Wide Bandgap Devices in AC Electric Drives: Opportunities and Challenges

TLDR

Wide bandgap device-based power electronics converters are more efficient, lightweight, and enable compact, high‑performance motor drives compared to silicon. This review examines the opportunities and challenges of integrating WBG devices into AC motor drives, covering potential applications, advances, and design trade‑offs. The authors survey industrial motor drive products that employ WBG technology, highlighting their benefits and the design considerations required to realize their full potential. They identify trade‑offs between high switching frequency and issues such as high dv/dt, EMI, common‑mode currents, bearing and insulation damage, and overall device reliability.

Abstract

Wide bandgap (WBG) device-based power electronics converters are more efficient and lightweight than silicon-based converters. WBG devices are an enabling technology for many motor drive applications and new classes of compact and efficient motors. This paper reviews the potential applications and advances enabled by WBG devices in ac motor drives. Industrial motor drive products using WBG devices are reviewed, and the benefits are highlighted. This paper also discusses the technical challenges, converter design considerations, and design tradeoffs in realizing the full potential of WBG devices in motor drives. There is a tradeoff between high switching frequency and other issues such as high dv/dt and electromagnetic interference. The problems of high common mode currents and bearing and insulation damage, which are caused by high dv/dt, and the reliability of WBG devices are discussed.