April/May 2021

OPINION 5 www.power-mag.com Issue 2 2021 Power Electronics Europe According to Global Market Insights the market for power electronics will cross $30 billion by 2027. The industrial application segment held 25 % of the power electronics market share in 2020 led by increasing acceptance of robotics and automation across manufacturing and process industries. These electrical parts require MOSFETs, IGBTs, and power modules to optimize power and improve the performance capabilities of motor drives for 24/7 operations. The European power electronics market size was over $4 billion in 2020 and is projected to register a 4.5 % growth rate till 2027. The rising deployment of EV charging stations in European economies including Germany, the UK, France, Italy, and Spain will fuel the market demand. Yole expects that the PHEV and BEV market will grow with around 37 % and 44 % annually until 2026. The converter market for xEV will be worth more than S$29 billion in 2026. The market value for semiconductor power electronic devices for xEVs will reach $5.6 billion in 2026. Over the last couple of years (and especially since Tesla introduced SiC in their Model 3 main inverter), there has been much noise around SiC adoption in EV/HEV. But not all converters or all types of electrification are suitable for this expensive material. BEV is the winner due to the requirements of a long driving range and fast charging time (km driven by charge time). Therefore, the increased cost of the converter is repaid, as the efficiency of the converter will improve, allowing battery savings. The use of SiC in the main inverter has become a common goal for the leading OEMs, with players such as Daimler and Hyundai soon including it in their main inverters. Today, there is already a good portfolio of SiC devices with SiC dies coming from Infineon Technologies, Cree (Wolfspeed), and STMicroelectronics. Many semiconductor players are targeting SiC modules for EV applications, and the SiC module market is expected by Yole to reach 32 % of the total EV/HEV semiconductor market by 2026. Over the last years, SiC has proven to be a technology of choice for high voltage and high temperature power electronics devices such as inverters, being able to grant excellent performance in hybrid and full electric applications. The use of SiC MOSFETs enables in fact smaller, lighter and more efficient solutions. These features become even more crucial when it comes to motor sports, where size, weight and efficiency are definitely major design drivers. Thus automotive supplier Marelli has launched its first power module for motorsports electric and hybrid traction applications completely developed in the company’s Corbetta facility, fully based on SiC technology and using a new direct cooling solution for more efficient, compact and lighter inverters. Also GaN transistors are being implemented more and more in EV powertrain systems which highlight confidence in its reliable out performance and benefits on system cost, density, efficiency, and weight. Examples of OBC, DC/DC converter, and traction inverter products that demonstrate the GaN’s high performance advantages are shown in our feature “GaN Raises Electric Vehicle Powertrain Performance”. And the total market value of power electronic devices for EV DC chargers will grow to around $350 million by 2026 at an annual growth rate of roughly 40 %. The total market value of power electronic devices for DC chargers will grow with a CAGR 2020-2026 of 21.5 %. But the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in severe disruption in supply chain for semiconductor raw materials and components across the globe. The market participants are highly dependent on China for procuring raw materials and components for manufacturing power electronics devices. To fix the supply chain issues, companies are establishing new production facilities in their countries and other regions, adding new opportunities to regional raw material suppliers. Also the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the power electronic events such as PCIM and APEC. In February the decision was made to postpone the PCIM Europe to late summer following talks with exhibitors and partners. In light of the ongoing pandemic and challenging situation, numerous industry players have been hesitant to commit to an on-site event. For this reason, Mesago has decided to hold PCIM again as a digital event only. Over five days, power electronic suppliers and users can receive information on key developments and connect in a variety of ways. In addition to extensive exhibitor profiles, the conference program will consist of presentations as a mix of live and video-on-demand presentations, followed by discussions with the speakers. A major part of the conference is dedicated to key innovations in order to significantly increase the power density of components and systems. Moreover, focus is placed on new materials to achieve a technology breakthrough towards elevated operating temperature along with an extended lifetime of devices and smart digital controlled power conversion concepts for automotive and industry applications (see our PCIM preview). Also the organizers of APEC 2021 announced early April that the event, previously planned as in-person event in the Phoenix/AZ Convention Center from June 9 – 12, will be presented on the virtual platform Social27 from June 14 - 17 with on demand access starting the week of June 9. Since home life has changed over the past several months the daily schedule has been modified slightly to make the conference as accessible as possible during the workweek. All sessions will be recorded so the content can be viewed on own schedule. Attendees will be granted access to the virtual event platform and all on-demand sessions during the week of June 9, 2021. On-demand recordings will include: technical session lectures and dialogues (poster sessions), industry sessions, and professional education seminars. This will also provide attendees with time to build their attendee profiles, and get acquainted with the site. We will provide all relevant information in a timely manner. Enjoy reading this issue! Achim Scharf PEE Editor Despite Covid-19 Automotive Accelerate WBG Applications