STMicroelectronics (ST) supplies silicon carbide devices to ZF for many years, contributing to component stability for the production of ZF's next-generation modular inverter platform.

ST announced on the 21st that it recently signed a multi-year supply agreement with ZF to supply silicon carbide devices starting in 2025.

ST will supply tens of millions of silicon carbide devices under the terms of a multi-year contract, which will be integrated into ZF's new modular inverter architecture entering series production in 2025.

ZF plans to secure customer orders in the electric mobility sector by leveraging ST's vertically integrated silicon carbide manufacturing facilities in Europe and Asia.

Stephan von Schuckmann, Head of Electric Mobility and Materials Management on the ZF Board of Directors, stated, “Through this contract, which is a strategically important step, ZF is focusing on strengthening its supply chain to safely deliver products to customers. Orders in the electric mobility sector to be fulfilled by 2030 currently amount to over 30 billion euros (approximately 43 trillion KRW). “To secure this volume, multiple stable suppliers providing silicon carbide devices are required,” the company stated. “ST is a supplier capable of meeting ZF’s requirements with its experience in complex systems, and above all, producing devices of exceptional quality in the quantities needed. Following the existing partnership agreement in the field of silicon carbide technology announced last February, ZF has secured an additional global silicon carbide technology supplier through this agreement.”

Marco Monti, President of ST’s Automotive and Discrete Group, explained, “As a vertically integrated company, ST is making large-scale investments to develop its silicon carbide supply chain and expand production capacity to support automotive and industrial customers in Europe and around the world pursuing electrification and decarbonization goals. The key to success in electric vehicle technology is to enhance scalability and modularity while improving efficiency, maximum power, and economy. We are proud to collaborate with ZF, a leading supplier in vehicle electrification, through ST’s silicon carbide technology that helps realize these benefits, and to support the differentiation and optimization of ZF’s inverter performance.”

ST manufactures silicon carbide chips at production fabs in Italy and Singapore, packages the chips into STPAK, an advanced package developed by ST, and then conducts tests at backend facilities in Morocco and China.

ST plans to supply tens of millions of third-generation silicon carbide MOSFETs to ZF starting in 2025. ZF can meet customer performance requirements by connecting various silicon carbide devices without changing the inverter design. In particular, ZF plans to apply this technology to vehicle inverters for European automakers scheduled for production in 2025.

Meanwhile, the inverter serves as the brain of the electric drive system. It manages the flow of energy transferred from the battery to the electric motor or vice versa. Inverters are becoming more efficient and complex at every stage of development. The combination of inverter design and semiconductors, such as silicon carbide, is key to improving the performance of electric vehicles. Silicon carbide devices significantly reduce power loss in electric vehicle inverters, wind turbines, and solar inverters. Devices made of silicon carbide offer distinct advantages over conventional silicon-based products, including higher efficiency, power density, and reliability. Furthermore, they enable the design of smaller and more cost-effective systems. In other words, applying silicon carbide-based semiconductors to electric vehicles allows for faster charging, longer driving ranges, and more interior space.