Yang Shen
Research Focus
My primary work lies in the field of thermal management in semiconductors, with a specific focus on gallium nitride high-electron-mobility transistors (GaN HEMTs). GaN devices have tremendous potential for high-power and high-frequency applications, such as power amplifiers (PA) for radio frequency (RF) systems in 5G communications and highly efficient power converters. However, their reliability is threatened by overheating, and their real electrical performance falls significantly short of ideal values by nearly an order of magnitude due to the inability to successfully remove waste heat.
External cooling technologies at the package level have reached a mature stage, and further improvements in their heat transfer coefficients (HTC) are expected to provide only marginal benefits in removing heat from transistors. Therefore, there is a growing need for reducing transistor thermal resistance within the intrinsic device through near-junction thermal management and electro-thermal co-design to overcome the thermal bottleneck. To ensure optimal thermal designs and strike a balance between electrical and thermal performance, it is crucial to understand the heat generation and transport mechanisms within the device and accurately predict the channel temperature under different design parameters and operating conditions.
To achieve this goal, I have been utilizing multiscale simulation methods, including first-principle calculations, phonon Monte Carlo simulations, TCAD simulations, and macroscopic finite element method (FEM)-based analysis. By gaining a clearer understanding of the electrothermal transport mechanism in GaN HEMTs, I hope to develop effective solutions to optimize their performance and address the reliability issues caused by overheating. Currently I am developing an advanced simulation platform for thermal transport in GaN HEMTs.
Education
🎓 2021 - current, Ph.D. candidate in School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University.
🎓 2017 - 2021, B. Eng in Energy and Power Engineering, School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University.
Experience
🎋 2023.6- 2023.8, Intern in Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), Shanghai, China.
- I developed an efficient querying tool that allows for rapid data retrieval and accurate data positioning for mass flight test data.
🎋 2020.7 - 2020.9, Intern in Beijing Computational Science Research Center (CSRC), Beijing, China.
- I solved the linearized regularized 13-moment equations for rarefied gas flow.
🎋 2019.7 - 2019.9, Intern in Institute of Fluid Mechanics (IFS), Tohuku University, Sendai, Japan.
- I applied inverse analysis to investigate the concentration dependency of diffusion coefficient in ethanol-water systems.
Technical Strengths
Programming & scientific computing
- Anaconda-Python (4 years+), C/C++, Linux fundamentals
- Experience in scientific computing in HPC platforms
- Experience in Git-based software development and project management
Advanced Thermal Modeling
- Knowledge in micro/nanoscale heat transfer
- Modeling based on phonon Boltzmann transport equation (BTE)
- Solid background in phonon Monte Carlo methods
Device Electrothermal Simulation
Knowledge in multiscale electrothermal transport mechanism and semiconductor device physics
Experience in device simulation using COMSOL Multiphysics, ANSYS, and Sentaurus TCAD
Awards and Recognitions
Mianyang Science and Technology City Talent Scholarship (First Class) · Tsinghua University · Nov 2023
Best Paper Award on 17th International Heat Transfer Conference (IHTC-17) · Cape Town, South Africa · Aug 2023
Qinghua Du Scholarship · Tsinghua University · Dec 2022
Wang Buxuan-Guo Zengyuan Outstanding Youth Paper Award on National Heat and Mass Transfer Conference · Wuhan, China · Dec 2022
Excellent Paper Award on 21st National Conference on Combustion and Heat & Mass Transfer · Lanzhou, China · Sep 2021
Scholarship for Future Scholar, Tsinghua University · Sep 2021
Excellent Graduation Thesis of SAE, Tsinghua University · Jun 2021
Excellent Academic Scholarship· Tsinghua University · Sep 2020
Excellent Academic Scholarship · Tsinghua University · Sep 2019
SCI-Indexed Publications
2024
9 - Y. Shen, and B.Y. Cao. Two-Temperature Principle for Evaluating Electrothermal Performance of GaN HEMTs. Applied Physics Letters, 2024, 124(4): 042107.
2023
8 - Y.C. Hua, Y. Shen, Z.L. Tang, D.S. Tang, X. Ran, and B.Y. Cao. Near-junction thermal managements of electronics. Advances in Heat Transfer, 2023. (Background and Section 4)
7 - Z.L. Tang, Y. Shen, H.L. Li, B.Y. Cao. Topology Optimization for Near-Junction Thermal Spreading of Electronics in Ballistic-Diffusive Regime. iScience, 2023, 26(7): 107179.
6 - Z.K. Liu, Y. Shen, H.L. Li, B.Y. Cao. Observation of ballistic-diffusive thermal transport in GaN transistors using thermoreflectance thermal imaging. Rare Metals, 2024, 43(1):389-394.
5 - Y. Shen, H.A. Yang, B.Y. Cao. Near-junction phonon thermal spreading in GaN HEMTs: A comparative study of simulation techniques by full-band phonon Monte Carlo method. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 2023, 211: 124284.
4 - Y. Shen, X.S. Chen, Y.C. Hua, H.L. Li, L. Wei, B.Y. Cao. Bias dependence of non-Fourier heat spreading in GaN HEMTs. IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices, 2023, 70(2): 409-417.
3 - H.L. Li, Y. Shen, Y.C. Hua, S.L. Sobolev, B.Y. Cao. Hybrid Monte Carlo-diffusion studies of modeling self-heating in ballistic-diffusive regime for GaN HEMTs. Journal of Electronic Packaging-Transactions of the ASME, 2023, 145: 011203.
2022
2 - Y. Shen, Y.C. Hua, H.L. Li, S.L. Sobolev, B.Y. Cao. Spectral thermal spreading resistance of wide-bandgap semiconductors in ballistic-diffusive regime. IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices, 2022, 69(6): 3047-3054.
2021
1 - Y. Shen, Y.B. Liu, B.Y. Cao. C4+ surrogate models for thermophysical properties of aviation kerosene RP-3 at supercritical pressures. Energy & Fuels, 2021, 35(9): 7858–7865.
Contact
Office: Room N808, Meng Minwei S&T Building, School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University, Haidian District, Beijing, China.
Email: sy980829@163.com