Power module having a heat sink

1. A power module comprising:

a lead frame, said lead frame including a plurality of spaced conductive pads and a plurality of leads;

a molded shell, said molded shell including a plurality of walls defining a space and a base portion, said base portion including said spaced conductive pads and a mold body disposed between said spaces; and

a plurality of power semiconductor devices each having one power electrode electrically and mechanically attached to a respective first spaced conductive pad by a layer of conductive adhesive, and an opposing power electrode disposed on an opposing surface thereof electrically attached to a second spaced conductive pad by at least one wire bond;

said first spaced conductive pads are arranged along one line and said second spaced conductive pads are arranged along another opposing line in a same plane as that of the first spaced conductive pads; wherein

a current detection resistor is directly electrically connected to a pair of leads which extend through at least one of said walls to the exterior of said molded shell, and

a heatsink is attached to said base portion and in thermal contact with at least said first spaced conductive pads by a thermally conductive adhesive.

2. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein said at least one wire bonds are generally parallel.

3. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein said opposing power electrode of each power semiconductor device is electrically connected to a second spaced conductive pad by a plurality of wire bonds, said wire bonds being arranged in a staggered manner.

4. A power module according to claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of signal leads each designated for sending control signals to a respective control electrode of a respective power semiconductor device, said signal leads being embedded in one of said walls of said molded shell and each including a wire bond pad which is electrically connected to a respective control electrode by a wire bond.

5. A power module according to claim 1 , further comprising a thermistor.

6. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein said defined space is filled with an encapsulant.

7. A power module according to claim 6 , wherein said encapsulant is a silicone gel.

8. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein said power semiconductor devices are power MOSFETs.

9. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein said power semiconductor devices are arranged to form at least one half-bridge.

10. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein said power semiconductor devices are arranged to form at least three half-bridges.

11. A power module according to claim 10 , wherein said leads include a power input lead, a ground lead and a plurality of output lead, each output lead being designated for carrying power from a respective half-bridge.

12. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of said leads is a power input lead, another lead is a ground lead, and a third lead is an output lead.

13. A power module according to claim 1 , further comprising a lid attached to said walls to enclose said defined space.

14. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein said power semiconductor devices are attached to said first spaced conductive pads by solder, and said molded shell is comprised of a molding material that is capable of withstanding the reflow temperature of said solder.

15. A power module according to claim 14 , wherein said molding material is polypthalamide.

16. A power module according to claim 1 , wherein said base portion includes a plurality of bumps on the exterior thereof to serve as a spacer for spacing a heatsink.

17. A power module according to claim 16 , wherein said bumps have a height of 0.1 mm.

18. A power module according to claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of bumps on an exterior surface of said base portion to space said heatsink from said base portion.