As global energy demands continue to soar, intelligent power and sensing technology provider onsemi has set itself a $1 billion revenue goal for their 2023-24 fiscal year. They have also aggressively increased their presence in the rapidly expanding power SiC device market.
Silicon carbide in its pure state acts as an insulator. However, doping with impurities like aluminum, boron and gallium allows this material to transform into a semiconductor.
Characteristics
Silicon Carbide (SiC) is an expansive bandgap semiconductor. Due to its ability to shift electrons quickly into the conduction band without risk of thermal runaway, it makes SiC an excellent material for high voltage power applications.
As well as superior thermal properties and a low coefficient of thermal expansion, aluminum offers superior thermal dispersion properties to reduce power loss while increasing efficiency. Furthermore, its much higher breakdown voltage makes it particularly resistant to high temperatures and rapid switching speeds.
SiC has rapidly found favor among power electronics users due to its many advantages, quickly replacing silicon devices in applications requiring high blocking voltage capabilities, lower specific on-resistance, and faster switching speeds.
SiC is an ideal material choice for power applications operating in harsh environments. BepiColombo (Europe’s first space probe to Mercury), has employed blocking SiC diodes designed by Alter Technology – an expert in silicon carbide technology – that are built to withstand temperature and radiation fluctuations within space environments, for example blocking diodes in this mission use blocking SiC diodes that have been optimized by Alter.
Tillämpningar
Silicon carbide possesses several unique characteristics that make it ideal for power electronics applications. Its high breakdown electric field strength enables devices to withstand higher voltages than their silicon counterparts while its low switching resistance enables smaller control circuitry with reduced energy loss during operation.
Silicon carbide semiconductors were first produced for use as light-emitting diodes (LEDs) in the mid 1900s. Silicon Carbide can be found naturally as moissanite, while it can also be synthesized synthetically to meet industrial needs. Thanks to its outstanding thermal conductivity and low thermal expansion rate, silicon Carbide can withstand temperatures up to 1600 degC without strength loss – while being immune from acids or lyes.
Porous silicon carbide modified with metal or oxide nanoparticles has demonstrated outstanding catalytic abilities for direct oxidation of butane to maleic anhydride, isomerization of linear saturated hydrocarbons, hydrogenation of butadiene, neutralization of exhaust gases from cars, carbon dioxide reforming of methane and many other industrial reactions. Furthermore, this material makes an excellent candidate as a new, stable, high-efficiency photocatalyst that requires no co-catalysts.
EliteSiC offers high-voltage power applications with its extensive line of bare die solutions, gel-encapsulated case modules, and transfer molded modules incorporating full SiC MOSFETs for high voltage power applications. Our vertically integrated supply chain gives us an edge by providing higher performance at reduced costs than traditional power module manufacturers.
Packaging
Silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors can withstand wide variations in voltage and temperatures, making them an excellent choice for electric vehicle chargers, solar inverters, and energy storage systems. Their impressive performance and efficiency has garnered interest from manufacturers; however, price has hindered widespread adoption compared with silicon-based chips; however recent manufacturing improvements have brought prices closer in line with conventional silicon chips prompting more suppliers to enter the market and invest in SiC fabs.
SiC power devices present one of the greatest challenges to effective thermal management due to their ability to produce large amounts of heat during operation, necessitating effective thermal management strategies in order to avoid degradation or early failure of devices. Traditional packaging materials and processes don’t always provide this necessary thermal transfer, so innovative solutions have been proposed as ways out.
Sintered silver interconnects can help lower package stress by creating strong and conductive connections between devices in the package and their other parts. Sintering occurs at high temperatures to create strong connections that minimize parasitic effects while permitting higher switching frequencies and eliminating paralleling requirements of traditional designs – all of which ultimately increase device efficiency while decreasing total system cost.
Pricing
Silicon Carbide power semiconductors have quickly gained favor within the automotive industry due to their superior energy efficiency and power density, low switching loss and ability to operate at higher temperatures than conventional silicon devices. To capitalize on this demand, leading semiconductor companies such as STMicroelectronics NV signed a multi-year supply agreement with SiCrystal for providing silicon carbide wafers that will go towards manufacturing power semiconductors.
Silicon carbide technology’s increasing usage in applications such as electric vehicles (EVs), industrial motor drives, UPS systems and lighting controls should spur market expansion. Silicon carbide’s ability to reduce power system losses by 50% has led to its adoption across many applications.
Furthermore, the 4 Inches Semi-Insulating Silicon Carbide Wafer market is being driven by rising demand from industries including ferrous and non-ferrous metals production, refractory materials production, power electronics, electric vehicle batteries, greenhouse gas emission reduction technologies such as this as well as its role in providing an alternative to traditional power semiconductors.
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