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Infineon Technologies AG and Eve Energy Co., Ltd., a manufacturer of lithium batteries, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU). The two companies aim at enabling comprehensive battery management system solutions for the automotive market.
As part of the MoU, Infineon will supply a complete chipset, including microcontroller units, balancing and monitoring ICs, power management ICs, drivers, MOSFETs, controller area networks and sensor products. Equipped with these solutions, EVE Energy’s battery management system can provide high safety, high reliability and optimized cost. It also enables more accurate monitoring, protection and optimization of electric vehicle battery performance and improves driving experience and energy efficiency.
“The rapid growth in electrification has driven the need for advanced battery solutions. The partnership between Infineon’s advanced battery management ICs and EVE Energy`s advanced battery technologies will pave the way for the next generation of intelligent battery packs,” said Andreas Doll, Senior Vice President and General Manager Smart Power at Infineon. “Infineon offers a comprehensive and advanced system-level solution that meets the diverse needs of customers. We believe that further cooperation between the two sides will foster positive interaction and collaborative development at various levels.”
“EVE Energy has experienced rapid growth in the field of battery management systems in recent years, and we are determined to continue this development. Therefore, we highly value the partnership with Infineon,” said Liu Jianhua, co-founder and president of EVE Energy. “Our goal is to jointly introduce more advanced solutions to the market that meet customers’ needs and drive the development of reliable and efficient systems.”
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Infineon Technologies AG has won the German Sustainability Award in the “Electrical Engineering and Electronics” category. “The jury is of the opinion that Infineon has assumed a leading role in the field of sustainability and serves the sector as a ‘beacon’ for successful transformation,” the judges said in their statement. The German Sustainability Award recognizes companies which make effective and exemplary contributions to transformation and which function as role models within their industry.
“We are particularly honored and delighted to win the German Sustainability Award,” said Elke Reichart, Member of the Management Board and Chief Digital and Sustainability Officer at Infineon, who accepted the award in Duesseldorf. “We at Infineon work hard to drive decarbonization and digitalization and to create a more sustainable future. This award is recognition, as well as an incentive to be a role model in sustainability and to continue rigorously implementing our ambitious sustainability strategy – together with our employees, customers and partners.”
Infineon is pursuing a comprehensive and ambitious decarbonization strategy. The company is making good progress towards the goal it defined in 2020: achieving climate neutrality by 2030. Since then, emissions have been reduced by more than two thirds while revenue has almost doubled. Moreover, Infineon is intensifying its collaboration along the entire supply chain. As a pioneer in its industry, Infineon this year began reporting emissions at the individual product level, referred to as the Product Carbon Footprint. The data is already available for half of all Infineon products today.
Infineon’s semiconductors are decisive in making the generation, transmission, storage and use of energy more efficient. A recent example of sustainable product innovation by Infineon is a new type of energy-saving silicon carbide (SiC) module, whose developers were nominated for the 2024 Deutscher Zukunftspreis. The solution increases the energy efficiency of existing high-performance electrical applications such as solar and wind power plants and train drives. Among other things, the module also facilitates the efficient electrification of large drives such as those found in agricultural and construction machinery, ships and aircraft. In concrete terms, a single electric locomotive equipped with the new drive system saves around 300 megawatt hours per year, which corresponds to the annual energy requirements of 100 single-family homes.
The German Sustainability Award is Europe’s largest award for ecological and social commitment. The jury of the German Sustainability Award (DNP) selected winners in 100 different sectors from among around 2000 competing companies. The German Sustainability Award works together with the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK), WWF Germany, PwC Germany, Leuphana University Lüneburg (CSM Lüneburg) and numerous other industry associations to design and implement the competition.
Current reports on sustainability at Infineon can be found here.
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Infineon Technologies AG introduced the EiceDRIVER™ Power 2EP1xxR family of full-bridge transformer drivers for IGBT, SiC and GaN gate driver power supplies. With the 2EP1xxR family, Infineon extends its portfolio of power devices to provide designers with a solution for isolated gate driver supply.
By using the devices, asymmetrical output voltages can be implemented to supply isolated gate drivers in a cost-effective and space-saving manner. This makes the 2EP1xxR particularly suitable for industrial or consumer applications requiring isolated gate drivers, including solar applications, electric vehicle charging, energy storage systems, welding, uninterruptible power supplies and drive applications.
The 2EP1xxR family comes in a compact TSSOP8 pin package with power integration and optimizations to generate an asymmetric output voltage. The family is optimized for asymmetric gate driver supply through its unique duty-cycle adjustment capability. The devices support a wide input voltage range up to 20 V. They also offer integrated temperature, short-circuit and undervoltage lockout (UVLO) protection to prevent unwanted system faults.
The 2EP1xxR family is available in the following four product variants: 2EP100R and 2EP101R are optimized for low component count designs for IGBT and SiC MOSFET gate driver power supplies. 2EP110R allows fine adjustment of the duty-cycle to match the output voltage ratio to the application requirements of SiC and GaN power switches. 2EP130R is optimized for highly flexible designs to meet different application requirements.
The device offers 5-stage overcurrent protection, 41 selectable switching frequencies or synchronization with external PWM for transformer matching, and 41 selectable duty-cycle options to adjust the output voltage.
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The safe hot-swap operation in AI servers and telecom requires MOSFETs with a robust linear operating mode as well as a low R DS(on). Infineon Technologies AG addresses this challenge with the new OptiMOS™ 5 Linear FET 2, a MOSFET designed to provide the ideal trade-off between the R DS(on) of a trench MOSFET and the wide safe operating area (SOA) of a classic planar MOSFET.
The device prevents damage to the load by limiting the high inrush current and ensures minimal losses during operation due to its low R DS(on). Compared to the previous generation (the OptiMOS Linear FET), the OptiMOS Linear FET 2 offers improved SOA at elevated temperatures and reduced gate leakage current, as well as a wider range of packages. This allows for more MOSFETs to be connected in parallel per controller, reducing bill-of-material (BOM) costs and offering more design flexibility due to the extended product portfolio.
The 100 V OptiMOS 5 Linear FET 2 is available in a TO-leadless package (TOLL) and offers a 12 times higher SOA at 54 V at 10 ms and 3.5 times higher SOA at 100 µs compared to a standard OptiMOS 5 with similar R DS(on). The latter improvement is particularly important for the battery protection performed inside the battery management system (BMS) in case of a short circuit event. During such events the current distribution between parallel MOSFETs is critical for the system design and reliability.
The OptiMOS 5 Linear FET 2 features an optimized transfer characteristic that allows for improved current sharing. Taking into account the wide SOA and improved current sharing, the number of components can be reduced by up to 60 percent in designs where the number of components is determined by the short-circuit current requirement. This enables high power density, efficiency, and reliability for battery protection which are used in a wide range of applications including power tools, e-bikes, e-scooters, forklifts, battery back-up units and battery-powered vehicles.
The new OptiMOS 5 Linear FET 2 MOSFET is now available. Further information can be found at www.infineon.com/optimos-linearfet and www.infineon.com/ipt023n10nm5lf2.
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Infineon Technologies AG is reporting results for the fourth quarter and the full fiscal year, both of which ended on 30 September 2024.
“Infineon has managed the 2024 fiscal year well and concluded it in line with expectations,” says Jochen Hanebeck, CEO of Infineon. “Currently, there is hardly any growth momentum in our end markets except from AI, the cyclical recovery is being delayed. The inventory correction is continuing. Short-term ordering patterns and inventory digestion are clouding visibility on demand trends beyond the next couple of quarters. We are therefore preparing for a muted business trajectory in 2025. At the same time, we are relying on the consistent implementation of the structural measures in our “Step Up” program to strengthen our competitiveness. In combination with our innovative power, we are addressing our structural growth drivers and putting ourselves in the best position for a coming upturn.”
- Q4 FY 2024: Revenue €3.919 billion, Segment Result €832 million, Segment Result Margin 21.2 percent
- FY 2024: Revenue €14.955 billion, down 8 percent on the prior year; Segment Result €3.105 billion; Segment Result Margin 20.8 percent; adjusted earnings per share €1.87; Free Cash Flow €23 million, adjusted Free Cash Flow €1.690 billion
- Dividend proposal for FY 2024: Dividend unchanged at €0.35 per share
- Outlook for Q1 FY 2025: Based on an assumed exchange rate of US$1.10 to the euro, revenue of around €3.2 billion expected. On this basis, Segment Result Margin forecast to be in the mid-teens percentage range
- Outlook for FY 2025: Based on an assumed exchange rate of US$1.10 to the euro, revenue is expected to slightly decline compared with previous year. The adjusted gross margin should be around 40 percent and the Segment Result Margin in the mid-to-high-teens percentage range. Investments of approximately €2.5 billion planned. Free Cash Flow adjusted for investments in frontend buildings should be around €1.7 billion and reported Free Cash Flow around €900 million
For the full version of this news release (incl. financial data), please download the PDF version.
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Stellantis N.V. and Infineon Technologies AG will work jointly on the power architecture for Stellantis’ electric vehicles to support Stellantis’ ambition of offering clean, safe and affordable mobility to all.
To support this, the companies have signed major supply and capacity agreements that will serve as the foundation for the planned collaboration to develop the next generation of power architecture, including:
- Infineon’s PROFET™ smart power switches, which will replace traditional fuses, reduce wiring and enable Stellantis to become one of the first automakers to implement intelligent power network management.
- Silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors, which will support Stellantis in its efforts to standardize its power modules, improve the performance and efficiency of EVs while also reducing costs.
- AURIX TM microcontrollers, which target the first generation of the STLA Brain zonal architecture.
Stellantis and Infineon are also in the process of extending their cooperation with the implementation of a Joint Power Lab to define the next-generation scalable and intelligent power architecture enabling Stellantis’ software-defined vehicle.
“As outlined in our strategic plan, Dare Forward 2030, we are securing the supply of crucial semiconductor solutions required to continue our transition to an electrified future leveraging innovative E/E architectures for our next-generation platforms,” said Maxime Picat, Stellantis Chief Purchasing and Supplier Quality Officer.
“Infineon is now entering a collaboration and innovation partnership with Stellantis,” said Peter Schiefer, President of Infineon’s Automotive Division. “As the world’s leading automotive semiconductor vendor, we bring our product-to-system expertise and dependable electronics to the table. Our semiconductors drive the decarbonization and digitalization of mobility. They increase the efficiency of cars and enable software-defined architectures that will significantly improve the user experience.”
With the world`s most cost-competitive SiC fab in Kulim, Malaysia, the upcoming 300-millimeter ”Smart Power Fab” in Dresden, Germany, and the joint venture with TSMC and partners (ESMC) as well as accompanying supply agreements with foundry partners, Infineon is ready to fully meet market demand for automotive semiconductor solutions. According to the market research company TechInsights, Infineon is the global number one supplier of automotive microcontrollers with a market share of about 29 percent of the global automotive microcontroller market.
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Infineon Technologies AG announced the launch of a new family of high-voltage discretes, the CoolGaN™ Transistors 650 V G5, further strengthening its Gallium Nitride (GaN) portfolio. Target applications for this new product family range from consumer and industrial switched-mode power supply (SMPS) such as USB-C adapters and chargers, lighting, TV, data center and telecom rectifiers to renewable energy and motor drives in home appliances.
The latest CoolGaN generation is designed as a drop-in replacement for the CoolGaN Transistors 600 V G1, enabling rapid redesign of existing platforms. The new devices provide improved figures of merit to ensure competitive switching performance in focus applications.
Compared to key competitors and previous product families from Infineon, the CoolGaN Transistors 650 V G5 offer up to 50 percent lower energy stored in the output capacitance (E oss), up to 60 percent improved drain-source charge (Q oss) and up to 60 percent lower gate charge (Q g). Combined, these features result in excellent efficiencies in both hard- and soft-switching applications. This leads to a significant reduction in power loss compared to traditional silicon technology, ranging from 20 to 60 percent depending on the specific use case.
These benefits allow the devices to operate at high frequencies with minimal power loss, resulting in superior power density. The CoolGaN Transitors 650 V G5 enable SMPS applications to be smaller and lighter or to increase the output power range in a given form factor.
The new high-voltage transistor product family offers a wide range of R DS(on) package combinations. Ten R DS(on) classes are available in various SMD packages, such as ThinPAK 5×6, DFN 8×8 , TOLL and TOLT. All products are manufactured on high-performance 8-inch production lines in Villach (Austria) and Kulim (Malaysia). In the future, CoolGaN will transition to 12-inch production. This will enable Infineon to further expand its CoolGaN capacity and ensure a robust supply chain in the GaN power market, which is expected to reach $2 billion by 2029, according to Yole Group.
A demo featuring the CoolGaN Transistors 650 V G5 will be showcased at electronica 2024 in Munich from November 12 to 15 (hall C3, booth 502).
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After announcing the world’s first 300-millimeter gallium nitride (GaN) power wafer and opening the world’s largest 200-millimeter silicon carbide (SiC) power fab in Kulim, Malaysia, Infineon Technologies AG has unveiled the next milestone in semiconductor manufacturing technology.
Infineon has reached a breakthrough in handling and processing the thinnest silicon power wafers ever manufactured, with a thickness of only 20 micrometers and a diameter of 300 millimeters, in a high-scale semiconductor fab. The ultra-thin silicon wafers are only a quarter as thick as a human hair and half as thick as current state-of-the-art wafers of 40-60 micrometers.
“The world’s thinnest silicon wafer is proof of our dedication to deliver outstanding customer value by pushing the technical boundaries of power semiconductor technology,” said Jochen Hanebeck, CEO at Infineon Technologies. “Infineon’s breakthrough in ultra-thin wafer technology marks a significant step forward in energy-efficient power solutions and helps us leverage the full potential of the global trends decarbonization and digitalization. With this technological masterpiece, we are solidifying our position as the industry’s innovation leader by mastering all three relevant semiconductor materials: Si, SiC and GaN.”
This innovation will significantly help increase energy efficiency, power density and reliability in power conversion solutions for applications in AI data centers as well as consumer, motor control and computing applications. Halving the thickness of a wafer reduces the wafer’s substrate resistance by 50 percent, reducing power loss by more than 15 percent in power systems, compared to solutions based on conventional silicon wafers.
For high-end AI server applications, where growing energy demand is driven by higher current levels, this is particularly important in power conversion: Here voltages have to be reduced from 230 V to a processor voltage below 1.8 V. The ultra-thin wafer technology boosts the vertical power delivery design, which is based on vertical Trench MOSFET technology and allows a very close connection to the AI chip processor, thus reducing power loss and enhancing overall efficiency.
“The new ultra-thin wafer technology drives our ambition to power different AI server configurations from grid to core in the most energy efficient way,” said Adam White, Division President Power & Sensor Systems at Infineon. “As energy demand for AI data centers is rising significantly, energy efficiency gains more and more importance. For Infineon, this is a fast-growing business opportunity. With mid-double-digit growth rates, we expect our AI business to reach one billion euros within the next two years.”
To overcome the technical hurdles in reducing wafer thickness to the order of 20 micrometers, Infineon engineers had to establish an innovative and unique wafer grinding approach, since the metal stack that holds the chip on the wafer is thicker than 20 micrometers. This significantly influences handling and processing the backside of the thin wafer.
Additionally, technical and production-related challenges like wafer bow and wafer separation have a major impact on the backend assembly processes ensuring the stability and first-class robustness of the wafers. The 20-micrometer thin wafer process builds on Infineon’s existing manufacturing expertise and ensures that the new technology can be seamlessly integrated into existing high-volume Si production lines without incurring additional manufacturing complexity, thus guaranteeing the highest possible yield and supply security.
The technology has been qualified and applied in Infineon’s Integrated Smart Power Stages (DC-DC converter) which have already been delivered to first customers. It underlines the company’s innovation leadership in semiconductor manufacturing as the holder of a strong patent portfolio related to the 20-micrometer wafer technology.
With the current ramp up of the ultra-thin wafer technology Infineon expects a replacement of the existing conventional wafer technology for low voltage power converters within the next three to four years. This breakthrough is bolstering Infineon’s unique position in the market with the broadest product and technology portfolio including silicon, silicon carbide and gallium nitride-based devices which are key enablers of decarbonization and digitalization.
Infineon will present the first ultra-thin silicon wafer publicly at electronica 2024 from 12 to 15 November in Munich (Hall C3, Stand 502).
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At the upcoming electronica trade show in Munich, Infineon Technologies AG will illustrate how its innovative solutions are driving the global trends of decarbonization and digitalization. The company will show how its semiconductors are paving the way to a net-zero economy and to unlocking the full potential of artificial intelligence (AI). From 12 to 15 November at booth 502 in hall C3, Infineon will present highlights from its extensive portfolio and offer the opportunity to talk to its experts.
“Decarbonization and digitalization are the key drivers on the way to a climate-neutral future,” said Andreas Urschitz, Member of the Board and Chief Marketing Officer at Infineon. “Semiconductors contribute in many ways to the green and digital transformation and are at the heart of every connected application. At electronica, we’ll be showcasing how our leading technologies and innovative solutions are helping master the central challenges of our time.”
World’s first 300 mm gallium nitride wafers
Infineon will present its technological breakthrough, the world’s first 300 mm power gallium nitride (GaN) wafer technology, to the general public for the first time. This technological milestone will significantly advance the market for GaN-based power semiconductors. Leveraging 300 mm GaN will strengthen existing solutions and application fields and create new ones, with an increasingly cost-effective value proposition and the ability to address the full range of customer systems.
Shaping the future of mobility
Infineon is focused on the development of innovative solutions that drive the transition to clean, safe and intelligent mobility. Products and solutions on display at electronica include the new AURIX™ TC4x microcontrollers, which support the implementation of future-proof E/E architectures and software-defined vehicles, as well as the main inverter CoolSiC™ Kit, battery management system solutions, on-board chargers with GaN, steer-by-wire system solutions and H 2 sensors for fuel cell applications.
Greener and smarter buildings and homes
Semiconductors play a crucial role in the development of smarter and more sustainable living spaces. Infineon’s advanced technologies based on silicon carbide (SiC) and GaN enable maximum energy efficiency and reliability for energy generation and consumption.
With advanced sensors, power semiconductors, security solutions such as OPTIGA™ Trust and microcontrollers such as PSOC™ Control, Infineon enables the efficient use of green energy while bringing smart automation to modern homes and commercial buildings. The company’s booth will showcase comprehensive system solutions including various solar inverter topologies (micro-inverters and string inverters), as well as demos for optimizing power and boosting heat pump output.
Enabling AI – Efficient, reliable and on the edge
Semiconductors also play a crucial role in unlocking the full potential of AI. Infineon’s solutions make it possible for customers to deploy new AI applications quickly, efficiently and at scale. The company’s broad range of products, software, tools and services enables energy-efficient data centers, smarter devices and optimized AI edge applications. Demos will include high-performance, low-power AI-enabled microcontrollers from the PSOC family, advanced sensors from the XENSIV™ portfolio as well as vertical power module architectures, advanced liquid cooling modules and power supply units for AI data centers.
Visitors who are unable to attend the live show can register here for Infineon’s digital event platform, which will be available 24/7.
More information about Infineon’s show highlights is available at www.infineon.com/electronica.
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Many industrial applications today are transitioning to higher power levels with minimized power losses, which can be achieved through increased DC link voltage. Infineon Technologies AG addresses this challenge by introducing the CoolSiC™ Schottky diode 2000 V G5, the first discrete silicon carbide diode on the market with a breakdown voltage of 2000 V. The product family is suitable for applications with DC link voltages up to 1500 VDC and offers current ratings from 10 to 80 A. This makes it ideal for higher DC link voltage applications such as in solar and EV charging applications.
The product family comes in a TO-247PLUS-4-HCC package, with 14 mm creepage and 5.4 mm clearance distance. This, together with a current rating of up to 80 A, enables a significantly higher power density. It allows developers to achieve higher power levels in their applications with only half the component count of 1200 V solutions. This simplifies the overall design and enables a smooth transition from multi-level topologies to 2-level topologies.
In addition, the CoolSiC Schottky diode 2000V G5 utilizes the .XT interconnection technology that leads to significantly lower thermal resistance and impedance, enabling better heat management. Furthermore, the robustness against humidity has been demonstrated in HV-H3TRB reliability tests. The diodes exhibit neither reverse recovery current nor forward recovery and feature a low forward voltage, ensuring enhanced system performance.
The 2000 V diode family is a perfect match for the CoolSiC MOSFETs 2000 V in the TO-247Plus-4 HCC package that Infineon introduced in spring 2024. The CoolSiC diodes 2000 V portfolio will be extended by offering them in the TO-247-2 package, which will be available in December 2024. A matching gate driver portfolio is also available for the CoolSiC MOSFETs 2000 V.
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