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Wise-integration, a French pioneer in digital control of gallium nitride (GaN) and GaN ICs for power supplies, announced financing of €15 million. The Series B round wasled by imec.xpand, with participation from Supernova Invest, BNP Paribas Developpement, Région Sud Investissement (RSI), Creazur, CASRA Capital and Angels for Greentech.
The round will fuel mass production and commercial deployment of the company’s flagship products, WiseGan® and WiseWare®, its disruptive digital-control technology, and its support for clients globally as they adopt these solutions. It included the five investors from the previous funding and three new investors.
CEO Thierry Bouchet said, “The €15 million of new funding will accelerate the company’sinternational expansion, ongoing R&D programs and the introduction of new products and solutions. “This funding will enable Wise-integration to accelerate our commercial development and product development and the launch of a new generation of high-performance GaN technology, which is designed to seamlessly integrate with digital controls and boost the efficiency and performance of power systems across various sectors,” Bouchet continued. “A third roadmap focus will be to broaden our WiseWare® product development, targeting high-value markets, such as industrial, telecom and automotive sectors.”
Since its launch in 2020, the fabless company has established itself as an award-winning innovator in the power electronics industry, building a portfolio of more than 10 patent families. WiseGan® encompasses GaN power integrated circuits designed to maximize the benefits of GaN technology, including higher power density, efficiency and reduced heat generation. WiseWare® is a 32-bit, MCUbased, AC-DC digital controller optimized for GaN-based power supply architectures, offering simplified system design, a lower bill of materials and improved power density and efficiency.
The company’s target markets include consumer electronics, from laptops to e-bikes, scooters and motorcycles, to industrial applications like robotics, as well as data centers and electric vehicles. All its solutions address the increasing demands for miniaturization, electrification and efficient power management.
Wise-integration has established a first-class semiconductor GaN supply chain to support its mass production and commercialization strategy, while ensuring the most competitive costs in the market.
“Wise-integration’s GaN technology can play a significant role in the global shift to electrification by enhancing the efficiency and performance of power systems across various sectors,” said Cyril Vančura, imec.xpand partner. “In the four years since its founding, this start-up has demonstrated the vision, drive, execution and technological knowhow to deliver game-changing power-electronics solutions, and we look forward to witnessing the next phase of its growth journey.”
“With this new funding, Supernova Invest reaffirms its support for Wise-integration, a CEA-Leti spinoff that we have trusted since its creation,” said Damien Bretegnier, investment director, Supernova Invest. “We strongly believe in the huge potential of its WiseWare® digital control technology and associated WiseGan® components, anticipating a profound revolution in the power conversion market that propels GaN technology to replace legacy solutions even more rapidly.”
“Wise-integration is one of the finest up and-coming companies in the hardware sector, a key sector in our beautiful region,” said Pierre Joubert, general director of RSI. “A high-potential company with a top management team, it fits in perfectly with the investment thesis of our Transition fund and its 100 percent Paris Agreement strategy. It has all the assets to become one of the strong links in the regional economic development strategy.”
Original – Wise-integration
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Okmetic is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its North American sales office. Okmetic Inc. was established in Allen, Texas in 1999 to strengthen Okmetic sales and technical support to the North American customer base. The Okmetic, Inc. office continues to be based in Allen, Texas with local commercial support across North America.
Initially, the business was focused on selected silicon products but has since expanded to support not only traditional semiconductor materials but also engineered products used for the Communication, RF filter, MEMS, Power, and AI just to highlight a few. The NA customer region, along with the European and Asian regions, work together using a balanced approach to serve the Okmetic worldwide market.
The team at Okmetic Inc. continues to be recognized for support efforts in the industry. Some of these include supplier award recognition, numerous conference speaking and exhibiting engagements, as well as a lifetime achievement recognition for company’s participation with organizations such as SEMI.
“We want to thank our customers for entrusting us to be a key component of their business growth strategy, inspiring us to continuously raise the bar and cooperatively develop silicon products that enable our lives each day. As we continue to expand our capacity to build for our future, we are excited to partner more closely with our customers to develop the needed products and support to enable their ongoing business needs “, says Jim Reed, President of Okmetic Inc.
Original – Okmetic
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Ideal Power Inc. reported the results for its fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2023.
“We made great progress delivering against our B-TRAN™ commercial roadmap in 2023 and that progress has continued into 2024,” said Dan Brdar, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ideal Power. “Strong momentum continues with participants in our test and evaluation program, particularly for solid-state circuit breaker and hybrid and electric vehicle applications. We expect to convert large OEMs into design wins and/or additional custom development agreements this year.”
Brdar continued, “We recently completed Phase II of our development agreement with Stellantis and commenced shipment of SymCool™ power modules to fulfill customer orders. We expect industrial markets, particularly the solid-state circuit breaker market served by our SymCool™ power module, to be the earliest source of our product sales ramp.”
Key Fourth Quarter and Recent Operational Highlights
- Commenced commercial shipment of SymCool™ power modules to fulfill customer orders. The SymCool™ power module targets several applications including solid-state switchgear and circuit protection, renewable energy inverters for solar and wind, industrial inverters, hybrid and electric vehicles (“EVs”) and EV charging.
- Successfully completed Phase II of a product development program with Stellantis, a top 10 global automaker. All Phase II deliverables were completed ahead of schedule including a wafer run and deliveries of tested B-TRAN™ devices, drivers and a Stellantis approved comprehensive reliability test plan for automotive qualification. Ideal Power is partnering with Stellantis’ advanced technology development team to develop a custom B-TRAN™ power module for use in EV drivetrain inverters in Stellantis’ next generation EV platform.
- Stellantis recognized Ideal Power and its program with Stellantis as a finalist in the 2023 Stellantis Venture Awards, which was the result of the excellent performance of the commercial B-TRAN™ devices provided to the Stellantis team for testing and evaluation.
- Released B-TRAN™ and SymCool™ videos and application notes for the technical audience at prospective customers, resulting in the addition of new opportunities to our sales funnel. The videos demonstrate the testing of discrete B-TRAN™ devices and SymCool™ power modules and the compelling advantages B-TRAN™ offers to solid-state circuit breaker applications.
- Nearing completion of a qualification run with our second high-volume wafer fabrication partner. This wafer fab in Europe will support future revenue growth and add dual sourcing for wafer fabrication.
- B-TRAN™ Patent Estate: Currently at 82 issued B-TRAN™ patents with 36 of those issued outside of the United States and 39 pending B-TRAN™ patents. Current geographic coverage includes North America, China, Japan, South Korea, India, and Europe, with pending coverage in Taiwan.
Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Financial Results
- Commercial revenue increased to $61,483 in the fourth quarter of 2023 from $0 in the fourth quarter of 2022. Commercial revenue increased to $161,483 for the full year 2023 from $0 for the full year 2022.
- Grant revenue was $0 in the fourth quarter of 2023 and $37,388 for the full year 2023 compared to $16,608 in the fourth quarter of 2022 and $203,269 for the full year 2022.
- Operating expenses in the fourth quarter of 2023 were $2.5 million compared to $2.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 driven primarily by higher research and development spending.
- Operating expenses in the full year 2023 were $10.4 million compared to $7.3 million in the full year 2022 driven primarily by higher research and development spending and stock-based compensation expense.
- Net loss in the fourth quarter of 2023 was $2.4 million compared to $1.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. Net loss in the full year 2023 was $10.0 million compared to $7.2 million in the full year 2022.
- Cash used in operating, investing and financing activities in the fourth quarter of 2023 was $2.3 million compared to $2.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. Cash used in operating, investing and financing activities in the full year 2023 was $7.9 million compared to $6.8 million in the full year 2022.
- Cash and cash equivalents totaled $8.5 million at December 31, 2023.
- No long-term debt was outstanding at December 31, 2023.
2024 Milestones
For 2024, the Company has set or achieved the following milestones:
- Successfully completed Phase II of development program with Stellantis
- Secure Phase III of development program with Stellantis
- Complete qualification of second high-volume production fab
- Convert large OEMs in our test and evaluation program to design wins/custom development agreements
- Add distributors for SymCool™ products
- Initial sales of SymCool™ IQ intelligent power module
- Begin third-party automotive qualification testing
Original – Ideal Power
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Infineon Technologies AG is setting the course for ambitious growth by further strengthening and streamlining its sales organization. Starting 1 March, Infineon’s sales team will be structured around three customer-centric Sales Segments: “Automotive”, “Industrial & Infrastructure” and “Consumer, Computing & Communication”.
The DEM sales organization will retain responsibility for distributors and Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS). This new structure will further leverage the potential of Infineon’s comprehensive and diverse product portfolio by putting customers’ application needs at the center of the new organizational model. All of these organizations will be deployed globally with an optimized regional footprint.
“Customers’ expectations are quickly evolving and are driven by speed of innovation and faster time-to-market,” says Andreas Urschitz, Chief Marketing Officer of Infineon. “With a streamlined customer interface which brings the relevant products and application expertise to the customers’ doorstep, Infineon is ideally positioned to enable customers’ success.”
This simpler approach will give customers easier access to Infineon’s full portfolio and match their specific needs by offering complementary products from different divisions. In addition, this reorganization will reduce the number of interfaces for Infineon’s customers and help drive down time-to-market for their R&D projects enabled by Infineon semiconductors and solutions.
Original – Infineon Technologies
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It’s noteworthy that WeEn had already won the prestigious Haier COSMOPlat Excellent Supplier Award two years ago. Winning the supplier award again demonstrates WeEn’s leadership position in the market as an outstanding semiconductor supplier.
Both parties are excited about each other’s innovative potential as they promote closer collaboration, further signaling that WeEn will deepen and solidify its robust partnership with Haier COSMOPlat to accelerate the future of digital transformation across their industries.
Dating back to the former NXP era, Haier COSMOPlat has been an important ecosystem partner for WeEn. In today’s uncertain environment, while joyful outcomes may be hard to come by, having a strong technical foundation as support provides both companies with more cooperation opportunities.
As Haier COSMOPIat pursues trends of domestic resource localization and diversification, WeEn has stood out with its high quality and stringent quality control standards. Its products not only meet COSMOPIat’s high demands for stability and reliability, but also receive strong endorsement from COSMOPIat’s customers for partnering with high-quality domestic suppliers to drive coordinated development. This positions WeEn well to capitalize on opportunities for business growth.
Since 2020, global semiconductor supply chains have been impacted, but WeEn has remained proactive in addressing challenges of upstream supply shortages. By adjusting strategic deployments ahead of time and continuously supporting Haier COSMOPIat’s supply needs, WeEn has further strengthened the partnership between the two companies.
Last year, both parties signed a strategic cooperation agreement at the Hannover Messe in Germany, establishing a strategic partnership based on mutual assistance and win-win cooperation. These initiatives comprehensively facilitate Haier COSMOPIat’s digital transformation, accelerating the upgrade of end-to-end competitiveness. Simultaneously, they lay a solid foundation for future collaboration between the two companies in new technologies and market domains.
The continued development of Haier COSMOPIat has brought new opportunities and challenges for both parties, especially in the areas of digital transformation and ecosystem empowerment. The business leader of Haier COSMOPIat stated, “WeEn is a leading player among Chinese power semiconductor suppliers, with extensive technological expertise and a global presence. Its products are characterized by high quality, reliability, and cost-effectiveness. Thanks to WeEn’s unique position in the power semiconductor field, the range and diversity of products in the collaboration between the two parties continues to expand. The product line now spans from thyristors to power diodes, and further extends to TVS/ESD and silicon carbide product series. The level of cooperation is deepening continuously, showcasing the strong partnership between the two companies. In the future, we look forward to working hand in hand with WeEn to further explore the potential for cooperation and accelerate the digital transformation of the industry.”
Will Yin, Vice President of Global Sales & Marketing at WeEn, stated, “There is no doubt that digital transformation brings tremendous development potential to the power semiconductor industry.” WeEn looks forward to long-term cooperation with Haier COSMOPIat to embrace new opportunities and challenges brought by digitization, intelligence, and sustainability. Together, we will build diverse new development opportunities and jointly create new chapters of development in various fields. WeEn always stands at the forefront of industry development, leveraging a strong R&D and technical team to continuously strengthen the market sales and service team. This is to achieve steady growth in global business and contribute to industry transformation and innovation.
By the end of 2023, Haier COSMOPIat had established a new structure where the three business sectors of smart home controllers, diversified smart controllers across industries, and an industrial Internet platform in the electronics industry progressed simultaneously. COSMOPIat’s digital transformation has not only enhanced the agility of the supply chain but has also provided robust support for the industry’s digital transformation and upgrade through technological innovation and ecosystem empowerment.
In the future, WeEn will continue to focus on four major application areas: consumer electronics, renewable energy, big data, and automotive electronics. Leveraging its technological research and development strengths, WeEn will continue to expand investments in the power semiconductor field, actively increase production capacity, and grow together with its extensive customer base.
Original – WeEn Semiconductors
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Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. introduced a new 80 V symmetric dual n-channel power MOSFET that combines high and low side TrenchFET® Gen IV MOSFETs in a single 3.3 mm by 3.3 mm PowerPAIR® 3x3FS package. For power conversion in industrial and telecom applications, the Vishay Siliconix SiZF4800LDT increases power density and efficiency, while enhancing thermal performance, reducing component counts, and simplifying designs.
This dual MOSFET can be used in place of two discrete devices typically specified in the PowerPAK 1212 package — saving 50 % board space. The device provides designers with a space-saving solution for synchronous buck converters, point of load (POL) converters, and half- and full-bridge power stages for DC/DC converters in radio base stations, industrial motor drives, welding equipment, and power tools. In these applications, the high and low side MOSFETs of the SiZF4800LDT form an optimized combination for 50 % duty cycles, while its logic level turn-on at 4.5 V simplifies circuit driving.
To increase power density, the MOSFET offers best in class on-resistance down to 18.5 mW typical at 4.5 V. This is 16 % lower than the closest competing device in the same package dimensions. For increased efficiency in high frequency switching applications, the SiZF4800LDT offers a low on-resistance times gate charge — a key figure of merit (FOM) for MOSFETs used in power conversion applications — of 131mW*nC and on-resistance times gain-drain charge
The device’s flip-chip technology enhances thermal dissipation — resulting in 54 % lower thermal resistance compared to competing MOSFETs. The SiZF4800LDT’s combination of low on-resistance and thermal resistance results in a continuous drain current of 36 A, which is 38 % higher than the closest competing device. The MOSFET features a unique pin configuration that enables a simplified PCB layout and supports shortened switching loops to minimize parasitic inductance. The SiZF4800LDT is 100 % Rg- and UIS-tested, RoHS-compliant, and halogen-free.
Competitor Comparison Table:
Part number SiZF4800LDT (New) Competitor SiZF4800LDTPerformance improved Package PowerPAIR 3x3FS PowerPAIR 3x3FS Dimensions (mm) 3.3 x 3.3 x 0.75 3.3 x 3.3 x 0.75 – Configuration Symmetric dual Symmetric dual – VDS (V) 80 80 – VGS (V) ± 20 ± 20 – RDS(on) (mΩ) @ 4.5 VGS Typ. 18.5 22 +16 % Max. 23.8 29 +18 % Qg (nC) @ 4.5 VGS Typ. 7.1 6.0 – FOM – 131 132 +1 % ID (A) Max. 36 26 +38 % RthJC (C/W) Max. 2.2 4.8 +54 % Original – Vishay Intertechnology
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Vitesco Technologies is preparing the series application of its High Voltage Box. The modular system makes charging, converting and distributing electricity in electric vehicles cheaper by integrating several functions in one unit, depending on the design.
This includes the vehicle On-Board Charger for AC charging on the grid with up to 22 kW of charging power, a DC current converter providing the current for the 12 V vehicle net, and power electronics which distribute high voltage power in the vehicle and facilitate fast DC-charging with up to 800 V.
Owed to the high level of mechatronic integration, the High Voltage Box has smaller space requirements to the vehicle while increasing the total system reliability in comparison to individual devices. State-of-the art silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors boost charging efficiency to over 95 percent which lowers the vehicle owner’s electricity bill. This efficiency level is particularly beneficial for car owners because electric vehicles are frequently charged on the grid.
Due to the high AC charging rate of up to 22 kW the High Voltage Box charges the car with 200 km of range in under two hours. DC high-power charging with up to 800 V achieves the same range in 12 minutes. The sophisticated power electronics ensure that this system offers electrical safety as well as efficiency.
On a day-to-day level, charging, energy conversion and power distribution are just as relevant for a driver’s satisfaction with a vehicle as driving itself is. With our High Voltage Box, we integrate these core tasks of energy management into one efficient and compact unit. This integration makes electrification on a large scale and at low cost easier.
Thomas Stierle, Member of the Executive Board and head of the Electrification Solutions division of Vitesco Technologies
Today, the so-called On-Board Charger (OBC) for charging with alternating current (AC) on the grid is a separate device in the vehicle. This OBC inverts grid power to direct current (DC) that can be fed to the high voltage battery. Another separate device is the DC/DC converter which provides direct current from the high voltage battery to the 12 V power net – or it boosts 12 V to high voltage DC. A power electronics unit distributes high voltage current within the vehicle (hence: Power Distribution Unit, PDU). In addition, these electronics can be designed to allow DC charging with up to 800 V at high power charging points. All those components need to be connected, they require a housing, installation space, and cooling.
The modular and scalable High Voltage Box makes it easier to cover two or more of these functions with a single device. SiC technology is used to minimize the conversion losses of the unit:
A high level of efficiency brings the car owner’s electricity bill down and contributes to sustainability.
Christian Preis, Head of Base Development Energy Transformation at Vitesco Technologies
Within the modular design Vitesco Technologies covers all relevant European and worldwide grid topologies. The High Voltage Box was developed to support modular vehicle adaptation for the global market. At the same time, Vitesco Technologies is driving new functions ahead. The High Voltage Box for one of the two series applications will already function bidirectionally so that it can supply alternating current with 230 V from the DC battery current when this is required.
This puts vehicle owners in the comfortable position to make versatile use of their large battery. For instance, if they wish to use power tools far away from the grid, or if they want to feed electricity to the grid which they have charged earlier from their own photovoltaic system. “In the future, this option to stabilize the grid will continue to gain importance “, Preis adds. The company’s experts are advancing the necessary standard for this in key committees and are thus part of the decision-making process about development trends.
In the future the High Voltage Box with bidirectional function can also make it possible to power a whole house from the High Voltage Battery during a blackout. This is an option because batteries in vehicles have a much bigger capacity than most of the batteries typically installed in private homes.
Original – Vitesco Technologies
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Infineon Technologies AG introduced a new product family of Solid-State Isolators to achieve faster and more reliable circuit switching with protection features not available in optical-based solid state relays (SSR). The isolators use coreless transformer technology and support 20 times greater energy transfer with both current and temperature protection contributing to a higher reliability and lower cost of ownership.
The new solid-state isolators allow driving the gates of Infineon’s MOS-controlled power transistors OptiMOS ™ and CoolMOS™ to reduce power dissipation of up to 70 percent of todays’ solid-state relays using SCR (silicon-controlled rectifier) and Triac switches.
Infineon’s solid-state isolators enable custom solid-state relays capable of controlling loads more than 1000 V and 100 A. Improved performance and reliability make coreless transformer technology ideal for applications in advanced battery management, energy storage, renewable energy systems, as well as industrial and building automation system applications. With Infineon’s solid-state isolator drivers, engineers can further improve the efficiency of electronic and electromechanical systems.
“Implementing coreless transformers in solid-state isolators and relays is truly a game-changer for power engineers; it provides 50 times lower RDS (on) than existing optically controlled solutions. This enables their use in higher-voltage and higher power applications,” said Davide Giacomini, Marketing Director for the Green Industrial Power Division at Infineon Technologies.
When matched with Infineon’s CoolMOS S7 switch, the isolator drivers enable switching designs with a much lower resistance compared to optically driven solid-state solutions. This translates to longer lifespans and lower cost of ownership in system designs. As with all solid-state isolators, the devices also offer superior performance compared to electromagnetic relays, including 40 percent lower turn-on power and increased reliability due to elimination of moving parts.
The family of devices is designed to be compatible with Infineon’s broad switching portfolio including Infineon’s CoolMOS S7, OptiMOS TM and linear FET portfolios.
Original – Infineon Technologies
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Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation announced that it has started construction of a back-end production facility for power semiconductors at Himeji Operations – Semiconductor, in Hyogo Prefecture, western Japan. The new facility will start mass production in spring 2025.
Toshiba will promote smart factory initiatives that bring automated transportation systems into manufacturing processes, promote work efficiency through adoption of RFIDNote tags, and improve the accuracy of inventory management. The facility will be 100% powered by renewable energy and equipped with solar power generation systems, underlining Toshiba’s commitment to the SDGs.
Power devices are essential components for managing and reducing power consumption in all kinds of electronic equipment, and for saving energy. With the start of production at the new Himeji facility, Toshiba will more than double its production capacity for automotive power semiconductor production, against fiscal 2022, and reinforce its contributions to advancing carbon neutrality.
Original – Toshiba
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Cambridge GaN Devices (CGD) is addressing higher power industrial applications with its ICeGaN™ technology which has already proved itself rugged, reliable and easy-to-use in high volume consumer devices. At the APEC 2024, IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition, the company is introducing new reference designs and showing demos which address the broad and diverse industrial market.
Andrea Bricconi | Chief Commercial Officer, CGD
“We are acutely aware of the increasing power requirements of industrial applications, and the need for high efficiency. For example, as the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) proliferates, the power demanded by the exponential growth in power demanded by datacentres is growing almost exponentially. Other applications, such as solar inverters, amplifiers, transport and smart mobility, process control and manufacturing are also interested in GaN and the feedback we have received is that they love the simplicity of our ‘Drive it Like a MOSFET’ approach.”
At APEC, visitors to the booth are able to see the progress that CGD is making to support both emerging and existing markets for GaN technology..
With a high power density of 23 W/in3, GGD’s 350 W PFC/LLC reference design has an average efficiency of 93%, and a no-load power consumption of 150 mW. The CrM Totem Pole PFC + Half-Bridge LLC PSU has been realised using CGD’s 650 V, 55 mΩ, H2 series ICeGaN technology, and delivers 20 V / 17.5 A output.
The result of a partnership deal struck last year with Neways Electronics, a 3 kW photo-voltaic inverter is used to boost the DC solar voltage to a stable DC link voltage. With a maximum efficiency of 99.22% due to zero-current switching, it is a perfect example of how CGD’s GaN HEMT structure is simple for engineers to use, since it employs a standard silicon controller from Analog Devices Inc.
ICeGaN has been employed by AGD Productions in its compact AGD DUET amplifier which is rated at 300W 4Ω. This is the first time the company has used a 100% GaN power transistor design for both the power stage and the amplifier.
Finally, the GaNext project, a consortium of 13 partners from three nations has delivered compact 1 kW intelligent power modules featuring integrated drive, voltage control and protection circuits using CGD’s ICeGaN.
Original – Cambridge GaN Devices
