Breakdown Characteristics of 15-kV-Class 4H-SiC PiN Diodes With Various Junction Termination Structures

15-kV-class 4H-SiC PiN diodes with various junction termination structures have been experimentally investigated. Employment of the space-modulated junction termination extension (SM-JTE) and the two-zone JTE have realized a breakdown voltage over 15 kV, corresponding to 93% of the parallel-plane breakdown voltage. The window of the implanted JTE dose to achieve the ultrahigh voltage has been enlarged, which indicates the robustness to the deviation of effective JTE dose. From the comparison of the experimental JTE-dose dependence of breakdown voltage with the numerical device simulation, a shift toward the heavier JTE-dose region was observed. To explain the phenomenon, effects of the charges at the SiO₂/SiC interface are discussed.