IEEE Open Journal of Power Electronics (Jan 2024)
<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\beta$</tex-math></inline-formula>-Ga<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> in Power Electronics Converters: Opportunities & Challenges
Abstract
In this work, the possibility of using different generations of $\beta$-Ga2O3 as an ultra-wide-bandgap power semiconductor device for high power converter applications is explored. The competitiveness of $\beta$-Ga2O3 for power converters in still not well quantified, for which the major determining factors are the on-state resistance, $R_{\text{ON}}$, reverse blocking voltage, $V_{\text{BR}}$, and the thermal resistance, $R_{\text{th}}$. We have used the best reported device specifications from literature, both in terms of reports of experimental measurements and potential demonstrated by computer-aided designs, to study power converter performance for different device generations. Modular multilevel converter-based voltage source converters are identified as a topology with significant potential to exploit these device characteristics. The performance of MVDC & HVDC converters based on this topology have been analysed, focusing on system level power losses and case temperature rise at the device level. Comparisons of these $\beta$-Ga2O3 devices are made against contemporary SiC-FET and Si-IGBTs. The results have indicated that although the early $\beta$-Ga2O3 devices are not competitive to incumbent Si-IGBT and SiC-FET modules, the latest experimental measurements on NiO$_\mathrm{X}$/$\beta$-Ga2O3 and $\beta$-Ga2O3/diamond significantly surpass the performance of incumbent modules. Furthermore, parameters derived from semiconductor-level simulations indicate that the $\beta$-Ga2O3/diamond in superjunction structures delivers even superior performance in these power converters.
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