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AdvanSiC - Advances in Cost-Effective HV SiC Power Devices for Europe’s Medium Voltage Grids

Project description

Cost-effective high-voltage silicon carbide semiconductors for green energy

The further deployment of clean sustainable energies hinges on more efficient and competitive converter solutions. Wide bandgap technology provides benefits compared to conventional silicon technology. However, the high price of silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors increases the overall cost. The EU-funded AdvanSiC project will develop, test and validate cost-effective high-voltage (HV) SiC metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor semiconductors in various medium-voltage direct current grid applications: a solid-state circuit breaker for DC converter stations, a full-scale wind converter, and a full scale solar inverter. The project aims to minimise HV SiC device cost by advanced design structures and process optimisations, ensuring an immune and reliable environment to handle SiC fast transients and optimising passives and cooling systems to reduce cost at the device and system levels.

Objective

For a larger deployment of clean and sustainable energies more efficient and competitive converter solutions are necessary. In this framework, wide Bandgap (WBG) technology provides benefits compared to conventional silicon technology. Even those benefits are well known, e.g. efficiency and/or sufficient reduction on converter footprint, right now SiC are far too expensive and its cost has a negative impact on overall system cost.

In the view of this situation, the objective of AdvanSiC is to produce, test and validate cost-effective HV SiC MOSFET semiconductors in various MVDC grid applications: a solid-state circuit breaker for DC converter stations, a full-scale wind converter and a full-scale solar inverter.

The aim is to minimize HV SiC device cost by advanced design structures and process optimizations. And afterwards, assure an immune and reliable environment to handle SiC fast transients, as well as optimize passives and cooling system to provide cost reduction not only at device level but also at system level.

The main goal of AdvanSiC is to provide industrial leadership in key and emerging technologies to SMEs, start-ups, and industry from Europe to Europe, specifically in a technology that will be key to provide clean and affordable energy.

Coordinator

IKERLAN S. COOP
Net EU contribution
€ 659 775,00
Address
P JOSE MARIA ARIZMENDIARRIETA 2
20500 Mondragon
Spain

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Region
Noreste País Vasco Gipuzkoa
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost
€ 659 775,00

Participants (10)

Partners (3)