SiC- and GaN-based power devices: Technologies, products and applications

Compound semiconductors (and mainly at the moment SiC and GaN) power devices have practically shown a quantum leap in the performances of power devices and the possibility to enlarge the use of power electronics at very high voltages, high temperature and high power. However, the status of SiC and GaN devices today is much less mature than that of Si power devices in terms of manufacturability, material quality, process control, cost and reliability. In this paper activities on SiC and GaN power devices at STMicroelectronics will be presented and the perspectives of a large adoption of compound semiconductors power devices highlighted.