What are called vertical transistor designs employing GaN have shown a lot of promise for making possible switches able to operate at around 1,200 V. But new research described at the recent IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting indicates it may be possible to fabricate GaN transistors able to handle voltages in the 3,300 to 5,000-V […]
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Improve automobile battery life with the right chemistry
by Theju Bernard, Intersil, a Renesas Company The automotive industry is quickly moving toward more electrification. The deployment of start-stop systems, emergency call (eCall) telematics, and hybrid vehicles is fueling the need for advanced battery management systems that not only charge the battery in a safe manner but also prolong its useful life. There are […]
Basics of AC, DC, and EC electric motors, Part 1— AC and DC
Electric motors – from tiny ones which advance a sheet of paper, to huge ones which power industrial machinery — are so common that we may not give them adequate consideration. Motors have a complex history and genealogy, which can be confusing to newcomers, Figure 1. Each motor subtype has unique characteristics which make it […]
Formula E racers to get lighter thanks to SiC inverters
Full SiC power modules will form the basis of the inverter on the Venturi Formula E team in the FIA Formula E 2017–2018 (season four). The racing season will start on December 2nd and 3rd in Hong Kong. The SiC power modules were devised by ROHM. The inverter for season four features embedded full SiC […]
Power Electronics Top Talks in November on EDABoard.com forums
Peer-to-peer, engineer-to-engineer questions and answers from the EDABoard.com engineering community around power electronics. Click the “Read more” link and follow the entire conversation and maybe add your two cents by logging in to EDAboard.com Gas discharge tube based mains transient protector – We have designed a 40W non-isolated, offline, 230VAC LED lamp. For transient protection, we […]
World’s first 100 mW deep-UV LED
LG Innotek says it has developed the world’s first 100-mW UV-C LED. The UV-C LED emits ultraviolet light with short wavelengths ranging between 200 – 280 nm and is also called deep UV. It is used in sterilizing and hardening devices with its ability to destroy bacterial DNA and cause chemical reactions with special materials. […]
A quick way to wear out EV batteries: V2G power won’t make sense without smarter grids
There was controversy recently when two different research groups came to two different conclusions about the practicality of using the lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles as a source of power for the utility grid. The idea behind vehicle-to-grid (V2G) proposals is that EVs can send the power in their batteries to low-voltage microgrids or buildings, […]
How cooling fans earn different IP ratings
Cooling fans designed for environments more harsh than an office building may carry a special IP rating that designates resistance to different levels of dust and moisture. Here are a few basics when it comes to the differences between fans made to different IP ratings. The IP in IP rating stands for ingress protection. IP […]
Fuses that blow safely
New fuse technology designed specifically for electric vehicles helps meet stringent automotive reliability standards. <strong>Mike Roach | AEM Components Inc. Electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) now use high-energy lithium battery systems. These power sources have spurred a need for a reliable means of protecting against catastrophic failures. Resettable devices are suitable for […]
Tougher stress tests for automotive MOSFETs
Current automotive quality standards may not be selective enough for power electronic devices that will run next-generation vehicles. Device makers are responding with their own more stringent test regimes. Aleksandra Kozyczak, Lourdes Garcia | Infineon Technologies Modern vehicles rely heavily on electronic systems. Each electronic component in these systems is a source of potential failure. […]