A multi-level automated system developed at MIEM HSE made it possible to assess the risk of component overheating in powerful electronic circuits 5–10 times faster, according to the journal Russian Microelectronics.
Overheating of transistors is one of the key problems of power electronics. With sudden temperature changes during switching on and off the device, the parameters of the components change, which leads to equipment failure. Until now, engineers have chosen between two methods: accurate 3D modeling in ANSYS, Flotherm or Comsol packages - long and resource-intensive - or fast, but simplified calculations in SPICE simulators, which do not always take into account the real design of the board.
MIEM employees combined both approaches: Comsol simulates semiconductor devices and refines thermal models of packages, SPICE analyzes the electrical circuit, and the Russian package "ASONIKA-TM" calculates the heating of the printed circuit board and component temperatures. The disparate programs were linked by specially designed modules that automatically transmit power and temperature data between calculation blocks.
The methodology was tested on a real stepper motor driver board with powerful MOSFET transistors. The simulation results were compared with thermal imaging measurements - the discrepancy was minimal. Professor of MIEM HSE Igor Kharitonov concluded that the methodology works correctly and is suitable for real engineering tasks. According to him, it is now possible to predict the moment of board overheating approximately 5–10 times faster, quickly adjust the design and reduce development costs.
The practical significance of the development goes beyond the academic result. Power electronics is the basis of industrial drives, electric transport and power equipment, where component failure means not just a breakdown, but a shutdown of production or an accident. Accelerating the calculation cycle by 10 times reduces design time and makes thermal verification of boards available at early stages of development - where it is cheapest to fix a mistake.
