▲Wolfspeed FAE Manager Ham Jeong-ho (left) and Sales Manager Lee Tae-hoon (right)



Maintains SiC on-resistance at 1, suitable for high-power applications
Reduced switching losses when using high switching frequencies

A forum has been created to share the advantages of silicon carbide (SiC), which overcomes the physical limitations of silicon (Si), the most common semiconductor material today.

On the 18th, E4ds Webinar held a webinar titled 'Design and Implementation of Future EV, Green Energy, and Power Systems Using Wolfspeed SiC' with Taehoon Lee and Jeongho Ham, Vice Presidents of Wolfspeed.

This webinar presented the following topics: △Introduction to Wolfspeed △Advantages of SiC.

Wolfspeed's origins lie in CREE Corporation, which was founded in 1987.

CREE produced the world's first commercial SiC Blue LED and SiC wafer, and launched SiC MOSFETs in 2011.

In late 2020, CREE sold its LED division to US-based Smart Global Holdings to focus on SiC production.

At this time, the company's official name was changed to Wolfspeed, and on October 4, 2021, it officially began operations as Wolfspeed Co., Ltd.

This manager said, “System energy efficiency using SiC devices“This will allow us to increase circuit switching speeds while also enabling smaller, lighter, and more cost-effective systems,” he said.

Next, Manager Ham Jeong-ho shared the advantages of SiC and tips for design.

SiC has excellent thermal conductivity and is reliable against heat, and when the die size is the same as Si, SiC has lower thermal resistance.

SiC also has advantages in terms of Rdson (on-resistance).

The increased on-resistance at higher temperatures is the main cause of low efficiency.

The on-resistance of SiC remains at 1, which means that the value fluctuates little even during high-temperature operation.

These features make SiC more suitable for high-power applications.

Additionally, SiC can reduce switching losses compared to Si.

This is because using a high switching frequency allows for smaller peripheral components such as magnetizing inductors, which allows for downsizing of the product.

These advantages of SiC could make it a key element of server and data center power supplies, where power supply efficiency and power density are critical.

This is because SiC enables higher switching frequencies and has a lower Rdson variation.

In the Q&A conducted in real time, we discussed the precautions to take when using SiC in existing MOSFETs. In response to the question, it was said that when using a totem pole or half-bridge circuit, the gate voltage must be distinguished as +/- to drive on/off.

Since other topologies can only be used with positive voltage, it is recommended to use gate drivers exclusively for SiC.

Vice President Lee Tae-hoon said, “The Wolfspeed website contains design support and materials to help you understand SiC, so please make good use of them.”

This webinar can be replayed on the e4ds website.