onsemi Releases DC Ultra-Fast Electric Vehicle Charging Solutions to Address Critical Barriers to Adoption

What’s New: Today onsemi announced the availability of nine new EliteSiC Power Integrated Modules (PIMs) enabling bidirectional charging capabilities for DC ultra-fast electric vehicle (EV) chargers and energy storage systems (ESS). The silicon carbide-based solutions will dramatically improve system cost with higher efficiency and simpler cooling mechanisms that can reduce size by up to 40% and weight by up to 52% compared to traditional silicon-based IGBT solutions. With more compact, lighter charging platforms, designers will have all the key building blocks that are needed to quickly deploy a reliable, efficient and scalable network of DC fast chargers that can charge electric vehicle batteries up to 80% in as little as 15 minutes.

Why It Matters: According to J.D. Power’s 2023 Electric Vehicle Consideration Study, nearly half of U.S. consumers note the reason for not purchasing an electric vehicle is the access to charging and the ability to do so quickly, to ensure the driving experience is as easy and seamless as with a traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle. In the U.S., the availability of EV chargers needs to quadruple by 2025 and 8x by the end of the decade to keep up with demand and ensure drivers have equitable access to public charging stations.

In turn, this rapid increase in demand for electricity will also put a tremendous strain on current electrical grids, potentially overloading them. To mitigate this problem, bidirectional charging has emerged as a key solution to implement vehicle-to-grid which allows both regular battery charging and the ability to use an EV as an energy storage system to power your home when needed.

This solution helps enable a DC fast charging network and vehicle-to-grid power transfer systems, addressing access and speed with its ability to recharge a vehicle faster than other methods that take hours or even days.

How It Works: onsemi offers the most comprehensive portfolio of PIMs to address the key topologies on the market. This gives designers the flexibility to pick the right PIM for power conversion stages in their DC fast charging or energy storage system applications. To accelerate the design cycle, advanced piecewise linear electrical circuit simulation (PLECS) models through our Self-Service PLECS model Generator and application simulation with the Elite Power Simulator of this portfolio will also be made available to designers.

For each module, onsemi uses die from the same wafer to ensure more consistency and reliability so designers don’t have to use discretes from different suppliers, which can lead to varying performance results. In addition to its reliability, this module portfolio offers the following benefits:

1. Uses the Gen3 M3S SiC MOSFET technology which offers the lowest switching losses and highest efficiency in the industry
2. Supports key topologies such as multi-level T-type neutral point clamp (TNPC), half-bridge and full-bridge topologies
3. Supports scalable output power from 25 kW to 100 kW, enabling multiple DC fast charging and energy storage systems platforms including bidirectional charging
4. Industry-standard F1 and F2 packages with the option of pre-applied Thermal Interface Material (TIM) and press fit pins
5. Enables optimal thermal management, avoiding system failure due to overheating
6. Full SiC modules offer energy conservation by minimizing power losses, directly translating to cost and energy savings
7. Offers more robustness and dependability, ensuring consistent operations

More Information:

1. Learn more about onsemi’s EliteSiC Power Integrated Modules
2. Read the latest white paper: Review of Power Converter Topologies for DC Fast Charging and Ultra-Fast Charging Applications 
3. Simulate with Elite Power Simulator and Self-Service PLECS Model Generator