Prof. Florin Udrea

Cambridge University, UK

Abstract

The power devices field has seen tremendous changes in the last decade. The traditional power MOSFET has been largely replaced by a new class of power devices based on the Silicon Superjunction concept, while the Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs) are now fabricated on 12 inch wafers and have access to the latest thin wafer/trench/fine dimension technologies. However most of the innovation and flavor in the field comes from the emergence of Wide Band Gap semiconductors – and in particular the Silicon Carbide and Gallium Nitride. Extensive research is also carried out in single crystal Diamond and Gallium Oxide materials.  GaN and SiC are expected to reach annual growth rates of 30% in the next 3-5 years. This talk will cover a range of semiconductor technologies and materials for power devices and give a comparison between different technologies and materials for diverse applications.

New Figures of Merit (FOMs) will be defined for the materials and technologies of power devices with emphasis on Silicon Carbide and Silicon. The talk will end with an outline of the challenges for the power electronics future and a vision of different high voltage technologies in the modern era of electrification.

Bio

Prof. Florin Udrea is Head of the High Voltage Microelectronics and Sensors Lab, Engineering Department in Cambridge University. He is Fellow of Royal Academy of Engineering.  He is one of the two founding members of CamSemi; a company dedicated to power ICs and power management. CamSemi has sold over 500 million units to date and has been recently awarded the prestigious Carbon Trust Innovation Award.  He is also the CTO and the founder of CCMOSS (Cambridge CMOS Sensors Ltd), a company dedicated to CMOS-based gas sensors. Finally, he is a co-founder and the CTO of Camutronics – a new spin-off company dedicated to power semiconductor devices.  Prof. Florin Udrea is an inventor of over 70 patents and has over 300 publications in journals and international conferences. He has received several awards from IEEE and Leverhulme. For his “outstanding contribution to British Engineering” he has received the Silver Medal from the Royal Academy of Engineering for 2012.