ROHM launches 650V automotive IGBTs for EV compressors and heaters

ROHM has released its 4th-generation 650 V IGBTs, automotive-grade switching devices aimed at EV electric compressors and high-voltage heaters of the PTC and coolant types as well as inverters for industrial equipment. The parts carry a typical collector-emitter saturation voltage, VCE(sat), of 1.55 V and a short-circuit withstand time of 7 µs at Tj = 25° C, and ROHM says they meet the AEC-Q101 automotive reliability standard.

Conduction loss in an IGBT tracks its saturation voltage, so a lower VCE(sat) means less power dissipated while the device conducts and less heat to remove. ROHM redesigned the device structure, including the process and edge termination, to raise current density while cutting both conduction and switching losses. Short-circuit tolerance usually trades off against lower loss, but the company says the 7 µs withstand time still gives inverter and heater circuits enough margin to detect and interrupt an overcurrent before the device fails.

SiC is increasingly being adopted in high-power applications such as traction inverters, ROHM says, while 650 V IGBTs remain common in lower-power auxiliary systems such as electric compressors and HV heaters. Silicon IGBTs also see wide use in industrial motors and compressors.

The lineup includes 12 products in the TO-247N package (the RGAxxTS65HR and RGAxxTS65EHR series) and 10 bare wafer products (the SG83xxWN series). ROHM is also developing a 12-product TO-247-4L series and plans to release surface-mount IGBTs in TO-263L and top-side cooling packages.

Source: ROHM