Silicon carbide stack solution that drives performance and cost efficiencies

Mersen’s three-phase SiC Power Stack Reference Design offers system designers a complete, compact, high-power silicon carbide solution with no need for individual device sourcing, testing and qualification. The design incorporates Microchip’s silicon carbide power modules and digital gate drivers and Mersen’s fuses, bus bar, capacitors and thermal management, optimally designed together in a single high-performance stack reference design. With Microchip’s 1200V MSCSM120AM042CD3AG silicon carbide MOSFET and AgileSwitch 2ASC-12A1HP digital gate driver, the design allows engineers to swiftly develop high voltage systems utilising kits predesigned for their applications – lowering time to market by up to six months.

“Microchip customers will benefit from our collaboration with Mersen to provide silicon carbide MOSFETs and digital gate driver solutions,” said Leon Gross, vice president of Microchip’s discrete product business unit. “When power inverter designers can source a proven solution, they can avoid sourcing individual parts and reduce risk through reliability – and that helps avoid downtime. Designers now have an all-in-one evaluation system.”

The Power Stack Reference Design provides 16kW/l of power density and up to 130C Tj, peak efficiency at 98%, with up to 20kHz switching frequency. Using Microchip’s rugged silicon carbide MOSFETs and AgileSwitch family of configurable digital gate drivers, the reference design allows engineers to choose from 700V and 1200V options in currents up to 750A. It also offers a choice in module construction including baseplate material, DBC ceramic material and die attach method.

“We worked closely with Microchip on the design and development of this silicon carbide Power Stack Reference Design given the availability of highly robust silicon carbide MOSFETs and compatible digital gate drivers from a single source,” said Philippe Roussel, PhD, vice president, Global Strategic Marketing Executive Expert at Mersen. “Thus, we can demonstrate our ability to optimize any inverter topologies from our customers, relying on our line of highly reliable bus bars, capacitors, fuses and cooling systems. The versatile Microchip silicon carbide line-up also gives us the capacity to extend these primary specifications to higher voltage, current and switching frequency to meet every customer’s operating point needs.”