Daniel Wetzel

In today’s rapidly evolving semiconductor landscape, the adoption of wide-bandgap materials, advanced silicon (Si), and Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technologies is expanding the range of high-power applications. Wide-bandgap semiconductors such as Gallium Nitride (GaN) and Silicon Carbide (SiC) enable higher voltages, currents, and power capabilities, unlocking new market opportunities while introducing novel challenges in reliability and failure analysis.

As these technologies push beyond 1 kV and 1 A, the demand for advanced testing methodologies grows. From a foundry perspective, we will present our expanding capabilities in reliability assessment, including for example High-Temperature Reverse Bias (HTRB) and dynamic RDS(on) analysis, to address evolving customer and industry requirements. Additionally, we will discuss the increasing demand for Level 2 testing (e.g. HT3RB), traditionally performed by customers, and the implications of shifting such analyses into the foundry environment.

Daniel Wetzel is a staff engineer in global Reliability Group of X-Fab. His main activity is on the subject of transistor reliability. His responsibility includes planning and executing measurement campaigns, extracting primitive device reliability models and translating them into aging simulation models. He obtained his Masters degree in Physics from the Technical University in Dresden-Germany in 2016 and has worked since then at X-FAB.