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ATP Project Brief2004 General Competition (September 2004)Silicon Carbide Smart Power ChipSemiconductors |
Develop and integrate advanced silicon carbide (SiC) power transistors and power control circuitry within a compact prototype SiC power module for potential use in commercially available hybrid electric vehicles and future low-emission electric vehicles. Sponsor: SemiSouth Laboratories, Inc.One Research BoulevardSuite 201B Starkville, MS 39759-8749 |
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An estimated 17 million automobiles were sold in the United States in 2003, but only approximately 50,000 were hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) which use less gasoline than conventional automobiles. With rising gasoline costs, recent sales of HEVs have increased so rapidly that manufacturers can barely keep up with demand, and HEV sales are projected to exceed one million units by 2015. But today's HEVs and purely electric vehicles are considerably constrained in performance and size, in large part because of the size and weight of the electric power system. SemiSouth Laboratories proposes to develop an integrated silicon carbide (SiC) smart power chip (SPC) technology that could reduce the volume and weight of HEV power modules by 50 percent. SiC-based electronics can operate at substantially higher temperatures, power densities and frequencies than conventional silicon technology. A complete power module using entirely SiC chips would need smaller heatsinks to control temperature, reducing size and weight by up to a factor of ten. Working at higher frequencies means the designer could halve the size of filter and magnetic components. Improved efficiency means further savings and increased performance. Several challenging technological hurdles must be overcome. Integration of power switches, logic, and analog circuitry on a single SiC chip has never been achieved, but the SemiSouth research team has a demonstrated track record of developing SiC devices for similar applications. Development of the SiC SPC prototype is projected to take 5 to 7 years. SemiSouth is a small company which is a "spin-off" of Mississippi State University (MSU), and the proposed three-year project is too high-risk and long-range for a company of this size. ATP funding is needed to allow advancement to demonstration of the first prototype of a multichip power module made entirely with SiC-based control electronics. Subcontractor Arkansas Power Electronics Inc. (APEI) will build and test the end product. SemiSouth has commitments from nine potential partners for this new technology, including Nissan, Lockheed Martin, and General Electric. Nissan will evaluate the new SiC SPC technology for commercial viability, and DRS Technologies will evaluate its potential for military hybrid-electric applications. National economic benefits from SiC SPC technology include the possible creation of 20,000 new jobs in high-wage semiconductor/power electronics industries, new markets of $3 to $6 billion for power electronics by 2015, less dependence on foreign oil due to increased consumer use of HEVs, and lower exhaust emissions. |
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This is the fact sheet for this project as it was announced on September 28, 2004. Date created: 9/28/2004 |