News

Vitesco and ROHM Partner to Create SiC-Powered Solutions

June 16, 2020 by Stephanie Leonida

Vitesco chooses ROHM Semiconductor as its preferred partner for developing silicon carbide powered technology for electrical vehicles.

This month, Vitesco Technologies partnered with a leading provider of silicon carbide (SiC) powered semiconductor technologies, ROHM Semiconductor. The collaboration was born from the shared desire to create new and more efficient technologies to power EVs. 

Vitesco concentrates on the development and manufacture of state-of-the-art drivetrain technology. The company drives the supply of efficient, clean electrification of a variety of vehicles including electric vehicles (EVs). 

Vitesco’s portfolio encompasses technologies such as electric drives, power electronics for hybrid and battery electric vehicles, and 48V electrification solutions. 

 

Vitesco and ROHM collaborate to create SiC-powered technologies. Image used courtesy of Vitesco.
Vitesco and ROHM collaborate to create SiC-powered technologies. Image courtesy of Vitesco.

 

ROHM’s SiC Technology 

SiC powered semiconductors have become a valuable alternative to silicon powered semiconductors due to their low ON resistance and superior high-frequency, high-temperature, and high-voltage performance. 

ROHM is a front runner in the provision of SiC power devices and modules that are available to customers from a wide variety of industries. Some of the company’s products include full SiC power modules (integrating SiC SBDs and MOSFETs), SiC Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs), and high heat-resistance power modules. 

Among ROHM’s impressive product portfolio, Vitesco understands that SiC MOSFETs for 800V battery systems offer users greater switching efficiency in the inverter with higher efficiency and steeper switching slopes. Additionally, the electric motor suffers less from harmonic losses.

“The SiC option is a very promising future part of our modular power electronics system comprising of software, power output stage, and switching strategy”, said Dr. Gerd Rösel in a -.

 

ROHM SiC powered devices. Image used courtesy of ROHM
ROHM SiC powered devices. Image used courtesy of ROHM 

 

Vitesco’s First SiC Inverter 

Head of Innovation in the Electrification Technology business unit at Vitesco Technologies,  Dr. Rösel also mentioned that that company is partnering with ROHM in order to use their expertise to work on an “800-volt SiC inverter solution as well as on a 400-volt SiC inverter solution,” Vitesco believes that an 800V powered system is key to ultra-fast charging, as the current halved compared to 400V systems operating at the same power. 

Vitesco is already creating and testing one of its latest developments, an 800V SiC inverter to evaluate the efficiency of the new technology. Dr. Rösel believes that the collaboration could not have come at a better time when the demand for SiC solutions is rising exponentially. Vitesco plans to start series production of their very first SiC inverters in 2025. 

During the course of the partnership between Vitesco and ROHM, both companies will be combining their industry know-how in order to improve inverter design efficiency and make the devices scalable for manufacturing and commercialization. 

Vitesco aims to minimize losses caused by power conversion and will utilize a modular power electronics system to do so. For the future of EVs, rapid market adoption and widespread use can be pushed forward by tailored development and thorough testing of SiC technologies to ensure the best performance for customers worldwide.