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Modelling the fatigue damage in power components using machine learning technology

Modelling the fatigue damage in power components using machine learning technology
Modelling the fatigue damage in power components using machine learning technology

Thermo-mechanical finite element (FE)-based simulation technology has been used extensively for virtual prototyping and to predict material degradation and thermal fatigue damage in electronics assembly materials. However, from an end-user point of view, the deployment of such high-fidelity modelling is not straightforward as it requires comprehensive device and material characterisation data that is not readily available through technical datasheets and must be gathered using costly and time-consuming bespoke characterisation tests and access to metrology instruments. In addition to that, FE modelling requires access to advanced software and specialised FE skill sets. Here, a novel physics-informed Machine Learning (ML) approach for developing computationally fast metamodels for predicting fatigue damage and its spatial distribution at common failure sites of power electronics components is developed, validated and demonstrated. The significance of this work is in the attributes and the capabilities of the proposed modelling technology that enable the end-users of power components to perform insightful model-based assessments of the thermal fatigue damage in the assembly materials due to different application-specific, qualification and user-defined load conditions, removing current requirements for comprehensive device characterisations and deploying complex finite element models. The proposed methodology is demonstrated with two different metamodel structures, a regression decision tree and a neural network, for the problem of predicting the thermal fatigue damage in wire bonds of insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) power electronics modules (PEMs) exposed to passive temperature cycling loads. The results confirmed that the proposed approach and the modelling technology could offer FE model substitution and the capability to spatially map highly nonlinear three-dimensional spatial distributions of the damage parameter over local sub-domains associated with material fatigue degradation and failure.

Damage, IGBT, Machine Learning, Neural network, Physics-informed data, Power components, Power electronics module, Reliability, Thermal fatigue, Wire bonds
2772-3704
Stoyanov, Stoyan
ad91d3cb-a0be-49af-9047-93aafcae78c4
Sulthana, Razia
73512144-3256-4eba-b526-d9eda8208241
Tilford, Tim
35bd0c6c-d677-40c9-9223-898d7b6f0fc7
Zhang, Xiaotian
b1c00fe2-efd6-460c-a2ab-a1725539cbf8
Hu, Yihua
3d627ffe-d96b-4498-a4e2-13bc821e4d88
Yang, Xingyu
8a9e405f-212a-42c8-888f-fd6c609774f6
Shen, Yaochun
0dd7fc84-23be-4931-b718-057db1286a39
Wang, Yangang
3f06c204-6259-4c97-9732-38d2c4e218f4
Stoyanov, Stoyan
ad91d3cb-a0be-49af-9047-93aafcae78c4
Sulthana, Razia
73512144-3256-4eba-b526-d9eda8208241
Tilford, Tim
35bd0c6c-d677-40c9-9223-898d7b6f0fc7
Zhang, Xiaotian
b1c00fe2-efd6-460c-a2ab-a1725539cbf8
Hu, Yihua
3d627ffe-d96b-4498-a4e2-13bc821e4d88
Yang, Xingyu
8a9e405f-212a-42c8-888f-fd6c609774f6
Shen, Yaochun
0dd7fc84-23be-4931-b718-057db1286a39
Wang, Yangang
3f06c204-6259-4c97-9732-38d2c4e218f4

Stoyanov, Stoyan, Sulthana, Razia, Tilford, Tim, Zhang, Xiaotian, Hu, Yihua, Yang, Xingyu, Shen, Yaochun and Wang, Yangang (2025) Modelling the fatigue damage in power components using machine learning technology. Power Electronic Devices and Components, 10, [100079]. (doi:10.1016/j.pedc.2025.100079).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Thermo-mechanical finite element (FE)-based simulation technology has been used extensively for virtual prototyping and to predict material degradation and thermal fatigue damage in electronics assembly materials. However, from an end-user point of view, the deployment of such high-fidelity modelling is not straightforward as it requires comprehensive device and material characterisation data that is not readily available through technical datasheets and must be gathered using costly and time-consuming bespoke characterisation tests and access to metrology instruments. In addition to that, FE modelling requires access to advanced software and specialised FE skill sets. Here, a novel physics-informed Machine Learning (ML) approach for developing computationally fast metamodels for predicting fatigue damage and its spatial distribution at common failure sites of power electronics components is developed, validated and demonstrated. The significance of this work is in the attributes and the capabilities of the proposed modelling technology that enable the end-users of power components to perform insightful model-based assessments of the thermal fatigue damage in the assembly materials due to different application-specific, qualification and user-defined load conditions, removing current requirements for comprehensive device characterisations and deploying complex finite element models. The proposed methodology is demonstrated with two different metamodel structures, a regression decision tree and a neural network, for the problem of predicting the thermal fatigue damage in wire bonds of insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) power electronics modules (PEMs) exposed to passive temperature cycling loads. The results confirmed that the proposed approach and the modelling technology could offer FE model substitution and the capability to spatially map highly nonlinear three-dimensional spatial distributions of the damage parameter over local sub-domains associated with material fatigue degradation and failure.

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More information

Accepted/In Press date: 8 January 2025
e-pub ahead of print date: 9 January 2025
Published date: 17 January 2025
Keywords: Damage, IGBT, Machine Learning, Neural network, Physics-informed data, Power components, Power electronics module, Reliability, Thermal fatigue, Wire bonds

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 499437
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/499437
ISSN: 2772-3704
PURE UUID: 0e6c7a09-b56f-496b-adbd-b93da38495f1
ORCID for Xingyu Yang: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-2871-8025

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 20 Mar 2025 17:30
Last modified: 22 Aug 2025 02:47

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Contributors

Author: Stoyan Stoyanov
Author: Razia Sulthana
Author: Tim Tilford
Author: Xiaotian Zhang
Author: Yihua Hu
Author: Xingyu Yang ORCID iD
Author: Yaochun Shen
Author: Yangang Wang

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