R&D of SiC semiconductor power devices and strategy towards their practical utilization

- The role of AIST in developing new semiconductor devices -

Abstract

The realization of SiC semiconductor power devices has been highly expected to contribute to energy saving, however, it requires overcoming various technological barriers. AIST has been contributing to this objective for more than 15 years mainly through participation in national projects. Corresponding to the changes of organization of the institute, in this paper, R&D activities for the past years are described in three parts, i.e., 1) the R&D targets, 2) the major issues and strategies for overcoming them and the main results, 3) the evaluation of the validity of the strategies, and lastly, future issues are suggested.