ECE 59500 - Introduction to Power Semiconductor Devices

Course Details

Lecture Hours: 1 Credits: 1

Areas of Specialization:

  • Microelectronics and Nanotechnology

Normally Offered:

Each Spring

Campus/Online:

On-campus only

Requisites:

ECE 59500 Semiconductor Fundamentals or ECE 30500 Semiconductor Devices or ECE60600 Solid State Devices.

Requisites by Topic:

Undergraduate physics and mathematics, including basic calculus and differential equations. Familiarity with semiconductor materials, band structure and band diagrams, and carrier transport devices as would be found in an undergraduate course such as ECE 30500.

Catalog Description:

This course provides an introduction to the properties and internal operation of the most common power semiconductor devices, including Schottky and PiN diodes, power MOSFETS, and insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs). The physics of avalanche breakdown and the performance limits this imposes on high voltage devices will be described. The static and switching characteristics of these devices will be examined, and the differences and tradeoffs between unipolar and bipolar devices discussed. The required textbook for this course is available online through the Purdue Libraries.

Required Text(s):

  1. Fundamentals of Power Semiconductor Devices , 2nd Edition , B. Jayant Baliga , Springer , 2019 , ISBN No. 978-3-319-93987-2

Recommended Text(s):

  1. Fundamentals of Silicon Carbide Technology , Tsunenobu Kimoto and James A. Cooper , John Wiley & Sons Inc. , 2014 , ISBN No. 978-1-118-31352-7

Learning Outcomes

A student who successfully fulfills the course requirements will have demonstrated an ability to:

  • Identify key differences between logic and power devices
  • Demonstrate ability to design unipolar drift layers for a specific blocking voltage in a specific material, and quantify expected performance (i.e. on resistance), area required, etc.
  • Demonstrate the ability to describe the operation of power devices using band diagrams
  • Identify key performance metrics that differentiate unipolar and bipolar devices
  • Explain advantages of wide bandgap semiconductor materials in power devices

Lecture Outline:

Unit Number Topic
1 Introduction; example applications and building blocks; intro to power devices
2 Semiconductor physics review
2 Unipolar drift layer physics
2 Schottky Diodes
2 PiN Diodes
1 Power MOSFETs
3 IGBTs

Assessment Method:

Homework, quizzes, exams. (11/2025)