Bewilderment often ensues when we see sic (pronounced “see”) appear as an error message in brackets. Learn what it stands for and how it should be applied.
Silicon carbide devices boast many advantages over discrete silicon devices, including reduced power losses and higher switching frequency/operating temperature/smaller die size – this leads to significantly improved efficiency and reliability.
Power Electronics
As more devices become electrified, we require efficient methods of transforming electric energy. Power electronics provide this necessary service – taking raw electricity energy and turning it into forms usable by devices.
From fan regulators to more complex systems in e-mobility or industrial applications, components must operate at high voltages with very low switching losses while remaining compact for easy handling and safety.
More and more designers are turning to wide bandgap semiconductors like silicon carbide (SiC). When compared with its silicon counterpart, SiC offers remarkable breakthrough performance which allows higher voltages with reduced switching losses for increased efficiency resulting in greater power density, lower system costs, and weight reduction – perfect for space-limited applications such as converters or inverters.
Littelfuse offers an extensive portfolio of industry-grade discrete SiC MOSFETs with breakdown voltages up to 1700V and Schottky diodes that feature blocking voltages up to 650V for improved performance over conventional silicon counterparts, delivering lower specific resistance, faster switching behavior and dramatically reduced switching losses compared to their silicon counterparts. Furthermore, their three times more thermal conductivity reduces losses further while operating at higher temperatures; further increasing efficiency while decreasing costs.
Fordon
Silicon carbide (SiC), a wide-bandgap semiconductor material, has come to the forefront due to the increased focus on emissions reductions and BEV adoption. SiC components are rapidly changing electric vehicle (EV) power systems to dramatically enhance efficiency, performance, range, and acceleration – significantly outshone their predecessors by offering significant cost-cutting measures and increased range and acceleration capabilities.
SiC devices’ high temperature performance and durability make them an excellent choice for use in power electronics applications, including on-board chargers, DC-DC converters, traction inverters and on-board power supplies. Their robust construction ensures they remain functional across a wide temperature range while withstanding rigorous automotive environments; eliminating power losses while increasing overall system efficiency.
SiC devices’ compact size enables them to easily replace larger silicon components, leading to lighter power systems with reduced overall vehicle weight, thus decreasing production costs and improving fuel economy.
Due to these advantages, electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers are rapidly adopting SiC power devices into their models. Bosch recently invested EUR800 million in building a wafer fabrication plant and SiC clean rooms at their research center as well as providing SiC inverter modules for Mercedes-Benz’s EQ fleet.
Global giants such as STMicroelectronics, Infineon and Onsemi are teaming up with Chinese carmakers to offer automotive SiC solutions. By working closely together these vendors can better understand market needs and accelerate product development processes for faster production times.
Industrial
Silicon Carbide (SiC) is one of the most commonly used refractory ceramic materials for industrial applications. It is known for being highly durable, resistant to corrosion, and capable of withstanding temperatures as high as 2700degC without melting or decomposition – not only this, but it’s chemically inert under these extreme temperatures as well as possessing the ability to withstand aggressive chemicals without melting or decomposing!
Power electronics is one area in which SiC devices have proven themselves more energy-efficient than their silicon counterparts, due to lower switching losses and wider bandgap energies that maximize performance across a much broader temperature range.
SiC is rapidly being adopted for large power handling applications that demand high efficiencies and power density, such as electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and power generation system applications. SiC’s advantages make it an attractive solution, including smaller total system cost via reduced size and lower cooling requirements.
SiC also boasts the potential to significantly decrease parasitics that impede system performance, making it an invaluable element for advanced systems that need to operate reliably and efficiently in harsh environments.
Littelfuse SiC products include industry-grade MOSFETs and Schottky diodes with breakdown voltages up to 1700V in discrete packages for both standard and advanced discrete applications, providing significantly lower specific resistance (Ron) and switching losses than their legacy silicon equivalents, while increasing efficiency and decreasing power dissipation in devices.
Medical
Silicon carbide (SiC) has emerged as an ideal semiconductor material for implantable smart biomedical devices designed for advanced human healthcare. SiC’s inherent chemical resistance combined with superior mechanical and hemocompatibility characteristics has made it an appealing candidate for long-term implantable medical device applications.
Human bodies can be an unforgiving environment. Any device interacting with it must survive salinated, ionic, protein-rich environments as well as their patient’s active inflammatory system which rapidly detects any foreign intruder and immediately launches physical and chemical attacks – including oxidizers – against it in order to rid itself of it. SiC devices possess strong chemical resistance so as to survive this full assault on its surfaces without succumbing to destruction.
SiC’s versatility as an electrochemical substrate enables it to perform various electronic functions without direct contact with bodily fluids, for instance a glucose sensor made from SiC can use a simple microelectrode which measures changes in antenna resonant frequency as a response to changes in blood glucose levels.
MOSFETs can also be employed in applications like magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Such systems rely on strong magnetic fields and radio waves to produce detailed images of internal body organs and structures. SiC MOSFETs offer excellent power efficiency with fast switching frequencies and operate across a wide temperature range – which are essential components of such complex imaging systems.
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