화학공학소재연구정보센터
Materials Science Forum, Vol.457-460, 21-26, 2004
Possibility of power electronics paradigm shift with wide band gap semiconductors
Recent researches on next-generation power devices has shown remarkable progress, especially in wide band-gap power devices such as silicon carbide and gallium nitride devices, as well OF as novel silicon devices, like a super junction FETs. The future direction of power electronics applications is surveyed in a term of output power density as an index of future power electronics roadmap, instead of power conversion efficiency, taking into account advanced devices and related technologies. A next-generation CPU power supply, a compact unit-inverter and an electric vehicle are selected as typical future applications. The possibility of power electronics paradaigm shift, with progress in the output power densities of more than 10 W/cm(3) to 30 W/cm(3) will be discussed in the paper.