Infineon Technologies AG has been a pioneer in the market introduction of silicon carbide (SiC) power devices and trench technology for SiC MOSFETs, combining excellent performance with high robustness. Today, the CoolSiC™ product offering spans from 400 V to 3.3 kV and covers a broad range of applications, including automotive drivetrains, EV charging, solar energy systems, energy storage, and high-power traction inverters. Building on a solid track record in SiC business development and leveraging its position as the innovator of charge-compensating devices in silicon (CoolMOS™), Infineon is now introducing a trench-based SiC superjunction (TSJ) technology concept.
“With the introduction of the TSJ concept, we are significantly expanding the technological capabilities of silicon carbide,” said Peter Wawer, President of Infineon’s Green Industrial Power Division. “The combination of trench and superjunction technology enables higher efficiency and more compact designs – an important step for applications requiring the highest levels of performance and reliability.”
Infineon is committed to gradually expanding its CoolSiC product portfolio, leveraging SiC TSJ technology. This expansion will encompass a diverse range of package types, including discretes, molded and frame-based modules, as well as bare dies. The extended portfolio will cater to a broad spectrum of applications, targeting both the automotive and industrial sectors.
The first products based on the new technology will be 1200 V in Infineon ID-PAK for automotive traction inverters and combine the advantages of trench technology and superjunction design, capitalizing on Infineon’s more than 25 years of experience in SiC and silicon-based superjunction technology (CoolMOS). This scalable package platform supports power levels of up to 800 kW, enabling a high degree of system flexibility. Key benefits of the technology include increased power density, achieved through an up to 40 percent improvement in R DS(on)*A, allowing for more compact designs within a given power class. Additionally, the 1200 V SiC trench-superjunction concept in ID-PAK enables up to 25 percent higher current capability in main inverters without compromising short-circuit capability.
This advancement also results in enhanced overall system performance, delivering improved energy efficiency, reduced cooling requirements, and higher reliability for demanding automotive and industrial applications. Moreover, the system benefits from reduced parallelization requirements, which simplify the design process and lower overall system costs. With these innovations, the Infineon ID-PAK package equipped with SiC TSJ technology contributes to the development of more efficient and cost-effective traction inverter designs for automotive applications.
“As the global number one in automotive semiconductors, Infineon sets the pace of innovation and helps build the bridge between technological progress of vehicles and sustainable mobility,” said Peter Schiefer, President of Infineon’s Automotive Division. “Our new trench-based SiC superjunction technology brings further value to electric vehicle drivetrains enabling higher efficiency and system design simplicity.”
As an early customer, Hyundai Motor Company development teams will engage with Infineon’s trench-superjunction technology, leveraging its benefits to enhance their EV offerings. This partnership is expected to drive the development of more efficient and compact EV drivetrains.
SOURCE: Infineon
