The Impact of ITRW: How Can WBG Power Semiconductors Break Through?

Increasing electrification means the world will need a projected total of 1000 TW-units per year in the next 10 years+. A new generation of wide bandgap power electronics devices are potentially 100-1000 times faster and 100-1000 lower loss than today's technology. Current market projections of massive growth (30%+) for WBG technology and market size into the 10 s of mean that this is a vitally important technology that will shape the next several decades of the world. A key role of the International Technology Roadmap for Wide bandgap Power Semiconductors (ITRW) is to facilitate an acceleration in the R&D process for this new technology to fulfil its potential. This paper takes a holistic view of the future of wide bandgap power electronics, the challenges that needs to be addressed and how roadmaps can make a contribution to meeting these challenges.