Wideband Gap Semiconductors and New Trends in Power Electronics

With the rapid development and take-up of modern wide band gap devices using Silicon Carbide (SiC) or Gallium Nitride (GaN) in particular, the landscape has changed for Power Electronics as a result. These devices can switch higher voltage and currents, faster, than previous Silicon based technologies, and can also tolerate much wider temperature ranges. These advantages make these new devices extremely attractive for Power Electronics applications, especially in an extreme environment such as Aerospace or Automotive. This presentation will provide a current view of the state of the art of wide band gap devices, and also how they are affecting developments in power electronics systems as a result.