Electro-Thermal Modeling of Power IGBT Module Cooled by A Heat Pipe  Cooling System

Améni Driss; Samah Maalej; Mohamed Chaker Zaghdoudi

Authors

Améni Driss aboratoire Matériaux, Mesures et Applications (MMA), Institut National des Sciences Appliquées et de Technologie (INSAT), University of Carthage, Centre Urbain Nord, BP N° 676 – 1080 Tunis Cédex, Tunisia
Samah Maalej aboratoire Matériaux, Mesures et Applications (MMA), Institut National des Sciences Appliquées et de Technologie (INSAT), University of Carthage, Centre Urbain Nord, BP N° 676 – 1080 Tunis Cédex, Tunisia
Mohamed Chaker Zaghdoudi aboratoire Matériaux, Mesures et Applications (MMA), Institut National des Sciences Appliquées et de Technologie (INSAT), University of Carthage, Centre Urbain Nord, BP N° 676 – 1080 Tunis Cédex, Tunisia

Keywords:

Electronics cooling, heat pipes, IGBT, electro-thermal modeling

Abstract

This paper deals with the development of an electro-thermal model of an Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) with a water-cooled heat pipe cooling system. Firstly, a thermal model of the heat pipe cooling system is proposed. Then, an electro-thermal model of the IGBT is developed to predict the junction temperature variations in transient operation. The thermal model of the IGBT is determined on the base of the thermal-capacitance lumped method. The electrical model of the IGBT is developed by considering the effect of the junction temperature on its static electrical parameters. Finally, the electro-thermal model is considered in a boost converter application. The model predictions show the effectiveness of the heat pipe cooling system for different commutation frequencies. It is proved that the heat pipe cooling system can keep the junction temperature of the IGBT at values allowing safe operation.