Factors limiting current gain in power transistors

The combined effect of sidewall injection, bandgap narrowing, and Shockley-Hall-Read and Auger recombination in determining emitter efficiency in n-p-n power transistor structures is demonstrated by utilizing a two-dimensional transistor model. The relative importance of each of these effects is calculated as a function of emitter junction depth, emitter surface doping, and injection level. It is shown that in a practical transistor design the reduction in emitter efficiency due to the increased injection of holes into the emitter, resulting from bandgap narrowing caused by heavy doping, is not dominated by the emitter sidewall. Auger recombination is seen to be especially important when bandgap narrowing is present. Enhanced Auger-type recombination is due both to increased minority carrier injection in the emitter as well as current crowding effects. The predictions of the model are compared with results of the measurement of current gain versus current level characteristics on existing devices.