Here comes a 1,700-V MOSFET

Designers of power circuitry may soon be able to substitute ordinary MOSFETs in some applications that now require IGBTs.

That was the message when Cree, Inc. recently developed a new family of 50-A Silicon Carbide (SiC) devices that include the 1,700V Z-FET MOSFET. Other members of the family include a 1,200V Z-FET MOSFET and three Z-Rec SiC Schottky diodes.

The new devices come in die form and target high-power modules for applications such as solar power inverters, uninterruptible power supply (UPS) equipment and motor drives.

Says Cree power and RF general manager Cengiz Balkas, “These larger die extend the benefits realized with our 20-A SiC MOSFETs to power applications up to 500 kW, making it possible to replace less capable conventional silicon IGBTs in high-power, high-voltage applications.”

The 50-A SiC device series includes a 40 mOhm 1,700-V MOSFET, a 25 mOhm 1,200-V MOSFET, and 50-A/1,700-V, 50-A/1,200-V, and 50-A 650-V Schottky diodes. Cree says it can provide samples of all these high-power devices immediately and plans to have production volumes in fall 2012.

For preliminary datasheets and samples: www.cree.com/power