High temperature SiC Schottky diodes with stable operation for space application

This work presents the long-term stability of the SiC Schottky diodes able to operate in the temperature range −170°C/280°C, specially developed for the space mission BepiColombo. This mission consists in launching two satellites around the Mercury planet. After a travel of 6 years, the satellites will be orbiting around Mercury at least one year. When orbiting around Mercury, the satellites will experience seasonal eclipses. The numbers of cycles −170°C/280°C are in the range of 4,000. The diodes are used as protection devices for the solar cells arrays. To target this application, we have developed 5A/300V breakdown voltage Silicon Carbide Schottky diodes. Long-term tests demonstrated a very good stability of the electrical, mechanical and thermal parameters.