High Efficiency SiC MOSFET Solutions for Solar System

Abstract:
As new energy technologies continue to evolve, the requirements for power electronic converters in systems are becoming increasingly higher. High efficiency, high reliability, and high power-density are being given more and more attention by designers and may become the standard for current and nextgeneration converters. Silicon Carbide (SiC) materials, due to their inherent wide bandgap characteristics and high thermal conductivity, can achieve higher efficiency and better thermal performance in 1kV systems[1][3]. This article will introduce the mainstream architecture of current photovoltaic (PV) systems and the commonly used circuit topologies for different parts of the system. Based on the characteristics of different topologies, solutions using SiC MOSFETs will be presented and compared to IGBT solutions. The advantages of using new generation SiC MOSFETs in PV systems will be summarized.