Semiconductors with wide bandwidth for EV

Silicon carbide and gallium nitride technologies have grown significantly over the past few years and have become commercially available Energy saving technology. Although silicon is still competitive at lower voltages up to 650 V, SiC and GaN offer efficient high-frequency and high-precision work at higher voltages. Great battlefield among Si, SiC and GaN plays about 650 V, where all devices are suitable for 400-V electric bus voltage. In order for EVs to charge faster, automotive power electronics developers need GaN and SiC devices and a new transmission architecture that can meet the requirements for EV efficiency and power density. To get the maximum range when charging for a given battery capacity, the entire power conversion circuit must achieve the highest possible efficiency. Batteries must have a very high energy storage density. The autonomy of an electric car directly reflects the efficiency of its transmission system.

In this issue, Raphael A. Garcia Morea, System Applications Engineer for OBC Applications at Infineon Technologies, identifies trends in OBC design, compares semiconductor performance, and introduces new packaging for surface mount devices. Integrated solutions bring innovation in a variety of topologies, offer greater efficiency and power density, and provide bi-directionality that integrates EV into a smart grid. Other topics include SiC cost analysis, heat management and monolithic integration of GaN components, advanced solutions for power switch control and protection, and wireless power transmission.

In addition, we will look at vertical GaN and the benefits of GaN technology for engine drivers. The new pulse generator based on SCR was developed and tested on various components of inductive energy by Bs & T Frankfurt am Main GmbH. The pulse generator has some unique properties that benefit from the ability to process high-pulse SCR current, and it offers some major advantages over IGBT-based systems. Bs&T has developed several pulse generators based on this technology for different applications. PCIM in Nuremberg will meet with many companies to share the latest news on power electronics. We will be present with your booth.

Visit us in Hall 6, Stand 400. Stay tuned for our podcasts, news, lighting and technical
articles about PCIM 2022!

Sincerely yours,
Maurizio Di Paola Emilio
Editor-in-Chief of Power Electronics News

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Maurizio Di Paolo Emilio holds a PhD. in physics and is a telecommunications engineer. He has worked on various international projects in the field of gravitational wave research, developing a thermal compensation system, X-rays, space technology for communication and engine control. Since 2007, he has collaborated with several Italian and English blogs and magazines as a technical writer specializing in electronics and technology. From 2015 to 2018 he was the Editor-in-Chief of Firmware and Elettronica Open Source. Maurizio loves to write and tell stories about power electronics, wide range semiconductors, automotive, IoT, digital, energy and quantum. Maurizio is currently the Editor-in-Chief of Power Electronics News and EEWeb, as well as a European correspondent for the EE Times. He is the host of PowerUP, a podcast about power electronics. He has contributed to a number of technical and scientific articles, as well as several Springer books on energy collection and data acquisition and management systems.