic is carried out, and some practical outcomes from recent research on offline LED driving are highlighted.

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Abstract: Input-series–output-series (ISOS) system connection of dc–dc converters is suitable for high-input-voltage and high-output-voltage applications. Input voltage sharing and output voltage sharing of the constituent modules among the ISOS system must be ensured. This paper proposes a novel decentralized voltage-sharing control strategy, which has the advantages of full modularity and high reliability, and each module is controlled independently without any control communication with other modules. In order to ensure proper sharing of input and output voltages, the input voltage sensing signal is added to the reference voltage for each module, resulting in the positive output voltage gradient regulation characteristic of the ISOS system; moreover, a system output voltage shifting loop is introduced to improve the system voltage regulation. The proposed control strategy can effectively improve the modularity and reliability of the ISOS system. An ISOS system prototype consisting of three two-transistor forward converter modules is tested in the laboratory, and the experimental results verify the effectiveness of the control strategy.

Abstract: This paper details the transistor aging and gate oxide reliability of Intel's 14nm process technology. This technology introduces Intel's 2nd generation tri-gate transistor and the 4th generation of high-κ dielectrics and metal-gate electrodes. The reliability metrics reported here highlight reliability gains attained through transistor optimizations as well as intrinsic challenges from device scaling.

Abstract: Racetrack memory stores digital data in the magnetic domain walls of nanowires. This technology promises to yield information storage devices with high reliability, performance and capacity.

Abstract: A temperature accelerated life test on commercial concentrator lattice-matched GaInP/GaInAs/Ge triple-junction solar cells has been carried out. The acceleration of the aging has been accomplished by subjecting the solar cells at temperatures markedly higher than the nominal working temperature inside a concentrator, and the nominal photo-current condition (820 X) has been emulated by injecting current in darkness. Three tests at different temperatures have been carried out. The failure distributions across the three test temperatures have been fitted to an Arrhenius–Weibull model. An Arrhenius activation energy of 1.59 eV was determined from the fit. The reliability functions and parameters of these solar cells at two nominal working conditions 80 and 100 ıC have been obtained. In both cases, the instantaneous failure rate function monotonically increases, that is, the failures are of the wear-out kind. We have also observed that the reliability data are very sensitive to the nominal temperature condition. In fact, at a nominal working condition of 820 X and 80 ıC, assuming that the concentration module works 5 h per day, the warranty time obtained for a failure population of 5% has been 113 years. However, for a nominal working condition of 820 X and 100 ıC, the warranty time obtained for a failure population of 5% has been 7 years. Therefore, in order to offer a long-term warranty, the working temperature could be a key factor in the design of the concentration photovoltaic systems. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Abstract: This paper deals with increasing the reliability of electric drives of exhausters of the oxygen-converter process. The dependences of the reliability parameters in the electrical converter–electric motor system on the power reserve were obtained. The costs for the installed equipment were taken as an optimization criterion. It is noted that improving the reliability of an electric drive is possible both by increasing the overall power of the power unit and by changing the number of phases. It is shown that the reliability of the system can be improved in a synchronous electric drive with pulse-vector control at the reservation of a semiconductor converter. A mathematical model of the electrical converter–reluctance motor with a field-regulated machine complex is proposed. The results of the mathematical modeling of the synchronous electric drive with pulse-vector control are considered. The dependence of the specific electric parameters on the number of phases is determined.

Abstract: Over the past few decades, crystalline silicon solar cells have been extensively studied due to their high efficiency, high reliability, and low cost. In addition, these types of cells lead the industry and account for more than half of the market. For the foreseeable future, Si will still be a critical material for photovoltaic devices in the solar cell industry. In this paper, we discuss key issues, cell concepts, and the status of recent high-efficiency crystalline silicon solar cells.

Abstract: Ultra-high concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) systems aim to increase the cost-competiveness of CPV by increasing the concentrations over 2000 suns. In this work, the design of a heat sink for ultra-high concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) applications is presented. For the first time, the least-material approach, widely used in electronics to maximize the thermal dissipation while minimizing the weight of the heat sink, has been applied in CPV. This method has the potential to further decrease the cost of this technology and to keep the multijunction cell within the operative temperature range. The designing procedure is described in the paper and the results of a thermal simulation are shown to prove the reliability of the solution. A prediction of the costs is also reported: a cost of 0.151$/Wp is expected for a passive least-material heat sink developed for 4000x applications.

Abstract: GH4169 alloy has been widely used in fields such as aviation, aerospace, and petrochemical, because of its excellent combination of mechanical and processing properties. These properties include good high-temperature strength, excellent creep and fatigue resistance, and good processing and welding performance. The requirement for high performance, high reliability, and long service life of modern engines has led to the incentive to develop GH4169 alloys with improved performance, such as increased temperature-bearing capacity, improved creep endurance, and better fatigue resistance. Advances during the past thirty years in basic research and industrial technology related to GH4169 alloy were systematically summarized, including advances in alloy modification, melting process optimization, and hot deformation technology.

Abstract: Some of the largest supercomputing centers (SCs) in the United States are developing new relationships with their electricity service providers (ESPs). These relationships, similar to other commercial and industrial partnerships, are driven by a mutual interest to reduce energy costs and improve electrical grid reliability. While SCs are concerned about the quality, cost, environmental impact, and availability of electricity, ESPs are concerned about electrical grid reliability, particularly in terms of energy consumption, peak power demands, and power fluctuations. The power demand for SCs can be 20 MW or more – the theoretical peak power requirements are greater than 45 MW – and recurring intra-hour variability can exceed 8 MW. As a result of this, ESPs may request large SCs to engage in demand response and grid integration.

Abstract: In the development of next-generation power modules for electric vehicles, demands for high efficiency, reliability, low cost, high power density and therefore small size are of major importance. A promising approach is the embedding of power semiconductor devices into a printed circuit board (PCB), as investigated by the HI-LEVEL project. This paper deals with the research, design and experimental verification of a current sensor based on the principle of a Rogowski coil, which is integrated into a PCB, so that it can measure the device current of the embedded power semiconductor devices. As switched-mode currents are to be measured, the dynamics of the current sensor were of major concern. Moreover, as large voltage gradients caused by the semiconductor devices inject parasitic capacitive currents into the coil, a differential measurement approach was selected for cancelling out disturbances caused by capacitive coupling.

Abstract: As a key part in the wind turbine system, the power electronic converter is proven to have high failure rates. At the same time, the failure of the wind power converter is becoming more unacceptable because of the quick growth in capacity, remote locations to reach, and strong impact to the power grid. As a result, the correct assessment of reliable performance for power electronics is a crucial and emerging need; the assessment is essential for design improvement, as well as for the extension of converter lifetime and reduction of energy cost. Unfortunately, there still exists a lack of suitable physic-of-failure based evaluation tools for a reliability assessment in power electronics. In this paper, an advanced tool structure which can acquire various reliability metrics of wind power converter is proposed. The tool is based on failure mechanisms in critical components of the system and mission profiles in wind turbines. Potential methodologies, challenges, and technology trends involved in this tool structure are also discussed. Finally, a simplified version of the tool is demonstrated on a wind power converter based on Double Fed Induction Generator system. With the proposed tool structure, more detailed information of reliability performances in a wind power converter can be obtained before the converter can actually fail in the field and many potential research topics can also be initiated.

Abstract: Electromigration (EM) has become a major power grid reliability problem in VLSI. In this paper, we first demonstrate that EM reliability analysis of a power grid can be converted to analyzing EM reliability of the grid vias. We develop a model for calculating EM lifetime of via-arrays and observe that making power grid EM-immortal carries a huge metal area overhead and possibly makes routing of both power and signal networks too difficult to complete. We propose a method for trading off power grid integrity and reliability to minimize the total metal area overhead needed to achieve the desired grid life time under power integrity constraints. Experimental results show that using our method, both EM reliability and power integrity can be met, while the additional metal area used is significantly reduced.

Abstract: The reliability of 600 V GaN power switches, fabricated in a silicon CMOS foundry, has been demonstrated. JEDEC qualification of cascode packages and the long term reliability of GaN power switches has been estimated for the first and shown to be greater than a million hours. Excellent switched/dynamic on-resistance up to 1000 V and breakdown voltage over 1500 V indicate the suitability of these devices for switching up to 480 V. Detailed data of high temperature reverse bias (HTRB) test is shown. High temperature DC stress test and high voltage off-state stress tests also corroborate the high reliability of these devices. This suite of initial, JEDEC & accelerated stress tests show that GaN-on-silicon power switches are ready for many commercial and industrial applications, would significantly reduce switching losses and system size and will impact all areas of electricity conversion, ranging from tablet chargers to photovoltaic inverters and electric vehicles.

Abstract: Improving offshore wind turbine reliability is a key industry goal to improve the availability of this renewable energy generation source. The semiconductor devices in the wind turbine power converter are traditionally considered as the most sensitive and important components to achieve this and managing their thermomechanical stressing is vital, since this is one of their principal long-term aging mechanisms. Conventional deterministic reliability prediction methods used in industrial applications are not suitable for wind turbine applications, due to the stochastic nature of the wind speed. This paper develops an electrothermal model of the power devices, which is integrated with a wind turbine system model for the investigation of power converter thermal cycling under various operating conditions. The model has been developed to eliminate the problems of pulse width modulation switching, substantially reducing simulation time. The model is used to improve the current controller tuning method to reduce thermal stresses suffered by the converter during a grid fault. The model is finally used to design a control method to alleviate a key problem of the doubly fed induction generator—severe thermal cycling caused during operation near synchronous speed.

Abstract: A novel polymer-stabilized blue phase liquid crystal display (PS-BPLCD) using an optimized BPLC for new wall-electrode cell structure and also new driving method has been developed. Those technologies enable BPLCDs to apply conventional source driver IC in AMLCD applications. This novel PS-BPLCDs successfully achieved high-performance LCDs with over 2 times higher optoelectronic properties and a superior reliability.

Abstract: A coordinated secondary control based on a novel autonomous currents sharing control strategy for balanced discharge rate of energy storage systems in islanded microgrid (MG) is proposed in this paper. The coordinated secondary controller is able to regulate the output power of distributed generating (DG) systems according to their state-of-charge by adjusting the virtual resistances of their voltage controlled inverters. This controller can not only provide the faster response and accurate output current sharing control, but also avoid the potential operation failure resulting from the over current and unintentional outage of DGs. Thus, the stability and reliability of islanded MG can be improved. The eigenvalues and root locus with the proposed controller are presented to design the parameters as well as analyzing the system stability. Simulation results based on Matlab/simulink are presented in order to verify the effectiveness of the proposed controller.

Abstract: Dual inverter open winding drive (DIOWD) has several advantages over standard 3 phase drive such as multilevel voltage output, lower dc link voltage, high efficiency and better fault tolerant capability. In this paper three DIOWD topologies aiming for high speed and/or safety critical applications are evaluated. Their operation characteristics, VA ratings, efficiencies, harmonic distortion factors (HDF) are quantitatively compared using analytical methods. The utilization of dual inverters provides fault tolerant capabilities for the drive. However, the doubled number of devices increases the risk of single-point failure. Finally, the reliability of the drives is assessed by Markov chain technique. The results show that the DIOWD with two power supplies exhibits low HDF and high efficiency; it also offers better fault tolerant capability and enhanced reliability, thereby being more attractive for both high speed and high reliability applications. While the DIOWD with single power supply and the DIOWD with a power supply and a floating capacitor can be utilized for high speed drives with reduced dc link voltage.

Abstract: Distribution system reliability, defined by the expected frequency and duration of load service interruptions caused by component failures, is shown to be dependent on the topology of the distribution network, as well as on the relative placement of loads and generators within the system. In a shipboard electrical distribution system, a network topology based on the breaker-and-a-half scheme is shown to confer greater reliability than equivalent distribution topologies based on the ring bus and double bus, double breaker designs. The overall service interruption rate in the breaker-and-a-half topology is 17.8% less than that in the ring bus topology and 40.0% less than that in the double bus, double breaker topology. Further, an optimized equipment placement configuration is algorithmically identified for the loads and generators within the breaker-and-a-half distribution network, further increasing reliability. The optimal equipment placement decreases the overall system interruption rate by 0.54%. The paper also determines an optimal location for additional in-feeds that should be connected to the ship's most critical loads so that maximum benefits to service reliability are obtained.

Abstract: An investigation of an off-the-shelf solid-state lighting device with the primary focus on the accompanied light-emitting diode (LED) electrical driver (ED) has been conducted. A set of 10 EDs were exposed to temperature humidity life testing of 85% RH and 85 °C (85/85) without an electrical bias per the JEDEC standard JESD22-A101C in order to accelerate the ingress of moisture into the aluminum electrolytic capacitor (AEC) and the EDs in order to assess the reliability of the LED drivers for harsh environment applications. The capacitance and equivalent series resistance for each AEC inside the ED were measured using a handheld LCR meter as possible leading indications of failure. The photometric quantities of a single pristine light engine were monitored in order to investigate the interaction between the light engine and the EDs. These parameters were used in assessing the overall reliability of the EDs. In addition, a comparative analysis has been conducted between the 85/85 accelerated test data and a previously published high-temperature storage life accelerated test of 135 °C. The results of the 85/85 acceleration test and the comparative analysis are presented in this paper.

Abstract: Back-end wearout mechanisms are major reliability concerns for modern microprocessors. In this paper, a framework that contains modules for back-end time-dependent dielectric breakdown, electromigration, and stress-induced voiding is proposed to analyze circuit layout geometries and interconnects to estimate state-of-the-art microprocessor lifetime due to each mechanism. Our methodology incorporates the detailed electrical stress temperature, linewidth, and cross-sectional areas of each interconnect/via within the microprocessor system. Different workloads are considered to evaluate aging effects in single-core microprocessors running applications with realistic use conditions.