Cree, long known for its LED lighting solutions, has recently begun investing heavily in high-efficiency power semiconductors made from silicon carbide and gallium nitride. Through Wolfspeed business, they recently signed an exclusive long-term supply agreement with STMicroelectronics to produce 150mm SiC wafers specifically tailored for use in electric vehicle power devices.
What is Silicon Carbide?
Silicon Carbide (SiC) is a chemical compound composed of silicon and carbon. Although SiC occurs naturally as moissanite, a rare mineral, it is more often produced synthetically for electronic applications. SiC is known for its wide bandgap semiconductor properties which enable it to withstand higher temperatures and voltages than traditional silicon devices.
Silicon carbide has long been used in numerous industries such as abrasives, ceramics and bulletproof vests. Recently however, silicon carbide has made waves within power electronics as a replacement for traditional silicon-based devices due to its ability to withstand higher temperatures and voltages than silicon. Silicon carbide offers distinct advantages over its silicon counterpart when used for switching times and blocking voltage capacities – offering faster switching times and increased blocking voltage capabilities than before.
Cree is one of the industry leaders when it comes to silicon carbide semiconductor technology and boasts 36 years of experience working with this material. Their mission is to develop and commercialize new technologies that take advantage of silicon carbide’s unique properties to revolutionize power industries worldwide.
Cree’s efforts to diversify its business away from lighting have resulted in increasing its Wolfspeed business in power and RF segments, where it has already seen solid growth. Their expanding fab in Marcy will enable faster development of silicon carbide devices for these markets.
How is Cree Using Silicon Carbide?
Silicon Carbide can be used to create transistors that switch power more efficiently than standard semiconductors, providing many applications. Cree’s silicon carbide-based power transistors can handle higher voltages and temperatures while being smaller and requiring less cooling compared to their regular counterparts, which enables electronics devices to become smaller, lighter and more energy-efficient – especially as society transitions away from fossil fuels towards electric vehicles (EV).
Electric vehicle (EV) battery systems demand significant power. To properly operate them, Tesla and other car companies have turned to inverters powered by silicon carbide inverters as a safe solution for quickly switching high-voltage currents at higher rates.
Cree’s silicon carbide semiconductors can make inverters more powerful, safer and cheaper to produce. Their 1200V silicon carbide metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) technology will be employed in inverters designed for Yutong electric buses to extend driving range and charging times quickly while simultaneously decreasing weight, conserving space, and cutting costs.
Cree is expanding its Wolfspeed business unit’s capacity for silicon carbide and gallium nitride (GaN) power and RF products through state-of-the-art 200mm silicon carbide wafer fabrication facility and materials mega factory located on its campus in Durham, North Carolina. This will enable Wolfspeed to offer wide bandgap semiconductor solutions that accelerate technological shifts occurring in diverse industries such as automotive, communications infrastructure and industrial.
Why is Cree Using Silicon Carbide?
Silicon carbide technology can help power electronics handle higher temperatures, voltages, and switching frequencies while being much smaller and requiring less cooling than traditional transistors, leading to smaller, lighter devices that are more energy efficient. As the semiconductor industry transitions away from silicon and towards wide bandgap silicon carbide (WBCS), Cree’s Wolfspeed division is leading this change with SiC materials as well as power/RF devices for electric vehicles, industrial inverters and grid-tied solar power systems.
Cree has invested significantly in new products to capitalize on this opportunity, including opening its first 200mm SiC wafer fabrication facility north of Utica and opening a materials mega factory at their headquarters in Durham, North Carolina. Cree announced in May 2019 a massive $1 billion investment into its Wolfspeed division to fast-track SiC power device technology into the market – this includes opening a 200mm wafer fabrication plant as well as materials mega factories at both locations.
Physical Vapor Transport (PVT) systems used by the company use inert SiC material vaporized within a graphite crucible with thermal insulation before cooling to form single crystals – providing the most cost-effective means of producing high-quality silicon carbide ingots for commercial use, which are then used to manufacture high-performance semiconductor chips used to transform industries such as automotive, three-phase industrial motor drives, battery chargers and solar.
What are the Benefits of Cree Using Silicon Carbide?
Silicon carbide semiconductors differ from traditional semiconductors in that they can switch high current with minimal energy loss, creating more efficient power converters and electrical devices, plus it can create smaller and lighter components – features which make silicon carbide an excellent choice for applications such as electric vehicles and fast charging stations.
Last year, Cree divested its lighting business unit to concentrate its efforts on developing its silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) power and radio-frequency (RF) products for power supply markets and radio-frequency applications. Since then, it has made considerable investments towards becoming a SiC power supplier; investing over $1 billion into Wolfspeed subsidiary to produce SiC/GaN chips using silicon carbid basis production lines.
Cree and STMicroelectronics announced in November 2019 an expansion to their long-term supply agreement, increasing its value to more than $500 million and reflecting global demand for SiC power devices as people switch quickly from ICE cars to EVs.
On this episode of Power Up, we speak with Guy Moxey, Senior Director of Power Products for Wolfspeed – a Cree Company. He joins us to discuss silicon carbide’s use within e-bus fleets and power grids alike – helping drive increased efficiencies for both.
English 
Swedish