From switched-mode power supplies to traction inverters in electric vehicles to photovoltaics and wind power, wide-bandgap semiconductors are being considered for all modern designs. In addition, more and more areas of daily life are to be electrified. Both developments have a strong influence on the work of power electronics developers. Figure 1 outlines the field of tension in which developers find themselves today. Every new semiconductor technology—SiC and GaN are certainly not the end of the development—greatly increases the number of possibilities available to an engineer when addressing design requirements. At the same time, each application to be electrified comes with its own requirements. In addition, product life cycles are being shortened, which is why one of the demands placed on developers is a shorter time to market. These trends are causing the complexity of the development process to grow sharply. Higher complexity leads to a higher probability of failure.
For more on this article click here.