1 February 2017

EU project CHALLENGE kicks off

The European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation project CHALLENGE ('3C-SiCHetero-epitaxiALLy grown on silicon compliancE substrates and new 3C-SiC substrates for sustaiNable wide-band-Gap powEr devices') officially started with its Kick-off meeting in Brussels on 23 January.

Funded with €7,997,822 over 48 months under the Nanotechnologies, advanced Materials, Biotechnology and Production work program (NMBP-02-2016 – topic 'Advanced Materials for Power Electronics based on wide bandgap semiconductor devices technology'), CHALLENGE will focus on the growth, processing and optimization of devices based on cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) technology, which it is reckoned can have a large impact on the future power device market (which is segmented by voltage rating).

In particular, CHALLENGE aims to improve power efficiency in the consumer market spanning 600-1200V, which is growing rapidly and is forecasted to rise from $100m in 2020 to $300m in 2023. The low cost of the 3C-SiC approach and the scalability of the material makes the technology extremely competitive in the motor drives of hybrid/electric vehicles (HEVs). However, the research is strategic, as it has applications in several fields: from telecoms to automotive, from consumer electronics to electrical household appliances, and from industrial applications to home automation.

CHALLENGE involves 14 partners (including 9 private companies) from 7 countries with expertise across the whole supply chain (equipment, materials, characterisations, processing, power devices, simulations). The partners include: Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (Italy), University of Erlangen (Germany), LPE SPA (Italy), NOVASiC SA (France), Anvil Semiconductors Ltd (UK), ASCATRON AB (Sweden), University of Milano-Bicocca (Italy), Silvaco Europe Ltd (UK), MOVERIM Consulting sprl (Belgium), Ion Beam Services (France), University of Linkoping (Sweden), University of Warwick (UK), STMicroelectronics (Italy), and CUSIC (Japan).

At the kick-off meeting, partners presented the six work packages and discussed key managerial and financial issues.

Tags: 3C-SiC SiC-on-Si substrates

Visit: http://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/206573_en.html