Tag Archive for: SiC

Monolith Announces Availability 1200V SiC Diode Engineering Samples

Monolith Semiconductor announces the availability of engineering samples of 1200V, 5A and 10A Silicon Carbide (SiC) Schottky diode in TO-220 package. These SiC diodes feature zero reverse recovery current, superior avalanche ruggedness, excellent surge current capability and low leakage currents at high temperatures. The diodes have been manufactured at X-FAB Texas’ 150mm SiC foundry.

The collaboration with the US Department of Energy and Power America has been key in achieving this milestone in advanced manufacturing of the SiC devices.

“While the benefits of SiC devices in improving the efficiency and reducing the size, weight and volume of power electronic systems is well known, the adoption has been slow due to the high cost of these devices. Manufacturing these SiC diodes in a high volume Silicon manufacturing facility will enable us to provide cost effective, high performance and high reliability SiC devices to our customers”

states Dr. Sujit Banerjee, CEO of Monolith Semiconductor Inc. Dr. Kiran Chatty, VP of Product Development stated, “The superior switching performance of these diodes will reduce losses by over 50% compared to Silicon diodes resulting in higher energy efficiency in power electronic applications such as solar inverters, motor drives and power supplies”.

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X-Fab brings 6in. SiC production of 5kWafers/month

X-FAB Silicon Foundries is announcing the availability of its silicon carbide (SiC) offering from its wafer fab in Lubbock, Texas.

Thanks to the support provided by the PowerAmerica Institute at NC State University, and several capital investments, X-FAB Texas has upgraded its manufacturing resources in order to make them “SiC-ready”. Among the tools now added are a high-temperature anneal furnace, backgrind equipment for thinning SiC wafers, backside metal sputter and backside laser anneal tools. A high-temperature implanter is scheduled for installation later this year. X-FAB can thereby present the market with the means to produce large volumes of SiC devices on 6-inch wafers.

As well as X-FAB’s 6-inch wafer capabilities: They will not only supply fabless semiconductor vendors, but also serve as a second source solution for IDMs with their own SiC manufacturing.

“Current SiC offerings are either IDMs creating their own products or relatively small foundry operations using 4-inch production facilities,” states Andy Wilson, X-FAB’s Director of Strategic Business Development.

“X-FAB is bringing something different to the market, with a SiC capacity of 5k wafers/month ready to utilize and potential to raise this further. We can thus offer a scalable, high quality, secure platform that will enable customers to cost-effectively obtain discrete devices on SiC substrates and also safely apply vital differentiation.”

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Wolfspeed release its first 1kV SiC MOSFET

Wolfspeed, a Cree Company and a silicon carbide (SiC) power devices, power modules and system maker, has introduced a 1000V MOSFET.

SiC MOSFET  Specifications:
The new 1000V, 65mOhm MOSFET is available in a through-hole, 4L-TO247 package and is listed as part number C3M0065100K and is currently available for purchase at Digikey, Mouser and Richardson RFPD. Wolfspeed plans to release another 1000V MOSFET in a 4L-TO247 package at 120mOhm (C3M0120100K) in the coming weeks. This package has a Kelvin-source connection that allows engineers to create designs that maximize the benefits of SiC’s superior speed and efficiency.

The surface-mount versions of these devices, C3M0065100J and C3M0120100J, will be released later this year. Like the 4L-TO247, the surface mount devices include a Kelvin-source pin to help minimize gate-ringing and reduce system losses.

Target markets and applications:

“Supporting the widespread implementation of off-board charging stations, Wolfspeed’s technology enables smaller, more efficient charging systems that provide higher power charging at lower overall cost. This market requires high efficiency and wide output voltage range to address the various electric vehicle battery voltages being introduced by automotive suppliers,”

explained John Palmour, CTO of Wolfspeed.

“Wolfspeed’s new 1000V SiC MOSFET offers system designers ultra-fast switching speeds with a fraction of a silicon MOSFET’s switching losses. The figure-of-merit delivered by this device is beyond the reach of any competing silicon-based MOSFET,” Palmour added.

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ABB to release a full-SiC battery charger for train

ABB is launching a next generation battery charger based on silicon carbide (SiC) power semicon­ductors for use in all rail applications. Train batteries provide power for critical systems such as control and lighting. The new compact battery charger of the series, BORD­LINE® BC, complements ABB`s large stand-alone auxiliary converter product family and is compatible with all standard train battery voltages.

With a footprint of 360 x 220 mm – the size of a shoebox – it is about 10 times smaller and has a weight reduction of 80 percent compared to previous generations. The new device excels with a high power density of 1 kW per liter and per kg, an improvement from previous generations by a factor of 15.

 

SiC Silicon carbide infographie ABB batterie chargeur

Modern trains have varying requirements for power electronics components. In local transportation, such as trams, the components need to be as lightweight as possible to improve overall system energy efficiency. The need in long-distance and high-speed transportation is for compact and powerful, yet reliable devices.

The BORDLINE BC battery charger employs ABB’s well proven modular platform design while incorporating SiC technology for the first time. SiC power semiconductor technology enables a power density and performance not possible with conventional silicon (Si) power semiconductors due to its conductivity characteristics. ­Mastering­­­ SiC technology translates into dramatically reduced size, weight, and cooling requirements, and increased system efficiency, all critical factors for rail operators.

“The new battery charger leverages all the benefits available from SiC and soft switching technologies to allow for a new performance level of power electronics in railway,” said Sami Atiya, president of ABB’s Discrete Automation and Motion division. “ABB has a long history of providing innovative and energy-efficient technologies to the rail industry and we will continue innovating for the transportation sector, a key growth area in our Next Level strategy.”

The new high-speed trains by Stadler operated by the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) on the new transalpine Gotthard base tunnel route between Zurich and Milan will be equipped with this groundbreaking technology.

abbbatterycharger_highres

ABB (www.abb.com) is a leading global technology company in power and automation that enables utility, industry, and transport and infrastructure customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in roughly 100 countries and employs about 135,000 people.

Technological background information:

SiC power semiconductor technology offers significant advantages over traditional silicon-based devices in power applications requiring low losses, high frequency switching and/or high temperature environments. For example, the dielectric strength voltage of SiC is about 10 times greater than that of Si. Low losses are critical to the performance ratio and SiC technology can reduce the power loss by up to a factor of five. High frequency switching can be increased from the conventional technology level with a range of 10 to 20 kHz by a factor of 10.

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Mitsubishi Electric to Launch Super-mini Full SiC DIPIPM

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation  announced today the launch of a new transfer-mold power semiconductor model in its lineup of Super-mini Dual-In-line Package Intelligent Power Modules (DIPIPMTM), embedded with Silicon Carbide Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistors (SiC-MOSFET). It will launch on August 17.

Product Features

1) Top class low power consumption in the home appliance market

– SiC-MOSFET reduces power consumption by about 70 percent compared with Mitsubishi Electric’s existing Super-mini DIPIPM, and contributes to an overall reduction in air conditioner power consumption
2) Simplified inverter system design

– Footprint and pin configurations are compatible with Mitsubishi Electric’s existing Super mini DIPIPM Ver.6, PSSxxS92x6series,etc.
– Designed with a high threshold voltage, SiC-MOSFET does not require a negative bias circuit, allowing simplification of the system design
– Fewer external components due to use of embedded bootstrap diode with current-limiting resistor

Sales Schedule

Model Specification Shipment
PSF15S92F6 15A/600V August 17, 2016

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Taiyo Yuden & GE to collaborate on Power Overlay

Taiyo Yuden and GE Ventures announced today that they entered into a license agreement for an intellectual property (IP) to fabricate substrates embedded with electronic circuits in late 2014. With this technology transfer, Taiyo Yuden and GE will construct a joint development framework toward the commercialization of next-generation wirebondless, embedded electronics circuits. Taiyo Yuden will develop Si-, SiC- and GaN-based wirebondless embedded electronics circuits with the technology and the patent licenses provided by GE Ventures Licensing. Embedded electronic packaging technologies provide significantly improved electrical performance (for example, reduced parasitics), can increase functional density of the electronics circuits by more than a third, and can increase efficiency by over 10%.

GE General Electric Shinko Power overlay POL power module packaging

Extract from “Packaging Challenges and Solutions
for Silicon Carbide Power Electronics” – ECTC 2012 – Ljubisa Stevanovic

“We are extremely pleased to have Taiyo Yuden as an embedded electronics partner,” said Pat Patnode, President of Licensing at GE Ventures.

“The strong demand for high performance electronics circuits continues to drive advance research, and GE is excited to partner with Taiyo Yuden to bring wirebondless embedded packaging solutions to the next generation of electronics.” These embedded electronics circuits can be built into higher level power assemblies and systems for a wide variety of applications.

“Taiyo Yuden will target power devices, Internet of Things (IoT), and wearable applications with this GE Power Overlay (POL) technology. “

This technology will allow additional new application opportunities leveraging the strength of Taiyo Yuden’s current packaging and assembly technology capability and experience.” Said, Hiroshi Kishi, Operating Officer, Research and Development Laboratory. GE Ventures accelerates innovation and growth for partners by providing access to GE technologies and inventions through licensing and joint development partnerships.

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Rohm’s new 1700V SiC MOSFET officially available

ROHM has recently announced the availability of a new 1700V SiC MOSFET optimized for industrial applications, including manufacturing equipment and high-voltage general-purpose inverters.

In recent years, the growing trend to conserve energy in all areas has increased the demand for energy-saving power semiconductors, particularly for applications in the industrial sector such as general-purpose inverters and manufacturing equipment. In the majority of auxiliary power supplies, which are used to provide drive voltages for power supply circuits, control ICs, and various supplementary systems, high breakdown (1000V+) silicon MOSFETs are normally utilized. However, these high-voltage MOSFETs suffer from large conduction loss (often leading to excessive heat generation), and present problems related to mounting area and the number of external components, making it difficult to reduce system size. In response, ROHM developed low-loss SiC MOSFETs and control ICs that maximize performance while contributing to end-product miniaturization.

Rohm-sic-boardgraph

The SCT2H12NZ provides the high breakdown voltage required for auxiliary power supplies in industrial equipment. Conduction loss is reduced by 8x over conventional silicon MOSFETs, contributing to greater energy efficiency. And combining with ROHM’s AC/DC converter control IC designed specifically for SiC MOSFET drive (BD7682FJ-LB) will make it possible to maximize performance and improve efficiency by up to 6%. This allows smaller peripheral components to be used, leading to increased miniaturization.

1. Optimized for auxiliary power supplies in industrial equipment
Compared to 1500V silicon MOSFETs used in auxiliary power supplies for industrial equipment, the SCT2H12NZ provides higher breakdown voltage (1700V) with 8x smaller ON resistance (1.15Ω). In addition, the compact TO-3PFM package maintains the creepage distance (distance measured along the surface of the insulating material) required by industrial equipment. ROHM is releasing a surface mount type (TO268-2L) that also provides adequate creepage distance.

2. Improved efficiency when combined with ROHM’s dedicated IC
Using this latest SiC MOSFET in combination with ROHM’s AC/DC converter control IC (BD7682FJ-LB) designed specifically for SiC MOSFET drive will make it possible to maximize performance and increase efficiency by up to 6%. At the same time heat generation will be reduced, minimizing thermal countermeasures and enabling the use of smaller components.

3. Simply evaluation by using ROHM’s evaluation board for SiC devices
As a comprehensive semiconductor manufacturer, ROHM offers a broad lineup of ICs optimized for use with a variety of SiC devices. ROHM is also launching evaluation boards and kits that make it possible to immediately begin evaluation and development. In addition to the BD7682FJ-LB-EVK-402, a gate drive board for evaluating ROHM’s full SiC module along with a snubber module are offered. More information can be found on ROHM’s dedicated support page.

Applications
Auxiliary power supplies for high voltage (i.e. 400VAC) industrial equipment such as factory automation (robots), solar and industrial inverters, and manufacturing/testing devices

Part Number Package Polarity VDSS ID PD
(Tc=25ºC)		 RDS(on)
VGS=18V		 QG
VGS=18V
NEW SCT2H12NZ TO-3PFM Nch 1700V 3.7A 35W 1.15Ω(typ.) 14nC (typ.)
Under Development SCT2H12NY TO-268-2L
(Surface Mount)		 4A 44W
Under Development SCT2750NY 5.9A 57W 0.75Ω(typ.) 17nC (typ.)
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TT Electronics has launched a Silicon Carbide (SiC) power MOSFET

 Sic MOSFET 2

TT Electronics today launched a Silicon Carbide (SiC) power MOSFET that is designed for high temperature, power efficiency applications with a maximum junction temperature of +225°C. As a result of this operating potential, the package has a higher ambient temperature capability and can therefore be used in applications, including distribution control systems with greater environmental challenges, such as those in close proximity to a combustion engine.

Supplied in a high power dissipation, low thermal resistance, fully hermetic, ceramic SMD1 package the 25A, 650V rated SML25SCM650N2B also ensures faster switching and low switching losses in comparison to normal Si type MOSFETs, consequently the size of the passive components in the circuit can be reduced resulting in weight and space saving benefits. The N-channel MOSFET features a total power dissipation of 90W at a TJ temperature of 25 degrees. A range of screening options are available.

For use in applications that require faster switching in high temperature power conversion topologies and systems, the SML25SCM650N2B will find favour with design engineers working in industrial power conversion applications including oil drilling, distributed management control systems, renewable energy applications / power conversion, space systems and applications.

Silicon Carbide is the new semiconductor technology of choice to help power electronic design engineers design with more efficiency, with higher operating temperatures to lay the foundation for future conversion and control system design demands. With the SML25SCM650N2B, the combination of new Silicon Carbide technology with a high reliability, industry standard outline hermetic packaging technology coupled with TT Electronics’ renowned Lutterworth based design and manufacturing capability delivers value and very high performance to the end customer.

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STMicroelectronics SiC MOSFET used in Zaptec portable EV charger

Silicon-carbide (SiC) power electronics from STMicroelectronics has been used in ZapCharger Portable, a small electric-car charging station from Zaptec, a start-up company in the transformer industry.

ZapCharger works with any electric car on any grid. ST’s SiC MOSFET[1] devices have enabled Zaptec engineers to design a portable, yet powerful piece of equipment.  The 3kg, 45 x 10 x 10cm charger delivers an energy efficiency of 97%.

SiC Silicon Carbide MOSFET Zaptec electric car charger

Courtesy of STMicroelectronics

Inside the ZapCharger, 32 Silicon Carbide MOSFETs from ST deliver efficient power conversion with minimum losses.

“The key for us was to find a power technology with a very high efficiency so we could reduce the overall size of the charger without compromising performance. ST’s silicon-carbide offering was the perfect match,” said Jonas Helmikstøl, COO, Zaptec.

After successful field tests, ZapCharger is starting pilot production now, with volume ramp-up scheduled at the end of Q3 2016.

 

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From March to May: Wrap-up of APEC and PCIM conferences

March to May is the most active period of the year for Power electronics. With the main events that are APEC and PCIM happening two months one from the other, there is a lot to do, a lot to plan and announce too. You might have been buried under tons of work and projects lately (Well, we were!). Don’t worry, PointThePower.com is here to summarize and analyze what happened, and it’s a lot!

Wide band gap field has been very active, and some other trends we announced (car maker entering the smart-grid market or the integration of intelligence in power stacks) have been a bit more confirmed.

Let’s see that in detail.

What’s new about Silicon Carbide

« Silicon Carbide is coming. » We know you have been hearing that for the last decade. So let’s pass the analysis and just go straight to the proofs:

We always said that SiC MOSFET would give its best at higher voltages. Hitachi and Mitsubishi Electric showcased their 1.7kV and 3.3kV full Silicon Carbide MOSFET. They are already filed testing these power modules on their trains in Japan. You could ride a (partially) Silicon Carbide powered trains. That is where SiC belongs, and it’s becoming real, at last.

Infineon has announced their Silicon Carbide MOSFET. It’s coming late, but it seems they did a good work. According to the presentation they gave at PCIM, they wanted to build a device that meets their requirements. They did not want to enter into a race of announcements. So the device is a Trench MOSFET – available at 1200V in samples from now, and in full production in 2017. You can basically replace chip-to-chip an IGBT with this MOSFET. It accepts the same inputs from the driver. But of course, you can get better performances using a specific power device driver. It starts sampling now but will be fully available by 2017.

Rohm also showcased a Trench SiC MOSFET, but for them it’s the third generation. The main improvement is about surge robustness which is now time higher. They recalled that they have a fully integrated supply-chain. The new devices are available at higher current (the technology was presented last year.). They now propose power modules up to 1200V/300A.

Littelfuse is investing more and more in partnership with Monolith Semiconductors to propose a full line of Silicon carbide devices and modules.

On the higher voltage side, Wolfspeed (formerly Cree power branch), Hitachi and Mitsubishi Electric make their way to higher voltages. The devices are not publicly available but tests are currently on-going. The main target for 1.7kV and 3.3kV Silicon Carbide MOSFETs are Rail traction inverters, Grid or Wind turbines.

What to expect for SiC in the next months:

We will see higher voltage devices becoming available. With wafers becoming larger (production is moving to 6 in.), we also need to expect bigger volumes of production and a reduction of production costs, thus production price. High voltage devices (1.7kV and more) will be more and more visible. It does not mean that you will be able to use them yet, but you will see more and more papers, presentations, and maybe a few public announcements about their use. R&D and design engineer will be able to put their hands on some of them, which is still very difficult today.

What’s new in GaN:

Shindengen developed and showed a Power module with GaN devices from Transphorm. Most power module maker’s start to work on the developments of their product line. They just need to « bet on the right horse ».

ViSIC is proposing sampling of its 600V GaN devices. They claim to have the best figure of merit of the market to date. Mass production will start in 2016 too. They partnered with TSMC toward this objective.

ExaGaN found a local partner to test and qualify their GaN devices.

GaN IC: a necessity?

Navitas semiconductor came out of « stealth mode ». They presented their solution which is a GaN IC. You have the GaN power device and the driver on the same die. It’s not a mixed packaged (With Silicon and Gallium Nitride, but a single die IC). It’s a 650V device processed on 6 in. wafers and samples will be available by the beginning of 2017.

Texas Instruments also released their GaN IC at 600V/12A. Even though they do not attend PCIM yet. They did not disclose much information about the device. It seems to be similar to the product develop day Navitas semiconductor having the driver integrated and thus making life easier for designers facilitate device adoption. Infineon has the same strategy with their SiC MOSFET (which is, in theory, compatible with IGBT gate drives).

What to expect for GaN in the next months

We will probably see more and more announcement, and more and more products. Some power module maker will announce the availability of their GaN based power modules. Some GaN players will have to show what they have to stay in the race (Cambridge Electronics Inc. must be working on their manufacturing process to transfer it to mass production and Powdec must be preparing their device).

Other players will make all efforts to push their devices to the market.

We have a complete analysis of the situation available in our market report « Applications and Markets for GaN in Power Electronics .» Ask us for more info.

What is left for Silicon:

Toshiba announced the fifth version of the Super Junction MOSFET. It’s based on their « Deep trench » process using deep reactive ion etching to dig a hole and build the super junction structure in it. Super Junction MOSFET is the perfect competitor to GaN today, and high-end products that use SJ MOSFET are the most likely to move to Gallium Nitride HeMT tomorrow.

Infineon showed during PCIM, a 12 in. wafer with IGBTs processed on it. They will reduce again the cost of production of IGBTs by processing them on larger wafers. It makes the target harder to reach for competition. They also showed a double sided cooled modules for hybrid and electric cars. It’s very similar to what was used in 2008 Lexus LS600h by Toyota (and developed by Denso). The module has a DBC on top and another on the bottom side.

You can also note the partnership between Nissan and Eaton, to reuse EV batteries in home storage systems. This confirms our forecast of a main supply-chain trend: similarly to Alstom, Siemens and GE in high power, electric car makers will also become part of whole ‘consumer-level’ energy complex scheme that will make Smart-grid real.

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Ascatron raises 4 M€ to launch its own SiC devices product line

Ascatron develops power semiconductors based on Silicon Carbide (SiC) that radically reduce losses in electrical transformers. Ascatron focuses on high voltage applications where the energy savings will be very large by using SiC.

Ascatron SiC Silicon Carbide diode package 3DSiC high temperature

1200V SiC power diode for high temperature operation at 250°C

They have now completed the A-round financing intended for the final development of its first own SiC semiconductor products. The total of 4 M€ is shared between 3 M€ in equity capital, and
1 M€ in an innovation grant.

“We have started to implement our advanced material technology in a production equipment for SiC epitaxy”, says Adolf Schöner, CTO of Ascatron.

“The next step is to optimize our device design and outsource the remaining manufacturing of the chip to a foundry with capacity for volume production”.

The A-round investors are from Italy and China, including the four venture capital investors Quadrivio, Como Venture, Rise Leader Investment and InteBridge Technology, together with the equipment producer LPE. The grant comes from the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) through KIC InnoEnergy. KIC supports innovation projects in the field of sustainable energy.

“Our investors have a good mix of understanding both the advanced material technology needed for high performance SiC power devices, and how to address volume markets for semiconductors”

says Christian Vieider, CEO of Ascatron. “40% of the market for power electronic components is in China, and there is a lot of interest in SiC for energy saving”.

About Ascatron

Ascatron develops next generation Silicon Carbide (SiC) power semiconductors radically reducing electrical conversion losses. Target applications are process industry, data center, traction, wind power and grid transformers. With the 3DSiC® technology Ascatron makes doped device structures based on epitaxy, enabling device performance with very low losses and capacity to handle very high voltage. Ascatron started the operation in 2011 as a spin-out from the Swedish R&D institute Acreo, and has 10 employees in Sweden. www.ascatron.com

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Infineon unveils 1200 V Silicon Carbide MOSFET

Infineon Technologies AG has unveiled a revolutionary silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET technology.

“For more than twenty years, Infineon has been at the forefront of developing SiC solutions which address demands for energy savings, size reduction, system integration and improved reliability,” said Dr. Helmut Gassel, President of Infineon’s Industrial Power Control Division. “Infineon has manufactured millions of products containing SiC devices, while our Schottky diode and J-FET technologies have allowed designers to achieve power density and performance not possible with conventional silicon. The strategy has now taken a significant step forward encompassing power MOSFETs that raise the benefits available from SiC technology to a new level, which has never before been possible.”

The new 1200 V SiC MOSFETs have been optimized to combine reliability with performance. They operate with ‘benchmark’ dynamic losses that are an order of magnitude lower than 1200 V silicon (Si) IGBTs. This initially supports system improvements in applications such as photovoltaic inverters, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) or charger/storage systems, while later configurations will also extend support to industrial drives.

The MOSFETs are fully compatible with the +15 V/-5 V voltages typically used to drive IGBTs. They combine a benchmark threshold voltage rating (V th) of 4 V with short-circuit robustness required by the target applications and fully controllable dv/dt characteristics. Key benefits over Si IGBT alternatives include temperature-independent switching losses and threshold-voltage-free on-state characteristics.

The new MOSFETs are based on a state-of-the-art trench semiconductor process and represent the latest evolution of Infineon’s comprehensive family of CoolSiC technologies. This family includes Schottky diodes and 1200 V J-FET devices and a range of hybrid solutions that integrate a Si IGBT and SiC diode in a module device.

The first discrete 1200 V CoolSiC MOSFETs feature on-resistance (R DS(ON)) ratings of just 45 mΩ. They will be available in 3-pin and 4-pin TO-247 packages targeted at photovoltaic inverters, UPS, battery charging and energy storage applications. Both devices are ready for use in synchronous rectification schemes thanks to the integration of a commutation robust body diode operating with nearly zero reverse recovery losses. The 4-pin package incorporates an additional (Kelvin) connection to the source, which is used as a reference potential for the gate driving voltage. By eliminating the effect of voltage drops due to source inductance, this further reduces switching losses, especially at higher switching frequencies.

Infineon has also announced 1200 V ‘Easy1B’ half-bridge and booster modules based on the SiC MOSFET technology. Combining PressFIT connections with a good thermal interface, low stray inductance and robust design, each module is available with R DS(ON)rating options of 11 mΩ and 23 mΩ.

Availability

Infineon will start sampling for target applications in the second half of 2016, with volume production planned for 2017. More information is available at www.infineon.com/coolSiC.

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