In this work, in order to obtain breakdown voltage values of the 4H-SiC p-i-n diodes above 1.7kV, three designs have been examined: single-zone junction termination extention (JTE), double-zone JTE and a structure with concentric rings outside each of the areas of the double-zone JTE (space-modulated JTE). The influence of geometry and the level of p-type doping in the JTE area as well as the charge at the interface between the p-type JTE area and the passivation layer on the diode breakdown voltage was studied. The effect of statistical dispersion of drift layer parameters (thickness, doping level) on diodes breakdown voltage with various JTE structures was investigated as well. The obtained results showed that the breakdown volatge values for a diode with single zone JTE are very sensitive both to the dose of JTE area and charge accumulated at the JTE/dielectric interface. The use of a double zone or space-modulated JTE structures allows for obtaining breakdown voltage above 1.7 kV for a much wider range of doping parameters and with better tolerance to positive charge at the JTE/dielectric interface, as well as better tolerance to statistical dispersion of active layer parameters compared to a single zone JTE structure.

The paper describes a research on assessing the quality of edges resulting from the interaction of laser pulses with a material of rigid and flexible printed circuits. A modern Nd:YVO4 crystal diode-pumped solid-state laser generating a 532 nm wavelength radiation with a nanosecond pulse time was used for the research. Influence of laser parameters such as beam power and pulse repetition frequency on a heat affected zone and carbonization was investigated. Quality and morphology of laser-cut substrates were analyzed by optical microscopy. High quality laser cutting of printed circuit board substrates was obtained without delamination and surface damage, with a minimal carbonization and heat affected zone. The developed process was implemented on the printed circuit assembly line.

This paper describes practical issues related to control of the active power buffer (APB) developed for a 2 kVA single-phase inverter. The buffer is designed using the latest GaN HEMTs controlled with triangular current mode to reduce switching losses, however, the switching frequency should be limited to 1 MHz. In the case of the presented analogue-digital controller, frequency is influenced by a reference current of the APB and circuit. Therefore, the operation at start-up and shut-down is especially challenging. A modified control algorithm that also includes pre-charging and discharging process of the energy buffer is presented and experimentally verified by series of tests of the 2 kVA GaN based inverter with the APB.