Silicon carbide’s wider bandgap makes it the ideal material for electric vehicle (EV) power electronics.
Coherent is pleased to welcome investment from two Japanese auto-industry service providers DENSO and Mitsubishi Electric, who will each take an 11.5% stake in its newly established subsidiary and sign long-term supply agreements with Coherent.
High-temperature
Coherent of Saxonburg, PA announced that automotive supplier DENSO Corp and Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Electric Corp had invested an aggregate $1 billion into their silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductor business, each holding 12.5% non-controlling ownership stake while Coherent owns 75%. This transaction will accelerate Coherent’s plans to increase SiC manufacturing and supply.
SiC is widely acknowledged for its energy efficiency advantages in battery electric vehicles (BEVs). It enhances power density while decreasing size and weight of systems while operating under high temperature environments. Furthermore, SiC allows devices to run at higher frequencies and voltages than conventional semiconductors while being more resistant to electromagnetic fields than their counterparts.
Coherent’s 200 mm SiC substrates and epi-wafers are designed to help accelerate production of superior SiC power semiconductors. Their superior thickness and doping uniformity contributes to optimal device performance and reliability.
This 300 mm facility will help the company meet rising demand for SiC power electronics. This technology can be found in automotive power semiconductors and high-voltage DC/DC converters; amplifiers; high speed data transmission networks; high power LEDs/lasers as well as being suitable for nuclear reactor cores due to its refractory properties.
High-voltage
With their smaller size, coherent silicon carbide chips are capable of conducting power at higher frequencies than pure silicon (SI) chips and emit half as much heat. Furthermore, this allows them to be cooled more effectively resulting in smaller cooling systems which save energy, improve performance and lower costs while saving energy, improving performance and lowering costs.
Coherent announced that Japanese conglomerates DENSO and Mitsubishi Electric have agreed to invest a combined $1 billion in its silicon carbide business, helping Coherent expand production of silicon carbide wafers that increase electric vehicle range more than those made with traditional silicon chips.
This investment aims to increase the reliability of SiC-based power devices, which will make it easier for electric vehicle companies to meet growing consumer demand as well as regulatory requirements – and, ultimately, accelerate adoption of electric cars.
Coherent’s new subsidiary will focus on providing substrates and epitaxial wafers, device and module manufacturing services as well as high frequency operation processes to achieve high thickness, doping uniformity and frequency operation; all in order to deliver customers the best quality possible. Their team also strives to maximize learning from customers – these insights are applied directly into production processes already under development at Coherent.
Wide-bandgap
Silicon carbide has emerged as an excellent power semiconductor material on the market, offering OEM engineers solutions to many of their toughest power design and management challenges. Furthermore, its higher temperature/frequency capabilities make it ideal for high-performance RF devices than regular silicon.
Wide-bandgap semiconductors feature large values for their band gap energy requirements – the time required for electrons to transition between their valence bands and conduction bands – making them suitable for high-speed applications, like power amplifiers and switches. Furthermore, these semiconductors boast very high electric breakdown fields and thermal conductivities as well as being able to withstand extremely high temperatures without melting or burning off.
GaN-on-SiC power electronics are used to drive electric vehicle motors, and can handle high levels of power. This technology has the potential to increase range by 40%; however, its development began back in the 1990s.
North American market is expected to lead the global wide-bandgap semiconductor market soon due to its significant investments in research and development (R&D) as well as robust technological infrastructure. Furthermore, it boasts numerous semiconductor firms and research institutions which support innovation; Coherent will collaborate with these businesses at substrate, epiwafer and device levels.
Low-cost
Silicon carbide (SiC) has emerged in response to an ever-increasing need for high-performance semiconductors, with SiC being particularly beneficial for several key applications in electric vehicles (EVs) and battery-powered drones. SiC’s wider bandgap and higher breakdown electric field allow manufacturers to produce smaller devices with greater efficiency; its superior performance enables shorter charging time and extended driving range.
SiC devices have seen tremendous growth over the last decade. At present, their global market is worth over $2 billion and expected to increase by over 40% by 2023 due to rising energy efficiency demands from sectors like automotive, telecom and renewable energy. Furthermore, higher switching frequencies and thermal conductivities of SiC chips reduce power loss which allows electric vehicle drivers to extend driving range by minimizing heat build-up; additionally smaller cooling systems save space and money by saving space and cost.
Coherent of Pittsburgh recently announced that Japanese firms DENSO and Mitsubishi Electric Corporation have agreed to invest $1 billion into its silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductor business, through a newly formed Coherent subsidiary called Silicon Carbide LLC. Each Japanese firm will hold 12.5% non-controlling ownership stake in Silicon Carbide LLC with long-term supply agreements included as part of this investment agreement.
Soitec’s SmartSiC substrate process aims to streamline manufacturing of SiC devices, making their production less expensive and more efficient. Utilizing an innovative low series resistance design that drastically cuts power consumption, this new technology makes up for bandwidth demands in AI-driven data centers by significantly decreasing power usage.
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