Netherlands-based semiconductor company Nexperia has received automotive certification for its range of silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs suitable for applications like onboard chargers (OBC) and traction inverters, as well as DC-DC converters, heating ventilation and air-conditioning systems (HVAC).
These devices (NSF030120D7A0-Q, NSF040120D7A1-Q, NSF060120D7A0-Q), which deliver RDS(on) values of 30, 40 and 60 mΩ and leading figures-of-merit (FoM), were previously offered in industrial grade and have now been awarded AEC-Q101 certification.
The switches are housed in the increasingly popular surface-mounted D2PAK-7 package which is more suitable for automated assembly operations than through-hole devices.
RDS(on) is a critical performance parameter for SiC MOSFETs as it affects conduction losses. However, concentrating on the nominal value neglects the fact that it can increase by more than 100% as device operating temperatures rise, resulting in a considerable rise of conduction losses. Temperature stability is even more critical when SMD package technologies are used rather than through-hole technology since devices are cooled through the PCB.
Nexperia has ensured that its new SiC MOSFETs offer temperature stability, so that the nominal value of RDS(on) increases by only 38% over an operating temperature range from 25° C to 175° C. This enables customers to address higher output power in their applications achieved with a higher nominal 25° C rated RDS(on) from Nexperia without sacrificing performance.
“This feature allows to get more power out of the selected Nexperia SiC MOSFET devices compared to similarly rated RDS(on) devices from other vendors, delivering a clear cost advantage for customers on semiconductor level. Additionally, relaxed cooling requirements, more compact passive components, and higher achievable efficiency allow customers more degrees of freedom in their design and lower total cost of ownership,” said Edoardo Merli, SVP and Head of Business Group Wide Bandgap, IGBT & Modules (WIM) at Nexperia.
Nexperia plans to release automotive-qualified versions of its 17 mΩ and 80 mΩ RDS(on) SiC MOSFETs this year.
Source: Nexperia
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