{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T13:18:30Z","timestamp":1785417510395,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":31,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"14","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]],"date-time":"2026-07-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1783468800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"General Project of the National Natural Science Foundation of China","award":["52277049"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["52277049"]}]},{"award":["52277049"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["52277049"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/01h0zpd94","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100012166","name":"National Key Research and Development Program of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2022YFB2502802"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2022YFB2502802"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100012166","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"Xiamen City\u2019s Universities and Research Institutes Industry-University-Research Project","award":["2024CXY0231"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024CXY0231"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Accurate junction temperature (Tj) sensing is essential for the reliability of silicon carbide (SiC) power modules in electric vehicles. Nonetheless, the physical separation and consequent thermal signal delay between sensing elements and chips pose significant challenges to precise junction temperature monitoring. To solve this issue, an embedded temperature sensing structure integrated into the designed double-sided cooling (DSC) SiC power module is proposed, which leverages 3D vertical interconnects to enhance temperature observability. The customized design of a copper spacer serves as the primary heat dissipation path and electrical connection between the upper and lower chips in the same location. A compact thermal resistance network and 3D finite-element simulations are developed to reveal the vertical thermal coupling between the spacers and the chips, enabling accurate junction temperature estimation from spacer temperature. The proposed concept is experimentally validated on a fabricated prototype using embedded K-type thermocouples and an IR camera under power cycling conditions. The measured temperature differences between the copper spacers and the junction temperature are maintained within approximately 0.5\u20132 \u00b0C under the tested operating range. This approach provides a potential application in real-time condition monitoring and thermal management in high-power-density electric drives.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/s26144336","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]],"date-time":"2026-07-08T16:16:18Z","timestamp":1783527378000},"page":"4336","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Packaging Design and Thermal Characterization of 3D Double-Sided Cooling Automotive SiC Power Modules with Reliable Junction Temperature Sensing"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"26","author":[{"given":"Chunzhen","family":"Li","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Mechanical Engineering and Automation, Huaqiao University, Xiamen 361021, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8571-7988","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tianliang","family":"Lin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Mechanical Engineering and Automation, Huaqiao University, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"Fujian Key Laboratory of Green Intelligent Drive and Transmission for Mobile Machinery, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"Machinery Industry Key Laboratory of Green Electromechanical Hydraulic Drive and Transmission Technology for Construction Machinery, Huaqiao University, Xiamen 361021, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xinhua","family":"Guo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Mechanical Engineering and Automation, Huaqiao University, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"College of Information Science and Engineering, Huaqiao University, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"Xiamen Key Laboratory of Specialized Integrated Circuits and Power Semiconductor Systems, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"Fujian Provincial University Engineering Research Center for High-Efficiency, High-Density Electromagnetic Power and Systems, Xiamen 361021, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rongkun","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Information Science and Engineering, Huaqiao University, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"Xiamen Key Laboratory of Specialized Integrated Circuits and Power Semiconductor Systems, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"Fujian Provincial University Engineering Research Center for High-Efficiency, High-Density Electromagnetic Power and Systems, Xiamen 361021, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6531-9376","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yuanxi","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Information Science and Engineering, Huaqiao University, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"Xiamen Key Laboratory of Specialized Integrated Circuits and Power Semiconductor Systems, Xiamen 361021, China"},{"name":"Fujian Provincial University Engineering Research Center for High-Efficiency, High-Density Electromagnetic Power and Systems, Xiamen 361021, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Siqi","family":"Zhou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Mechanical Engineering and Automation, Huaqiao University, Xiamen 361021, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1036","DOI":"10.1109\/OJPEL.2025.3576994","article-title":"Reliability of Power Semiconductor Modules: A State-of-the-Art Review","volume":"6","author":"Agirrezabala","year":"2025","journal-title":"IEEE Open J. 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