With the advance of wide-bandgap power semiconductors in the marketplace, many are starting to feel that time is shrinking for silicon-based power electronics. However, the fundamental structure of the silicon power MOSFET remained largely unchanged, and there’s still a window of opportunity to develop next-generation devices that can leverage the maturity and expertise of the silicon processing industry.
One such company, iDEAL Semiconductor, has redefined the legacy structure with its SuperQ advanced REduced SURface Field (RESURF) Silicon Power MOSFET architecture. It significantly increases the conduction area and reduces losses to deliver performance gains while maintaining the reliability, manufacturability, and supply-chain stability of silicon. Initially targeting voltages up to 850 V, the technology opens the door to improved power semiconductor devices such as diodes, MOSFETs, IGBTs, and ICs.
For example, SuperQ-based 200-V MOSFETs offer significantly lower resistance than existing silicon devices, with a 1.6X lower resistance than gallium nitride (GaN). Thus, motor-drive inverters designed with SuperQ technology can save up to 50% of power losses. In this podcast, we talk with David Jauregui, founder and CTO at iDEAL Semiconductor, about the marketplace and the company’s technology.
