Engineering researchers at the University of Arkansas have designed integrated circuits that can survive at temperatures greater than 350C (some 660F).
Their work, funded by the US
National Science Foundation, will improve the functioning of processors, drivers, controllers and other analogue and digital circuits used in power electronics, automobiles and aerospace equipment – all of which must perform at high and often extreme temperatures.
“This ruggedness allows these circuits to be placed in locations where standard silicon-based parts can’t survive,” said Alan Mantooth, Distinguished Professor.
“The circuit blocks we designed contributed to superior performance of signal processing, controllers and driver circuitry. We are extremely excited about the results so far.”
The research is critical because one-third of all power produced in the US passes through some kind of power electronic converter or motor drive before it reaches the end user.
Energy understands that the position is much the same in Europe.
Circuits developed by the University of Arkansas team will enable tight integration of control in the tough environmental conditions these applications demand.
They will also improve electrical efficiency while simultaneously reducing the overall size and complexity of these systems.
The researchers worked with silicon carbide, a semiconducting material that is more rugged than conventional materials used in electronics.
Silicon carbide is able to withstand extremely high voltage and is a good thermal conductor, meaning it can operate at high temperatures without requiring extra equipment to remove heat.
The research team, led by Mantooth and Jia Di, professor of computer engineering, achieved the higher performance by combining silicon carbide with wide temperature design techniques.
In the world of power electronics and integrated circuits, their work represents the first implementation of a number of fundamental analogue, digital and mixed-signal blocks, such as a phase-locked loop using a complementary-style silicon carbide technology.
A phase-locked loop, or PLL, is a control system that generates an output signal whose phase is related to the phase of an input signal. Such a function is critical in a number of circuit applications such as signal synchronisation, frequency synthesis, and modulation and demodulation schemes.
The research was part of the US National Science Foundation’s Building Innovation Capacity programme, which is designed to partner university and industry research to build intellectual collaborations so that innovations flow from ideas to solid research results, company prototypes and products.
The University of Arkansas and two Fayetteville technology firms, Ozark Integrated Circuits and Arkansas Power Electronics International, form the basis for this innovation ecosystem. Raytheon is also a key partner.
Ozark Integrated Circuits is commercialising the circuit technology. Arkansas Power Electronics International focuses on using the circuits in power applications.
The research funding was awarded to Arkansas Circuit Design Centre technologies. The facility is one of only a few university-based research centres investigating electronic systems to make the US power grid more reliable and efficient.
The US Department of Energy has funded the centre since 2005 because of the university’s research expertise in advanced power electronics and long-term investigation of silicon carbide.
It is not known whether the UK energy industry has clocked the Arkansas work or whether complementary research is under way on this side of the North Atlantic.
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