Novel Solid-State Transformer Supports 800-V DC Power in AI Data Centers
Navitas Semiconductor and École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) University debuted their jointly developed 250-kW solid-state transformer (SST) solution at APEC 2026 in San Antonio, Texas. The platform, developed by the Power Electronics Laboratory of EPFL, uses a single-stage, modularized, bridge rectifier SST topology for converting 3.3 kV AC to 800 V DC at 250 kW power. This will help simplify implementation of next-generation data center power-distribution grid architecture by eliminating bulky low-frequency transformers.
The SST demonstrator was developed as part of the Power Electronics Laboratory’s project “HeatingBits.” They used Navitas’ GeneSiC ultra-high-voltage (UHV) 3,300-V and high-voltage (HV) 1,200-V silicon-carbide (SiC) trench-assisted planar (TAP) MOSFETs and SiC modules
“This novel solid-state transformer platform provides a galvanically isolated, flexible, scalable, and efficient interface between the medium-voltage AC grid and an 800-V DC data center architecture, while serving as a real-world experimental environment for advanced distributed control,” said Drazen Dujic, Associate Professor and Director of the Power Electronics Laboratory at EPFL.
He added, “By leveraging Navitas UHV and HV SiC MOSFETs portfolio, EPFL was able to optimize system performance for the highest efficiency and optimal design margins for system robustness and reliability."
Navitas can be reached by email at [email protected].
About the Author
Lee Goldberg
Contributing Editor
Lee Goldberg is a self-identified “Recovering Engineer,” Maker/Hacker, Green-Tech Maven, Aviator, Gadfly, and Geek Dad. He spent the first 18 years of his career helping design microprocessors, embedded systems, renewable energy applications, and the occasional interplanetary spacecraft. After trading his ‘scope and soldering iron for a keyboard and a second career as a tech journalist, he’s spent the next two decades at several print and online engineering publications.
Lee’s current focus is power electronics, especially the technologies involved with energy efficiency, energy management, and renewable energy. This dovetails with his coverage of sustainable technologies and various environmental and social issues within the engineering community that he began in 1996. Lee also covers 3D printers, open-source hardware, and other Maker/Hacker technologies.
Lee holds a BSEE in Electrical Engineering from Thomas Edison College, and participated in a colloquium on technology, society, and the environment at Goddard College’s Institute for Social Ecology. His book, “Green Electronics/Green Bottom Line - A Commonsense Guide To Environmentally Responsible Engineering and Management,” was published by Newnes Press.
Lee, his wife Catherine, and his daughter Anwyn currently reside in the outskirts of Princeton N.J., where they masquerade as a typical suburban family.
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