Poultry meat and eggs are important foods for fulfilling the dietary needs of the ever-growing human population. Efficient poultry production, however, necessitates use of pharmaceutical products, such as antibiotics, as prophylactic and curatives to ensure rapid growth and health. Nevertheless, inappropriate and non-judicious use of these drugs results in an accumulation of toxic and harmful residues in meat and eggs of treated birds which affect consumer health by triggering allergic reactions and transmitting antibiotic-resistant microbial infections. Therefore, regulatory authorities must take rigorous steps to curtail inappropriate use of numerous drugs for animal use in order to provide safe animal origin food to humans.

A note on versions:The version presented here may differ from the published version or from the version of record. If you wish to cite this item you are advised to consult the publisher's version. Please see the repository url above for details on accessing the published version and note that access may require a subscription.For more information, please contact eprints@nottingham.ac.uk I E E E P r o o f IEEE JOURNAL OF EMERGING AND SELECTED TOPICS IN POWER ELECTRONICS 1A

Relatively recently, SiC power MOSFETs have transitioned from being a research exercise to becoming an industrial reality. The potential benefits that can be drawn from this technology in the electrical energy conversion domain have been amply discussed and partly demonstrated. Before their widespread use in the field, the transistors need to be thoroughly investigated and later validated for robustness and longer term stability and reliability. This paper proposes a review of commercial SiC power MOSFETs state-of-the-art characteristics and discusses trends and needs for further technology improvements, as well as device design and engineering advancements to meet the increasing demands of power electronics.

This paper presents the development of a unified test set-up and experimental results of the robustness characterisation of new generation of silicon carbide (SiC) power MOSFETs. In particular, unclamped inductive switching (UIS) and short-circuit withstand capability (SC) are investigated, with the aim of assessing the actual limits of operation of the devices and highlighting the underlying physical mechanisms. An electro-thermal device model is used to support the experimental analysis and interpret the observations.

Failure mechanisms during short-circuit conditions of Silicon Carbide Power MOSFETs are analysed in this work, and a possible theoretical explanation is provided. Insight into the physics involved in such processes was inferred through experimental and numerical analyses. The TCAD structure used for electro-thermal simulations was calibrated to fit the I D -V GS characteristics of a commercial device. Adequate physical effects were considered, such as the presence of charges and traps at the oxide-SiC interface and their effect on threshold voltage and carrier mobility. Experimental evidences were explained by analyzing the numerical results. The high temperature reached during these operating conditions was addressed as the main cause of the device failure. The effect on the leakage current and the activation of a parasitic bipolar transistor are also shown.

This paper proposes a thorough experimental characterization of the performance of commercially available SiC Power MOSFETs under short-circuit conditions. The purpose is to assess and understand the degradation process and the failure mechanisms that limit device reliability to identify optimal routes for subsequent technology development. This paper complements electro-thermal functional tests with structural characterization offering deeper insight into device technology related aspects.I.

This paper presents an extensive electro-thermal characterisation of latest generation silicon carbide (SiC) Power MOSFETs under unclamped inductive switching (UIS) conditions. Tests are carried out to thoroughly understand the single pulse avalanche ruggedness limits of commercial SiC MOSFETs and assess their aging under repetitive stress conditions. Both a functional and a structural characterisation of the transistors is presented, with the aim of informing future device technology development for robust and reliable power system development.

This paper presents an in-depth investigation into the avalanche breakdown robustness of commercial state-of-the-art silicon carbide (SiC) power MOSFETs comprising of functional as well as structural characterization and the corresponding underlying physical mechanisms responsible for device failure. One aspect of robustness for power MOSFETs is determined by its ability to withstand energy during avalanche breakdown. Avalanche energy (E AV ) is an important figure of merit for all applications requiring load dumping and/or to benefit from snubber-less converter design. 2D TCAD electro-thermal simulations were performed to get important insight into the failure mechanism of SiC power MOSFETs during avalanche breakdown.