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RESEARCH

Design of High-Temperature SiC Three-Phase AC-DC Converter for >100°C Ambient Temperature

Year: 2011
Fig. 1. Planar structure three phase power module and high temperature motherboard.
High temperature (HT) converters have become more and more important in industrial applications where the converters will operate in a harsh environment. These environments require the converter to have not only high-temperature semiconductor devices (SiC, GaN) but also high-temperature gate drive, high-temperature passive components and control electronics. This work describes a design process for a three-phase PWM rectifier. The SiC JFET planar structure is used for the main semiconductor devices. Other high-temperature components, including the passive components, silicon-on-insulator chips and the auxiliary components are studied and designed to reach the high temperature requirement. Finally, a 1.4 kW lab prototype is fabricated and tested for verification. The system works fine from -50°C to 150°C ambient and the junction temperature of the SiC power module reaches 250°C.

Fig. 2. 1.4kW switching waveforms and ThermalCam picture after 150°C ambient soaking test.

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