| Editorial |
| | Going beyond the (current) Limit
I still remember how proud I was more than 40 years ago when I found out that my self-made “fully stabilized” AC power supply really delivered a constant voltage of 5 V while driving up to 5 A. I had to go through a learning curve to discover that high-capacity smoothing capacitors also draw high currents which affects the rectifier diodes etc. But using a monolithically integrated low-dropout voltage regulator was just great in those days even though the low efficiency required a larger heat sink. I didn’t care very much about the losses and enjoyed the stable supply for my experimental 5 V logic environment.
Today, we still use some LDOs in specific applications, however, we pay a lot more attention to the efficiency of the power supply and, in order to do so, we had to push the limits further. Current supply solutions are much more efficient and offer a very high efficiency. For example, the DC/DC converter modules we describe on page 66 do not only offer high currents, but are also very compact and lightweight. Designing these modules into the cars of tomorrow makes them up to 25 kg “lighter” which will improve the vehicles’ efficiency even further.
These DC/DC converter modules are very compact and probably use wide bandgap semiconductors. While generations before were purely silicon-based semiconductors. A very significant (probably even: the major) market share of the power semiconductor market will soon be taken by Silicon Carbide and Gallium Nitride solutions as their benefits are obvious. This is why we, at Bodo’s Power Systems, have decided to once again to invite the community to join us at Bodo’s Wide Bandgap Event. This year, it will take place December 3 and 4, 2024 at the Munich Airport Hilton hotel. Themed “Making WBG Designs Happen” this event will bring together innovators and industry experts from around the world to discuss the potential of both SiC and GaN semiconductors and their applications.
Take a look at the event website at www.bodoswbg.com and you will see that the topics include presentations from WBG semiconductors themselves via modules up to measurement challenges. Each presentation is only 15 minutes, so you will once again receive a plethora of news and information. During the breaks, you will have the opportunity to talk directly to the Senior Engineers, Vice Presidents, CEOs, General Managers etc. of the presenting companies. And, of course, Bodo’s editorial team will be here as well. The result of Bodo’s WBG Event is just as simple as the result of the magazine Bodo’s Power Systems: Bodo’s makes it happen!
Bodo’s magazine is delivered by postal service to all places in the world. It is the only magazine that spreads technical information on power electronics globally. We have EETech as a partner serving our clients in North America. If you speak the language, or just want to have a look, don’t miss our Chinese version at bodospowerchina.com. An archive, of every issue of the magazine, is available for free at our website bodospower.com.
My green tip of the month: Design your systems in a holistic way considering the overall system costs to your company’s customers. Because when cost, size, weight, reliability and thermal management of the whole system comes into play, then the cost of the highly-efficient WBG semiconductor solution “suddenly” becomes much more attractive. Dare to consider the best efficient solution!
Kind regards,
Alfred |