New power highlights and investments in SiC production capacities

ROHM Semiconductor Europe has introduced new power semiconductor solutions for e-mobility and energy conversion applications. One of its new power innovations is its 4th generation of SiC MOSFETs. It attains up to 50% lower switching loss and 40% reduction of ON resistance with no sacrifice to short-circuit ruggedness. The latest generation provides a more flexible gate voltage range (15-18V) and supports turn-off with zero volt – allowing simple gate drive circuits with unipolar supply to be employed.

"The demand for SiC will continue to grow, and ROHM will also increase sales. We will accelerate further investment and product development based on the technology we have cultivated as a leading SiC manufacturer. In addition, our company will continue to propose solutions that combine not only SiC products but also peripheral components and customer support," states Dr Kazuhide Ino, managing executive officer, CSO of ROHM Co., Ltd.

Recently, the company increased its production capacity for SiC power semiconductors with a new building in Japan. "As a vertically integrated semiconductor manufacturer, we are largely independent of suppliers and can respond more flexibly to market changes. The high degree of integration of our fabs gives us an advantage over other manufacturers who outsource many production steps. In addition, we are making great efforts to further optimise our supply chains, including our production system, and to achieve stable supplies for our customers," says Wolfram Harnack, president of ROHM Semiconductor Europe.

The company's production subsidiary SiCrystal, plans to grow its capacities and manpower. "SiCrystal's intermediate goal is to achieve nine-figure sales by producing several 100,000 substrates a year," says Dr Robert Eckstein, CEO of SiCrystal.