Diode
Piecewise or exponential diode
Libraries:
Simscape /
Electrical /
Semiconductors & Converters
Description
The Diode block can represent either a piecewise linear diode, an exponential diode, or a diode with tabulated I-V curve. Use the Fidelity level parameter to select the level of detail in the dynamics model.
Piecewise Linear Diode
The piecewise linear diode model is the same model as the Simscape™ > Foundation Library > Electrical > Electrical Elements > Diode block, with the addition of a fixed junction capacitance and optional charge dynamics. If the diode forward voltage exceeds the value specified in the Forward voltage parameter, the diode behaves as a linear resistor with the resistance specified in the On resistance parameter. Otherwise, the diode behaves as a linear resistor with the small conductance specified in the Off conductance parameter. Zero voltage across the diode results in zero current flowing.
For more information about the Diode block in the Simscape Foundation library, see Diode.
Exponential Diode
The exponential diode model represents the following relationship between the diode current I and the diode voltage V:
where:
q is the elementary charge on an electron (1.602176e–19 coulombs).
k is the Boltzmann constant (1.3806503e–23 J/K).
BV is the Reverse breakdown voltage parameter value.
N is the emission coefficient.
IS is the saturation current.
Tm1 is the temperature at which the diode parameters are specified, as defined by the Measurement temperature parameter value.
When (qV / NkTm1) > 80, the block replaces with (qV / NkTm1 – 79)e80, which matches the gradient of the diode current at (qV / NkTm1) = 80 and extrapolates linearly. When (qV / NkTm1) < –79, the block replaces with (qV / NkTm1 + 80)e–79, which also matches the gradient and extrapolates linearly. Typical electrical circuits do not reach these extreme values. The block provides this linear extrapolation to help convergence when solving for the constraints during simulation.
When you select Use parameters IS and N
for the
Parameterization parameter, you specify the diode in terms of the
Saturation current IS and Emission coefficient N
parameters. When you select Use two I-V curve data points
for the
Parameterization parameter, you specify two voltage and current
measurement points on the diode I-V curve and the block derives the IS and
N values. The block then calculates IS and
N as follows:
where:
Vt = kTm1 / q.
V1 and V2 are the values in the Voltages [V1 V2] vector.
I1 and I2 are the values in the Currents [I1 I2] vector.
When you select Use an I-V data point and IS
for the
Parameterization parameter, then the block calculates N
as follows:
When you select Use an I-V data point and N
for the
Parameterization parameter, then the block calculates
IS as follows:
Tabulated Diode
To model a tabulated diode, set the Diode model parameter to
Tabulated I-V curve
. This figure shows the implementation of the
tabulated diode option:
When choosing this parameterization, you must provide the data for the forward bias only. If the diode is reverse biased, it is modeled as a constant off-state conductance specified in the Off conductance parameter instead. The value of the Off conductance must be less than the gradient of the forward I-V curve for small positive voltages.
The block implements the diode using a smooth interpolation option. If the diode exceeds the provided tabulated data range, the block uses a linear extrapolation technique at the last voltage-current data point.
Note
The tabulated diode does not model the reverse breakdown.
Junction Capacitance
The Diode block models the junction capacitance only if you
set the Fidelity level parameter to Include capacitance and
charge dynamics
. To include a junction capacitance:
Select
Include fixed or zero junction capacitance
for the Parameterization parameter. The capacitance is fixed.Select
Use parameters CJO, VJ, M & FC
for the Parameterization parameter. The block uses the coefficients CJO, VJ, M, and FC to calculate a junction capacitance that depends on the junction voltage.Delect
Use C-V curve data points
for the Parameterization parameter. The block uses three capacitance values on the C-V capacitance curve to estimate CJO, VJ, and M and uses these values with the specified value of FC to calculate a junction capacitance that depends on the junction voltage. The block calculates CJO, VJ, and M as follows:where:
VR1, VR2, and VR3 are the values in the Reverse bias voltages [VR1 VR2 VR3] vector.
C1, C2, and C3 are the values in the Corresponding capacitances [C1 C2 C3] vector.
The reverse bias voltages (defined as positive values) should satisfy VR3 > VR2 > VR1. This means that the capacitances should satisfy C1 > C2 > C3 as reverse bias widens the depletion region and hence reduces capacitance. Violating these inequalities results in an error. Voltages VR2 and VR3 should be well away from the Junction potential VJ. Voltage VR1 should be less than the Junction potential VJ, with a typical value for VR1 being 0.1 V.
The voltage-dependent junction capacitance is defined in terms of the capacitor charge storage Qj as:
For V < FC·VJ:
For V ≥ FC·VJ:
where:
These equations are the same as used in [2], except that the temperature dependence of VJ and FC is not modeled.
Charge Dynamics
The Diode block models the charge dynamics only if you set
the Fidelity level parameter to Include capacitance and charge
dynamics
. For applications such as commutation diodes it can be important to
model diode charge dynamics. When a forward-biased diode has a reverse voltage applied across
it, it takes time for the charge to dissipate and hence for the diode to turn off. The time
taken for the diode to turn off is captured primarily by the transit time parameter. Once the
diode is off, any remaining charge then dissipates, the rate at which this happens being
determined by the carrier lifetime.
The Diode block uses the model of Lauritzen and Ma [3] to capture these effects. These are the defining equations.
(1) |
(2) |
(3) |
i is the diode current.
qE is the junction charge.
qM is the total stored charge.
TM is the transit time.
τ is the carrier lifetime.
vD is the voltage across the diode.
vF is the diode forward voltage.
R is the diode on resistance.
G is the diode off conductance.
This graphic shows a typical reverse-mode current characteristic for a diode device.
where:
iRM is the peak reverse current.
iF is the starting forward current when measuring iRM.
a is the rate of change of current when measuring iRM.
trr is the reverse recovery time.
Data sheets for diodes quote values for peak reverse current for an initial forward current and a steady rate of change of current. The data sheet might also provide values for reverse recovery time and total recovery charge.
The block calculates transit time TM and carrier lifetime τ based on the values you enter for the Charge Dynamics parameters. The block uses TM and τ to solve the charge dynamics equations 1, 2, and 3.
During initial current drop in reverse mode, the diode is still on, and the rate of change of current is determined by an external test circuit.
First, the block uses equation 1 to perform this calculation.
(4) |
Then, it substitutes equation 4 into equation 2.
(5) |
Then, it solves equation 5 for qM,
(6) |
When t is zero, i = iF and qM = τiF because the system is in steady state.
Substituting these relationships into equation 6 and solving the equation gives k = aτ2.
Therefore,
(7) |
The block substitutes these values into equation 1.
(8) |
(9) |
Then, the block expresses time ts in terms of iRM, iF, and a.
(10) |
Consider the diode recovery, that is, when t > ts. The diode is reverse biased, and current and junction charge are effectively zero.
The current is defined by this equation.
(11) |
where:
(12) |
The block now relates the expression in equation 12 to the reverse recovery time trr.
When the current is
Therefore,
(13) |
(14) |
The block uses equations 9 and 14 to calculate values for TM and τ. The calculation uses an iterative scheme because of the exponential term in Equation 9.
In addition to allowing you to specify reverse recovery time trr directly, the block supports three alternative parameterizations. The block can derive trr from either of these parameters:
Reverse recovery time stretch factor λ
Reverse recovery charge Qrr, when the data sheet specifies this value instead of the reverse recovery time.
Reverse recovery energy Erec, when the data sheet specifies this value instead of the reverse recovery time.
The relationship between reverse recovery time stretch factor λ and trr is expressed by the equation
Reverse recovery time must be greater than and a typical value is
Therefore, a typical value for λ is 3. λ must be greater than 1.
Reverse recovery charge Qrr is the integral over time of the reverse current from the point where the current goes negative until it decays back to zero.
The initial charge, to time ts (as shown in the figure), is expressed by this equation:
(15) |
Integrating equation 11 gives the charge between times ts and inf. This charge is equal to
Therefore, total reverse recovery charge is given by this equation:
(16) |
Rearranging equation 16 to solve for τrr and substituting the result into equation 14 gives an equation that expresses trr in terms of Qrr:
Alternatively, the block calculates τrr by using the reverse recovery energy, Erec. This equation defines the diode voltage curve:
(17) |
If , which is a common condition for the reverse recovery test circuit, the block calculates the maximum diode reverse voltage as:
Since the drop time value is small, the block assumes that the diode current drop is linear:
(18) |
Then, it substitutes equation 18 into equation 5:
(19) |
To obtain the total stored charge, it solves equation 19 :
(20) |
When , the peak reverse current is:
(21) |
The block now substitutes equation 21 into equation 20:
(22) |
Finally, the block solves equation 22 to obtain the reverse recovery energy:
(23) |
When the device is faulted, the Diode block calculates the junction charge as
where:
idiode is the diode current without the charge model.
qE is the junction charge.
TM is the transit time.
τ is the carrier lifetime.
This equation then defines the value of the diode current:
where:
i is the diode current.
qM is the total stored charge.
Qscale is the current value of the charge ratio.
Temperature Dependence
The default behavior for the Diode block is that dependence on temperature is not modeled, and the device is simulated at the temperature for which you provide block parameters. The exponential diode model contains several options for modeling the dependence of the diode current-voltage relationship on temperature during simulation. Temperature dependence of the junction capacitance is not modeled because it has a much smaller effect.
When including temperature dependence, the diode defining equation remains the same. The measurement temperature value, Tm1, is replaced with the simulation temperature, Ts. The saturation current, IS, becomes a function of temperature according to the following equation:
where:
Tm1 is the temperature at which the diode parameters are specified, as defined by the Measurement temperature parameter value.
Ts is the simulation temperature.
ISTm1 is the saturation current at measurement temperature.
ISTs is the saturation current at simulation temperature. This is the saturation current value used in the standard diode equation when temperature dependence is modeled.
EG is the energy gap for the semiconductor type measured in joules(J). The value for silicon is usually taken to be 1.11 eV, where 1 eV is 1.602e-19.
XTI is the saturation current temperature exponent. This is usually set to 3.0 for pn-junction diodes, and 2.0 for Schottky barrier diodes.
N is the emission coefficient.
k is the Boltzmann constant (1.3806503e–23 J/K).
Appropriate values for XTI and EG depend on the type of diode and the semiconductor material used. Default values for particular material types and diode types capture approximate behavior with temperature. The block provides default values for common types of diode.
In practice, the values of XTI and EG need tuning to model the exact behavior of a particular diode. Some manufacturers quote these tuned values in a SPICE Netlist, and you can read off the appropriate values. Otherwise, you can determine improved estimates for EG by using a datasheet-defined current-voltage data point at a higher temperature. The block provides a parameterization option for this. It also gives the option of specifying the saturation current at a higher temperature ISTm2 directly.
You can also tune the values of XTI and EG yourself, to match lab data for your particular device. You can use Simulink® Design Optimization™ software to help tune the values for XTI and EG.
Caution
Device temperature behavior is also dependent on the emission coefficient. An inappropriate value for the emission coefficient can give incorrect temperature dependence, because saturation current is a function of the ratio of EG to N.
If defining a finite reverse breakdown voltage (BV), then the value of the reverse BV is modulated by the reverse breakdown temperature coefficient TCV (specified using the Reverse breakdown voltage temperature coefficient, dBV/dT parameter):
BVTs = BVTm1 – TCV· (Ts – Tm1) | (24) |
Thermal Losses
This figure shows the voltage and current of the diode in a switching regime inside a half-bridge.
Reverse recovery loss is one of the main sources of thermal loss in diodes. The diode dissipates energy every time it turns off, from its conducting state to the open-circuit state.
In this block, reverse recovery losses are applied by stepping up the junction temperature with a value equal to the reverse recovery loss divided by the total thermal mass at the junction.
If you set the Reverse recovery loss model parameter to Tabulated loss
, the value of the Reverse recovery loss table, Erec(Tj, If) parameter specifies the dissipated energy in function of the junction temperature and the forward current just before the switching event. The off-state voltage linearly scales the losses prior to the latest device turn-off event. The table uses delayed values for current and voltage. To ensure the value used in the lookup table is close enough to the instantaneous value, set the Delay for voltage and current tabulation parameter to a value that is lower than the fastest switching period.
If you set the Reverse recovery loss model parameter to
Fixed loss
, the value of the Reverse recovery
loss parameter specifies the dissipated energy in each turn-off event,
regardless of the state of the diode before or after the switching event.
Note
The lastReverseRecoveryLoss
variable in the simlog includes the
reverse recovery losses as a pulse with amplitude equal to the energy loss. If you use a
script to sum the total losses over a defined simulation period, you must sum the pulse
values at each pulse rising edge. Alternatively, you can use the ee_getPowerLossSummary
and ee_getPowerLossTimeSeries
functions to extract conduction and switching
losses from logged data.
Note that the power_dissipated
variable in the simlog does not
include switching losses as they are modeled as instantaneous events. The
power_dissipated
variable reports instantaneous on-state
losses.
Reverse recovery loss is one of the main sources of thermal loss in diodes. The diode dissipates energy every time it turns off, from its conducting state to the open-circuit state.
In this block, reverse recovery losses are applied by stepping up the junction temperature with a value equal to the reverse recovery loss divided by the total thermal mass at the junction.
If you set the Reverse recovery loss model parameter to
Tabulated loss
, the value of the Reverse recovery loss
table, Erec(Tj, If) parameter specifies the dissipated energy in function of the
junction temperature and the forward current just before the switching event. The off-state
voltage linearly scales the losses prior to the latest device turn-off event. The table uses
delayed values for current and voltage. To ensure the value used in the lookup table is close
enough to the instantaneous value, set the Delay for voltage and current
tabulation parameter to a value that is lower than the fastest switching
period.
If you set the Reverse recovery loss model parameter to
Fixed loss
, the value of the Reverse recovery
loss parameter specifies the dissipated energy in each turn-off event, regardless of
the state of the diode before or after switching event.
Note
The lastReverseRecoveryLoss
variable in the simlog includes the reverse
recovery losses as a pulse with amplitude equal to the energy loss. If you use a script to sum
the total losses over a defined simulation period, you must sum the pulse values at each pulse
rising edge. Alternatively, you can use the ee_getPowerLossSummary
and ee_getPowerLossTimeSeries
functions to extract conduction and switching losses
from logged data.
Note that the power_dissipated
variable in the simlog does not include
switching losses as they are modeled as instantaneous events. The
power_dissipated
variable therefore just reports instantaneous on-state
losses.
Faults
The Diode block allows you to model three types of faults:
Open
— Once the fault is triggered, the series resistance increases instantaneously. You can use this type of fault to model a diode that fails due to metallization burnout.Short
— Once the fault is triggered, the parallel conductance increases instantaneously. You can use this option to model a diode that fails due to punch-through.Parameter shift
— The block parameters shift over time starting from the moment that the fault is triggered. You can use this option to model a diode that fails due to aging.
The block can trigger fault events:
At a specific time.
When a current limit, a voltage limit, or a temperature limit are exceeded for longer than a specific time interval.
If you want to trigger a fault at a specific time, set the
Fault trigger parameter to Temporal
. If you
want to determine whether a system fails and, if so, when it fails, set the Fault
Trigger parameter to Behavioral
.
If you select the behavioral trigger, the component fails as soon as one of the trigger conditions is true.
You can also choose whether to issue an assertion when a fault occurs by using the Reporting when a fault occurs parameter. The assertion can take the form of a warning or an error. By default, the block does not issue an assertion.
If, in the Faults settings, you set the Fault
mode parameter to Parameter shift
, the diode fails due
to the aging of its components. This equation defines the value of the shifted parameters:
where tth is the time threshold when the fault is triggered and τ is the value of the Fault transition time constant parameter.
Modeling Thermal Effects
You can expose the thermal port to model the effects of generated heat and device temperature. To expose the thermal port, set the Modeling option parameter to either:
No thermal port
— The block does not contain a thermal port and does not simulate heat generation in the device.Show thermal port
— The block contains a thermal port that allows you to model the heat that conduction losses generate. For numerical efficiency, the thermal state does not affect the electrical behavior of the block.
For more information on using thermal ports and on the Thermal Port parameters, see Simulating Thermal Effects in Semiconductors.
Variables
To set the priority and initial target values for the block variables prior to simulation, use the Initial Targets section in the block dialog box or Property Inspector. For more information, see Set Priority and Initial Target for Block Variables.
Nominal values provide a way to specify the expected magnitude of a variable in a model. Using system scaling based on nominal values increases the simulation robustness. Nominal values can come from different sources, one of which is the Nominal Values section in the block dialog box or Property Inspector. For more information, see System Scaling by Nominal Values.
Examples
Assumptions and Limitations
When you select
Use two I-V curve data points
for the Parameterization parameter, choose a pair of voltages near the diode turn-on voltage. Typically, this is in the range from 0.05 to 1 V. Using values outside of this region may lead to numerical issues and poor estimates for IS and N.The block does not account for temperature-dependent effects on the junction capacitance.
You may need to use nonzero ohmic resistance and junction capacitance values to prevent numerical simulation issues, but the simulation may run faster with these values set to zero.
You cannot use the
Tabulated I-V curve
parameterization to model the reverse breakdown.
Ports
Conserving
Parameters
References
[1] MH. Ahmed and P.J. Spreadbury. Analogue and digital electronics for engineers. 2nd Edition. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
[2] G. Massobrio and P. Antognetti. Semiconductor Device Modeling with SPICE. 2nd Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1993.
[3] Lauritzen, P.O. and C.L. Ma. “A Simple Diode Model with Reverse Recovery.” IEEE® Transactions on Power Electronics. Vol. 6, No. 2, April 1991, pp. 188–191.