SiC Power Technology Status and Barriers to Overcome

Abstract: Silicon devices are dominating power electronics due to their excellent starting material quality, streamlined fabrication, low-cost volume production, proven reliability and ruggedness, and design/circuit legacy. Although Si power devices continue to make progress, they are approaching their operational limits primarily due to their relatively low bandgap and critical electric field that result in high conduction and switching losses, and poor high temperature performance. In this presentation, the co-existence of Si, SiC, and GaN will be discussed, and their respective competitive advantages highlighted. The favorable material properties of Silicon Carbide, which allow for highly efficient power devices with reduced form-factor and cooling requirements, will be outlined. High impact application opportunities, where SiC devices are displacing their incumbent Si counterparts, will be reported. Fab models and the vibrant SiC manufacturing infrastructure (that mirrors that of Si) will be presented. Barriers to SiC mass commercialization will be identified and analyzed. These include the higher than silicon device cost, reliability and ruggedness concerns, defects that degrade device performance, and the need for a trained workforce to skillfully insert SiC into power electronics systems. Speaker(s): Dr. Victor, Virtual: https://events.vtools.ieee.org/m/350692