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SiC MOSFET Family

Find out about Diotec Semiconductor's SiC MOSFET Family which components are highly suitable for EV charging systems for electric vehicles, solar inverters, and other power supply applications in the automotive, industrial, and commercial sectors.

The specifications of these silicon carbide MOSFETs are low switching losses, high voltage levels (1200 V), maximum 53 mΩ to 23 mΩ on-state resistance (RDSon), low gate charge (from -8 V to 22 V continuous gate-source-voltage (VGSS)) and more.

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Tech-Savvy Future with E-Bikes, Charged-Up by Diotec's 200 V Schottky

Spring is just around the corner and people are being drawn out into nature again. E-bikes are now standard and make it possible for everyone, from cycling professionals to leisure cyclists, to get out and about. The latest bike models are characterized by intelligent connectivity, efficient motor control, and a sleek design that not only makes it easier to cycle but also to transport goods.

High-end variants use carbon frames instead of aluminum to reduce weight. They come with an 800 Wh battery, a 52 V mid-drive motor with twelve gears, and transfer power via a belt to the gearless rear wheel. An alternative is the crossover e-bike, which is suitable for everyday tasks, long tours, and sporty mountain biking. These bicycles usually have 48-volt batteries with 750 Wh of capacity. For the city and short mountain rides, an all-round bike with a frame-mounted 400Wh 36V battery is a good choice.

Even the 36-volt battery requires a charging device equipped with high-voltage Schottky diodes. As a rule of thumb, its reverse voltage must be five to seven times higher than the DC voltage of the battery. The SBCT30200 by Diotec Semiconductor is a 2x 15 A, 200 V Dual Schottky diode in the TO-220AB package. Ideally suited for the output stage of a forward converter, which requires two diodes in a common cathode configuration, it is a good practice to load the output diodes with just one-third or half of their nominal current value. Power losses and, thus, heat are then reduced to a minimum. At 5 A of output current, even a high-capacitance e-bike battery can be charged up in a few hours only.

Every e-bike is equipped with MOSFETs, which Diotec Semiconductor supplies as components, especially for battery management and connection of intelligent functions. The chips regulate the power supply to the electronic motor, allowing precise control of its speed and direction. They improve efficiency, performance, and connectivity.

"Green Wheels": Sustainable buses in the changing landscape of urban transport

The EU, EFTA, and UK region saw a rise in electric bus registrations, with nearly 7,200 units now registered. ACEA (The European Automobile Manufacturers Association) reported a 39.1% increase in electric bus registrations in Europe last year, with notable growth in the top three markets: France (+221.3%), Spain (+172.4%), and Germany (+37.5%). Although buses powered by alternative sources are gaining popularity, diesel still holds the largest share at 62.3%, down from 66.9% in 2022. Bus and coach manufacturers continuously develop cleaner and greener models to reduce road transport CO2 emissions. However, they cannot overcome the challenges alone. Public transport and coach operators need to invest in and operate new models profitably.

According to ACEA, buses are the most widely used form of public transportation in the EU, accounting for over half of all public transport journeys. They have the lowest carbon footprint of any motorized transport, making them an essential public service and a significant contributor to decarbonization.

Power components by Diotec Semiconductor play an important role when it comes to electric mobility in general and "green" public transportation in particular. Starting from dedicated bypass diodes for solar panels, which can be found nowadays not only on the roofs of bus depots but more and more on every bus stop shelter. While the huge PV installations on bus depots are capable of charging up the bus fleet, the smaller ones at bus stops are used to light up the shelter at night and to run passenger information systems. Charging stations are the next big field where Silicon Carbide (SiC) devices are used. You might have seen already terminal stops with an overhead power connector. Whenever a bus stops over, its pantograph moves up and charges up the battery. The power electronics for charging are either stationary or integrated on-board into the bus. SiC MOSFETs and SiC Schottky diodes by Diotec help in either place to reduce energy losses and improve the performance of the converters. The drive inverter is finally the part that turns the motors and moves the coach forward and in consequence its passengers. Diotec offers a lot of automotive-qualified parts used for auxiliary functions in the battery management system, the drive electronics, oil and cooling water pumps, the passenger air conditioner, and so on.

The Electric Revolution: Rising Demand for Power Fuels the Future of E-Mobility

The increasing demand for e-mobility is driving a surge in electricity consumption. According to the manufacturers, the average energy consumption of an electric car is between 11 kWh and 30 kWh per 100 km, depending on the model. Consumption calculations are therefore usually based on 15 kWh per 100 km. Considering the rapidly growing number of EVs, there is a need for robust energy systems, smart grids, and sustainable power sources to meet evolving electricity demands.

How can we use more electricity from photovoltaic sources? An easy-to-implement solution is solar carports combined with charging piles. Suitable Parking lots are widely available – at companies, supermarkets, leisure centers, apartment blocks, and family homes. A welcome side-effect is the protection of the car against sun heat, hail, and fogged or frozen windshields. The usage of bidirectional charging systems allows the use of EVs even for energy storage and grid balancing.

What does 1 kWh cost at a public charging station? You can usually expect to pay between 0.25 and 0.35 EUR per kWh, resulting in 3.75 to 5.25 EUR per 100 km (at the above-mentioned consumption). A comparable Diesel car would cost 7.50 EUR, taking a consumption of 4.5 l/100 km and 1.70 EUR fuel costs. But are EVs really more sustainable than traditional cars? A recent study by the VDI, the Association of German Engineers, concluded that a typical medium-sized EV becomes "green" after 90.000 km of service life. Over the typical entire lifecycle of 200.000 km, their greenhouse gas emissions will be 55 percent lower than for traditional vehicles with combustion engines.

EV charging systems operate at high voltage levels and must be efficient and small-sized. Power semiconductors based on Silicon Carbide (SiC) are addressing all these needs. They usually come with either 650 V or 1200 V and offer shallow switching losses. As such, they can be operated at very high switching frequencies, which allows for a drastic reduction in the size of magnetic elements such as coils and transformers. The SICW40C120 by Diotec is e. g. a 2x 20 A / 1200 V SiC Schottky diode in TO-247. Compared to a similar device based on silicon, its switching losses are impressively 90% lower.

PCN073: Replacement of SK85, SK86 by SK56SMC-3G and SK86-3G

Replacement of Schottky diodes by improved versions

Articles:
SK85, SK86

PV Panels Protected by Diotec's Bypass Diode SK4045YD2-3G

Diotec Semiconductor has installed solar panels on all roofs except in India (there it is planned in the future) of its worldwide factories. There are three buildings at its headquarters in Germany, two buildings in China, and each one building in Slovenia. The plant in Germany has an installed power of 600 kWp, allowing it to cover a huge amount of its electricity demand even on cloudy days. At full sun, the excessive energy is either used to charge the company's electric car fleet or fed into the public mains.

Partial shading is a risk for every solar module. Antennas, chimneys, dust, or bird droppings lead to a highly resistive path inside the photovoltaic cells. The unshaded cells continue to deliver current through that path, causing so-called hot spots and in consequence heat damage. Bypass diodes inside the modules prevent such damage and are therefore mandatory protective elements. The SK4045YD2-3G by Diotec Semiconductor is a state-of-the-art 40 A / 45 V Schottky Bypass Diode in TO-263AB/D²PAK, offering low thermal resistance, low forward voltage, low leakage current, and high ESD capability.

Automatic Start of Dishwashing or EV Charging When There is Plenty of Renewable Energy – And Save Costs shortly

It often happens that solar (or wind) energy is available in high volumes, but electricity demand is low at the same time. In order not to waste that "free" energy, it would be great if flexible electricity consumers – such as washing machines, dishwashers, or even your electric car – would be automatically operated or charged based on energy availability. From 2025 on, electricity suppliers in the EU are obliged to offer flexible tariffs: When power is highly available and therefore cheap, the price per kWh is low – time to switch on the power loads.

Already now, users can check when there is a lot of renewable energy available, and switch on any electricity consumer either manually or even automatically. An app, developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), makes it possible: energy-charts.info. Using an electricity traffic light, the app helps to adjust consumption to the current generation. It uses the share of renewable energies in the electrical load as a basis. When the generated energy is 10% above the consumption, the traffic light will display green. If the current level is 10% below the average, the traffic light will display red.

The app offers an API (Application Programming Interface), allowing smart home applications to automatically switch on power loads when the traffic light is green. Home appliances from big brands are already using that function. The Power MOSFETs DI018N65D1 by Diotec Semiconductor are the perfect load switches for medium-power consumers. Two of them switched anti-serial build an AC switch, capable of power loads up to about 2800 W. The parts come in the space-saving D-PAK and offer 650 V of Drain-Source voltage, suitable for 230~240 V mains applications. On-state resistance is typically 165 mOhm at 10 V Gate voltage.

Energy Saving Power Supply of Data Servers

Apps like the "energy-charts.info" by Fraunhofer ISE can help to save energy by using electricity when plenty of renewables are feeding the grid. But, any app requires a working data net, anytime, anywhere. The backbone of the world wide web is masses of data servers, distributed all over the world, preferably in cold regions – due to the better cooling conditions in those areas. Because data servers need energy, power supplies have losses; leading to heat which needs to be removed.

Designing server power supplies in a way that efficiency is as high as possible and thus losses reduced to a minimum is a mandatory target. Due to the masses of data servers, even small improvements will save a lot of energy, if we think globally. The input bridge GBI25J-LV by Diotec is built with rectifier chips offering a 10% lower forward voltage drop than the standard version GBI25J. Since always two diodes are conducting per main cycle, the power savings are even 20%. This is a lot for a power supply running 24/7.

Alarm systems protected with surge arresters

Modern alarm systems offer various functions such as burglar alarm, video surveillance, light and sound signaling, light switching and presence detection. In emergency situations such as theft, fire, flooding, etc., they alert people or alarm centres either with a loud siren or, depending on the system, with a silent alarm.

There are different types of motion detectors with different operating principles. Passive infrared, or PIR, detectors are the most commonly used and can be used both indoors and outdoors. Combinations of motion detectors are often used in intruder alarm systems to reduce the risk of false alarms. Dual PIR detectors, for example, consist of two different PIR sensors and only trigger an alarm if both sensors detect movement.

Of course, the alarm electronics also need to be protected. Surges from the mains, for example, from a lightning strike, can damage the sensitive sensor circuitry. The P6SMBJ5.0CA Transient Voltage Suppressor (TVS) from Diotec Semiconductor provides reliable surge protection for electronic alarm systems, has an operating voltage of 5 V and a peak power of 600 W, and is supplied in the space-saving DO-214AA/SMB package.

"GoGreen, the future is getting brighter": LED lights for urban development

LED luminaires are an innovative step towards environmentally friendly street lighting. Pavements and roads are better illuminated, especially at night, increasing safety and comfort in cities and communities. LEDs convert electrical energy into light and are therefore longer-lasting and more energy-efficient than conventional lighting technologies.

Significant energy and cost savings can be achieved. Since street luminaires are connected to the public power supply, special attention to the input stage of the lighting is required. High-voltage spikes from lightning strikes can damage this circuitry, cause equipment failure, and create unwanted darkness.

The SM4000 rectifier diode from Diotec Semiconductor offers an impressive 4000V surge voltage in a single DO-213AB package. This means that overvoltages can hardly damage the input stage. This results in reliable operation of the streetlight. The average forward current of this diode, 1 A, is more than sufficient for the power requirements of typical LED drivers, and their small footprint allows space-saving board mounting. All for bright, safe pavements and roads at night.

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