11

Component Reference

Diode with Reverse Recovery

Purpose

Dynamic diode model with reverse recovery

Library

Electrical / Power Semiconductors

Description

This component is a behavioral model of a diode which reproduces the effect of reverse recovery. This effect can be observed when a forward biased
diode is rapidly turned off. It takes some time until the excess charge stored
in the diode during conduction is removed. During this time the diode represents a short circuit instead of an open circuit, and a negative current can
flow through the diode. The diode finally turns off when the charge is swept
out by the reverse current and lost by internal recombination.
Note
Due to the small time-constant introduced by the turn-off transient a stiff
solver is recommended for this device model.
If multiple diodes are connected in series, the off-resistance may not be infinite.

The following figure illustrates the relationship between the diode parameters
and the turn-off current waveform. If0 and dIr /dt denote the continuous forward current and the rated turn-off current slope under test conditions. The
turn-off time trr is defined as the period between the zero-crossing of the current and the instant when it becomes equal to 10% of the maximum reverse
current Irrm . The reverse recovery charge is denoted Qrr . Only two out of the
three parameters trr , Irrm , and Qrr need to be specified since they are linked
geometrically. The remaining parameter should be set to 0. If all three parameters are given, Qrr is ignored.
The equivalent circuit of the diode model is shown below. It is composed of a
resistance, and inductance, and a controlled current source which is linearly
dependent on the inductor voltage. The values of these internal elements are
automatically calculated from the diode parameters.

Parameters

234

Forward voltage
Additional dc voltage Vf in volts (V) between anode and cathode when the
diode is conducting. The default is 0.

Diode with Reverse Recovery

iD
If0
dIr/dt
trr
t
Irrm/10

Qrr
Irrm

Ron

Roff
Lrr

RL

vL

K vL

On-resistance
The resistance Ron of the conducting device, in ohms (). The default is 0.
Off-resistance
The resistance Roff of the blocking device, in ohms (). The default is inf.
If diodes are connected in series, the off-resistance must have a large finite
value.
Continuous forward current
The continuous forward current If0 under test conditions.
Current slope at turn-off
The turn-off current slope dIr /dt under test conditions.
Reverse recovery time
The turn-off time trr under test conditions.
Peak recovery current
The absolute peak value of the reverse current Irrm under test conditions.
235

11

Component Reference

Reverse recovery charge

The reverse recovery charge Qrr under test conditions. If both trr and Irrm
are specified, this parameter is ignored.
Lrr
This inductance acts as a probe measuring the di/dt. It should be set to a
very small value. The default is 10e-10.

Probe Signals

Diode voltage
The voltage measured between anode and cathode.
Diode current
The current through the diode flowing from anode to cathode.
Diode conductivity
Conduction state of the internal switch. The signal outputs 0 when the
diode is blocking, and 1 when it is conducting.

References

236

A. Courtay, "MAST power diode and thyristor models including automatic

parameter extraction", SABER User Group Meeting Brighton, UK, Sept.
1995.