June/July 2021

12 PCIM EUROPE 2021 www.pcim.mesago.com Issue 3 2021 Power Electronics Europe www.power-mag.com The PCIM Europe digital days featured more than 2700 participants with around 24.000 live chats at 308 presentations of 313 speakers, according to official figures. More than half of the content was related to WBG technologies and it applications. Addressing the wide range of power electronic applications - from “Mili Watt” power needed for the operation of mobile phones up to the “GigaWatt” power for high-speed trains - all looking into power electronic potential for energy efficiency and sustainable reduction of carbon dioxyde emission in future power conversion systems. “Besides the Silicon-based devices like IGBT, Super Junction MOSFET the new type of devices like SiC and GaN transistors are coming up. While SiC devices and GaN transistors are already qualified in many emerging applications, Silicon-based devices are still dominating in most applications. WBG devices are still at the beginning of their production cycle, the learning in material development and device design is ongoing, the benefits on the system level needs to be qualified, long-term reliability issues needs to be proven and cost down programs will come along with high volume production,” Prof. Leo Lorenz, PCIM General Conference Director, stated. European green deal The EU is fighting climate change through ambitious policies at home and close cooperation with international partners. Alongside reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the EU is also taking action to adapt to the impacts of climate change. By 2050, Europe aims to be a climate-resilient society. Fighting climate change and achieving the transition to a climate-neutral society will require significant investments, research and innovation, new ways of producing and consuming, and changes in the way we work, use transport and live together. “The European Green Deal mission is very simple: to make the EU climate neutral by 2050. And to put us firmly on track to achieve this objective, we have assessed that we need to cut our greenhouse gas emissions by 55 % by 2030. This requires a radical transformation of all the sectors of the economy and society. Some sectors, especially power generation and industry, have already reduced their emissions. But sectors like transport, buildings or agriculture and land use, will have to contribute more”, stated EU Commissioner Kadri Simson at the North Atlantic Council meeting on May 5. This year, the EU are turning this strategic vision into concrete legislative proposals. “In June with the launch of our Fit For 55 package, we are bringing forward a whole host of revised legislation. That includes revising our legislation for energy efficiency and renewables in line with our new ambitions. The changes we are willing to make are some of the biggest in history. So we need some of the biggest investment in history to match. In the EU we assess that about € 350 billion of investment per year are needed in this decade. EU leaders have agreed on the largest long-term budget in the Highlights of PCIM Europe Digital Days 2021 Power Devices are still the driving technology for energy saving, system miniaturization and contributing significantly to sustainable improvement of our environment. For ultra-high efficiency and ultra-high power density solutions Wide Bandgap-devices are gaining acceptance. WBG power semiconductors promise to handle high currents at high voltages at higher efficiency levels than Silicon, and thus saving energy. This is already a fact in renewable energies, electric vehicles or power supplies for mobile devices. The PCIM Europe digital days from May 3 – 7 underlined this trend The PCIM Europe digital days featured more than 2700 participants with around 24.000 live chats