-
Navitas Semiconductor announced participation at the International Conference on Silicon Carbide and Related Materials (ICSCRM) 2023, to be held in Sorrento, Italy.
The ICSCRM conference fosters collaboration and knowledge sharing among the brightest minds in the field. The conference has a rich history dating back to its inaugural meeting in 1987, evolving into a premier global forum for in-depth technical discussions on all aspects of SiC and related materials.
GeneSiC™ power devices, optimized for high-power, high-voltage, and high-reliability SiC applications, address critical markets including electric vehicles, solar energy, energy storage, industrial applications, data centers, and consumer electronics. With an unmatched voltage range spanning from 650 V to 6.5 kV, GeneSiC MOSFETs and Schottky MPS™ diodes have been at the forefront of SiC technology advancement, offering performance and efficiency that pave the way for a more electrified and sustainable future.
Navitas Semiconductor will present two paper sessions at ICSCRM 2023:
- “New Generation SiC MPS Diodes with Low Schottky Barrier Height”
- “650 V SiC Power MOSFETs with Statistically Tight VTH Control and RDS(ON) of 1.92 mΩ-cm²”
Additionally, Navitas’ SVP of SiC Technology & Operations, Dr. Sid Sundaresan, will be chairing the session on Thursday, September 21st. The session, titled “Devices 4: Short circuit, avalanche and reliability,” will focus on crucial topics in the field of SiC technology.
“Navitas’ presence at ICSCRM 2023 is a testament to the company’s unparalleled expertise in SiC technology and its commitment to driving innovation in the industry,” said Dr. Ranbir Singh, Navitas EVP for the GeneSiC business line. “As a pioneer in the field, we continue to extend the boundaries of SiC technology, revolutionizing power semiconductors with cutting-edge GeneSiC™ technology.”
Original – Navitas Semiconductor
-
Vitesco Technologies is developing a power module which will be manufactured using transfer molding process. During this process the power electronics are sealed under a dielectric material that protects the components extremely well. The result is a very robust, cost effective and reliable electronic. The power module consists of three overmolded half-bridges and forms the core of an inverter system, which controls both the drive energy and the energy recovery (recuperation) in high-voltage electric vehicles.
Manufactured at the Nuremberg electronics plant, the power modules will be delivered to a large global car maker from mid-2025 onwards.
Vitesco Technologies has been adapting and utilizing transfer molding technology since 2020, first applying it to compact Transmission Control Units designed for full integration inside a gear box.
The overmold power modules now combine highly efficient state-of-the art silicon carbide (SiC) chip technology with overmolding to facilitate a particularly robust product with increased power density, lower cost and reduced weight.
These power modules are a good example of strategic approach of using the scalability and modularity of our power electronics to develop and manufacture submodules in addition to the complete electronics. Combined with extensive overmolding expertise, Vitesco can deliver an extremely robust product to our customers. This is yet another example of how the company successfully transfers proven technology to an electrification product.
- Thomas Stierle, member of the board and head of Vitesco Technologies’ Electrification Solutions division
Vitesco Technologies has extensive expertise in power electronics and is already on the market with its fourth generation. The newly developed overmold power module expands the company’s strategic portfolio.
A very deep system competence is necessary to ensure that a sub-module of this kind, which forms the core of the inverter, can be successfully integrated into the full system. Our degree of electronics modularity and scalability enables us to offer more flexibility in terms of customer-specific interfaces.
- Michael Horbel, head of product and platform management high voltage inverter at Vitesco Technologies
Vitesco Technologies will continue to use this strength to bring further electronic sub-modules to the market.
The lead plant for these modules is Vitesco Technologies’ Nuremberg site. With its existing competencies and experience, the plant offers a high degree of automation as well as the focus on electronics and e-mobility required for the power modules. This is a further step forward into the “Plant of the Future” concept, defined for the Nuremberg plant to maintain its international competitiveness.
Original – Vitesco Technologies
-
Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) succeeded in transferring the ‘Ion Implantation and its Evaluation Technology for the SiC (silicon carbide) Power Semiconductor’ to a Hungarian company.
Power semiconductors are key components in electricity and electronics, acting as the muscles of the human body by regulating the direction of current and controlling power conversion. There are many different materials for power semiconductors. Among them, SiC is receiving the most attention due to its excellent material properties, including high durability and excellent power efficiency. When SiC power semiconductors are incorporated into electric vehicles, they cut down the power consumption of the battery and reduce the body weight and volume of the vehicle, resulting in energy efficiency improvements of up to 10%
While SiC power semiconductors have many advantages, the manufacturing process is also very challenging. Previously, a method was applied to create a device by forming an epi layer (single-crystal semiconductor thin-film) on a highly conductive wafer and flowing current through that area. However, during this process, the surface of the epi layer becomes rough and the speed of electron transfer decreases. The price of the epi wafer itself is also high, which is a major obstacle to mass production.
To solve this problem, KERI used a method of implanting ions into a semi-insulated SiC wafer without an epi layer. Ion implantation, which makes a wafer conductive, is the work that breathes life into a semiconductor.
SiC materials are hard and require very high energy ion implantation followed by high temperature heat treatment to activate the ions, making it a difficult technology to implement. However, KERI has succeeded in securing the relevant technologies based on its 10 years of experience in operating ion implantation equipment dedicated to SiC.
“Ion implantation technology can significantly reduce process costs by increasing current flow in semiconductor devices and replacing expensive epi wafers,” said Dr. Kim, Hyoung Woo, Director, Advanced Semiconductor Research Center, KERI. He continued, “This is a technology that increases the price competitiveness of high-performance SiC power semiconductors and contributes greatly to mass production.”
This technology was recently transferred to ‘SEMILAB ZRT (CEO: Tibor Pavelka)’, a semiconductor metrology equipment company located in Budapest, Hungary. With a 30-year history, SEMILAB has manufacturing plants in Hungary and the United States. SEMILAB owns patents for medium-sized precision measurement equipment and material characterization equipment, and has the world’s leading technology in semiconductor electrical parameter evaluation system.
They predict that through this technology transfer, they will be able to standardize high-quality SiC. SEMILAB plans to use KERI technology to develop specialized equipment to evaluate the ion implantation process of SiC power semiconductor.
Park Su-yong, the president of SEMILAB Korea, said, “Through the development of specialized equipment, we will be able to progress in-line monitoring of implant processes on SiC wafers for immediate, accurate, and low-cost production control of implant systems and in-line monitoring for pre-anneal implant.” He added, “This will be a great foundation for stably securing a high-quality ion implantation mass production process with excellent uniformity and reproducibility.”
KERI is a government-funded research institute under the NST (National Research Council of Science & Technology) of the Ministry of Science and ICT. It has a total of more than 120 intellectual property rights in the field of power semiconductor research. As of the last 10 years, power semiconductor division of KERI has achieved more than KRW 3 billion in technology transfers, the highest level in South Korea.
Original – KERI
-
On the road towards becoming a fully electric car maker by 2030, an important focus area for Volvo technology investments and R&D spending is e-motors, inverters and overall electric drivetrain optimisation.
Only by gaining control over electrification technology stack – a process called “vertical integration” – can can a company create pure electric Volvo cars that deliver on everything the customers want: longer range, faster charging and a great Volvo driving experience.
The latest investment by the Volvo Cars Tech Fund, the corporate venture capital arm, reflects those ambitions. Leadrive, a Shanghai-based company founded in 2017, is an exciting new player in power electronics and control units for fully electric cars.
Leadrive is specialising in designing and building power modules that use silicon carbide (SiC) technology. Silicon carbide is a semiconductor base material that promises to unlock highly efficient and flexible electric propulsion systems.
“Leadrive’s technology demonstrates a lot of potential for the development of more efficient electric drivetrains,” said Alexander Petrofski, CEO of the Volvo Cars Tech Fund. “That potential closely aligns with our own focus on electrification, so we’re excited to invest in the company and help it to continue growing its business.”
“Volvo Cars and Leadrive have been working very closely on the development of new generation SiC technologies, which has built a firm stairway towards the strategic collaboration,” said Jie Shen, founder and CEO of Leadrive. “This is a great milestone in Leadrive’s global strategy and demonstrates the huge potential of our cooperation in advanced electrification technology.”
Original – Volvo Car Corporation
-
The new Vincotech 1200 V flowCSPFC S3 SiC module featuring current-synthesizing PFC (CS-PFC) topology based on the constant power control, strikes the best balance between performance and system cost to benefit your business.
The first module of this new product family is well suited for a DC fast charger PFC converter stage up to 35kW power, a “sweet spot” for building scalable DC charger units on a modular approach.
Main benefits
- Current-synthesizing PFC slashes module costs by > 25% with conversion efficiencyranging as high as >99%
- System costs come down with fewer and smaller inductors on the PCB
- No large electrolytic DC-link capacitors for even more system-level savings
- Pinout is ready for bidirectional applications and optimized for easy PCB routing
- High power density for compact designs and fast charging
Applications
- EV fast charger
- UPS
- ESS
Original – Vincotech
-
McLaren Applied has launched IPG5-x, a highly flexible 800V Silicon Carbide (SiC) inverter that can be integrated into Electric Drive Units (EDUs). Targeting growing OEM demand for high-performing, integrated EDUs that save space and cost, the British engineering and technology pioneer has developed IPG5-x to work with a variety of motors and transmissions – especially in performance applications.
IPG5-x is an adaptation of McLaren Applied’s current award-winning 800V SiC inverter, IPG5. IPG5-x will coexist alongside the standalone IPG5, with application depending on customer need. The ‘x’ suffix was chosen because IPG5-x is a product designed for collaboration with Tier 1 and OEM partners looking to bring EDU products to market quickly and cost effectively. McLaren Applied is in discussions with several OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, and is working with transmission provider TREMEC to jointly develop an integrated EDU for their first customer vehicle application.
“In our discussions with customers and partners, it’s become clear that OEMs are increasingly looking for the option to source integrated EDUs that save space, cost and speed up development time,” commented Paolo Bargiacchi, Head of Product, Automotive at McLaren Applied. “We’ve developed the IPG5-x to be highly flexible, so it’s ready to be integrated within any combination of motor and transmission. It carries over all of our standalone IPG5’s qualities – peak efficiencies over 99%, continuously variable switching and fine motor control – building on the maturity of that product.”
Derived from decades of innovation in top tier automotive and motorsports, McLaren Applied’s IPG5-x offers best-in-class fine motor control and high efficiency through continuously variable switching frequencies; maximising the advantages of SiC semiconductors.
The IPG5-x forms a step forward in what the automotive team at McLaren Applied describes as the ‘waves of electrification’. The first wave involved early pioneers of technology, the second wave is denoted by the breakthrough of EVs to the mainstream. The third wave is efficiency and will see inverter technology rapidly adopt SiC semiconductors, especially in 800V architectures, enabling vehicles to achieve longer range where efficient power electronics are key.
Bargiacchi added: “The immediate focus must be on achieving greater drivetrain efficiency and cost reduction, which you can do through a product like IPG5-x. The competitive landscape is ramping up significantly now that all manufacturers have established their product entry points.
“Models based on dedicated 800V SiC architectures are leading the way, driving a virtuous cycle: an efficient drivetrain inherently has a smaller battery, which makes the vehicle cheaper, lighter and easier to control, and offers a smaller embedded and operating carbon footprint. It also increases range and speeds up charge times, building trust in the technology.”
As competition increases, we will enter the fourth wave, where OEMs will need to differentiate the customer experience their products deliver. In anticipation of this change, McLaren Applied has developed advanced motor control software in both IPG5 and IPG5-x that enables a variety of features ranging from improved refinement through to a more engaging drive.
Original – McLaren Applied
-
STMicroelectronics will supply BorgWarner Inc. with the latest third generation 750V silicon carbide (SiC) power MOSFETs dice for their proprietary Viper-based power module. This power module is used in BorgWarner’s traction inverter platforms for several current and future Volvo Cars electric vehicles.
“This collaboration will give Volvo Cars the opportunity to further increase the attractiveness of our electrical vehicles with longer range and faster charging. It will also support us on our journey towards being fully electric by 2030 and strengthen our increased vertical integration and our control of critical components,” says Javier Varela, Chief Operating Officer & Deputy CEO, Volvo Cars.
“BorgWarner is pleased to partner with ST to supply our longstanding customer Volvo Cars with inverters for their next generation of BEV platforms,” says Stefan Demmerle, Vice President of BorgWarner Inc. and President and General Manager, PowerDrive Systems.
To fully leverage the performance of ST’s SiC MOSFET dice, BorgWarner collaborated closely with ST’s technical team to match their die with BorgWarner’s Viper power switch, thereby maximizing inverter performance and delivering a compact and cost-effective architecture. The collaboration between the companies provides the high-volume capability that is required by the quickly growing EV market.
“Our collaboration with BorgWarner, a leading global automotive supplier in electrification, will enable Volvo Cars to offer their customers superior vehicle performance and range,” says Marco Monti, President, Automotive and Discrete Group, STMicroelectronics. “We are committed to expanding SiC capacity and to reinforcing our SiC supply, including through vertical integration, as we ramp up volumes to support our global automotive and industrial customers in their shift to electrification and higher efficiency.”
ST’s high-volume STPOWER SiC products are manufactured in its fabs in Italy, and Singapore, with advanced packaging and testing at its back-end facilities in Morocco and China. In October 2022, ST announced it would expand its wide bandgap manufacturing capacity with a new integrated SiC substrate manufacturing facility in Catania, home to the company’s power semiconductor expertise and the site of integrated research, development, and manufacturing of SiC.
Original – STMicroelectronics
-
Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation has launched silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs, the “TWxxxZxxxC series,” that use a four-pin TO-247-4L(X) package that reduces switching loss with the company’s latest 3rd generation SiC MOSFETs chip for industrial equipment. Volume shipments of ten products, five with 650V ratings and five with 1200V, start today.
The new products are the first in Toshiba’s SiC MOSFET line-up to use the four-pin TO-247-4L(X) package, which allows Kelvin connection of the signal source terminal for the gate drive. The package can reduce the effect of source wire inductance inside the package, improving high-speed switching performance. For the new TW045Z120C, the turn-on loss is approximately 40% lower and the turn-off loss reduced by approximately 34%, compared with Toshiba’s current product TW045N120C in a three-pin TO-247 package. This helps to reduce equipment power loss.
Applications
- Switching power supplies (servers, data centers, communications equipment, etc.)
- EV charging stations
- Photovoltaic inverters
- Uninterruptible power supplies (UPS)
Features
- Four-pins TO-247-4L(X) package:
Switching loss is reduced by Kelvin connection of the signal source terminal for the gate drive - 3rd generation SiC MOSFETs
- Low drain-source On-resistance x gate-drain charge
- Low diode forward voltage: VDSF=-1.35V (typ.) (VGS=-5V)
Original – Toshiba
-
Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation developed “MG250YD2YMS3,” the industry’s first 2200V dual silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET module for industrial equipment. The new module has a drain current (DC) rating of 250A and uses the company’s third generation SiC MOSFET chips. It is suitable for applications that use DC1500V, such as photovoltaic power systems and energy storage systems. Volume shipments start today.
Industrial applications like those mentioned above generally use DC1000V or lower power, and their power devices are mostly 1200V or 1700V products. However, anticipating widespread use of DC1500V in coming years, Toshiba has released the industry’s first 2200V product.
MG250YD2YMS3 offers low conduction loss with a low drain-source on-voltage (sense) of 0.7V (typ.). It also offers lower turn-on and turn-off switching loss of 14mJ (typ.) and 11mJ (typ.) respectively, an approximately 90% reduction against a typical silicon (Si) IGBT. These characteristics contribute to higher equipment efficiency. Realizing low switching loss also allows the conventional three-level circuit to be replaced with a two-level circuit with a lower module count, contributing to equipment miniaturization.
Toshiba will continue to meet the market needs for high efficiency and the downsizing of industrial equipment.
Applications
Industrial Equipment
- Renewable energy power generation systems (photovoltaic power systems, etc.)
- Energy storage systems
- Motor control equipment for industrial equipment
- High frequency DC-DC converter, etc.
Features
- Low drain-source on-voltage (sense):
VDS(on)sense=0.7V (typ.) (ID=250A, VGS=+20V, Tch=25°C) - Low turn-on switching loss:
Eon=14mJ (typ.) (VDD=1100V, ID=250A, Tch=150°C) - Low turn-off switching loss:
Eoff=11mJ (typ.) (VDD=1100V, ID=250A, Tch=150°C) - Low stray inductance:
LsPN=12nH (typ.)
Original – Toshiba
-
Navitas Semiconductor will reveal a new, high-performance wide bandgap power platform as part of its display at one of Asia’s most prestigious electronics exhibitions – sponsored by Navitas – SEMICON Taiwan 2023, from September 6th-8th.
Visitors will discover the latest gallium nitride (GaN) GaNFast™ power ICs integrate gallium nitride (GaN) power and drive, with control, sensing, and protection to enable faster charging, higher power density, and greater energy savings. Complementary GeneSiC™ power devices are optimized high-power, high-voltage, and high-reliability silicon carbide (SiC) solutions.
Additionally, Navitas will showcase cutting-edge, power-system platforms to dramatically accelerate customer developments, minimize time-to-market, and set new industry benchmarks in energy efficiency, power density and system cost. These system platforms include complete design collateral with fully-tested hardware, embedded software, schematics, bill-of-materials, layout, simulation and hardware test results. Examples include:
- Navitas’ CRPS185 data center power platform, that delivers a full 3,200 W of power in only 1U (40 mm) x 73.5mm x 185 mm (544 cc), achieving 5.9 W/cc, or almost 100 W/in3 power density. This is a 40% size reduction vs, the equivalent legacy silicon approach and reaches over 96.5% efficiency at 30% load, and over 96% stretching from 20% to 60% load, creating a ‘Titanium Plus’ benchmark.
- Navitas’ 6.6 kW 3-in-1 bi-directional EV on-board charger (OBC) with 3 kW DC-DC. This 96%+ efficient unit has over 50% higher power density, and with efficiency over 95%, delivers up to 16% energy savings as compared to competing solutions.
As part of SEMICON’s Power and Opto Semiconductor Forum, Navitas’ Charles Bailley, Senior Director of Business Development, will present “GaN Power ICs Increase Power Density in EV Power Systems”. The presentation is at 2pm, on September 6th, in room 402, 4F, TaiNEX 1.
“Breakthrough high efficiency, high reliability, and high power density – all from the new GaN power IC platform,” said Kevin 汪時民 Wang, Manager of Navitas Taiwan. “The new platform announcement matches SEMICON’s theme of ‘Innovating the World through Semiconductors’ and our own mission to ‘Electrify Our World™’.”
Original – Navitas Semiconductor
