BorgWarner will be providing a new, high-voltage silicon carbide (SiC) inverter to a large German automaker for implementation in its next-generation electric vehicles. This award expands existing 400V inverter business with this German OEM by adding 800V technology.

The BorgWarner 800V SiC inverter with proprietary power switches provides a more compact and efficient power module, resulting in higher electric vehicle range and enhanced driving performance.

BorgWarner 800V SiC inverter

The SiC inverter uses a scalable power switch for 800V systems, allowing it to be optimized for a variety of customer applications at different power levels. The SiC design builds on BorgWarner's proven cooling technology that enables a reduced semiconductor area for cost-effectiveness.

Additionally, the system offers greater durability and enhanced packaging due to its compact, patented power switch that is cooled on both sides and uses no wire bonds. The silicon IGBTs in the modular power switch have been replaced by SiC transistors. Because SiC has higher switching efficiency and fewer conduction losses, BorgWarner’s new SiC inverter has reduced power losses of 40% to 70% as compared to silicon-based based inverters, depending on the drive cycle.

The inverter, with its higher power density and higher efficiency, allows OEMs to design 800V high-power propulsion systems that are characterized by enhanced driving performance, longer battery electric ranges, and faster charging times. These enhancements can ultimately further efforts to broaden consumer acceptance of electric mobility.

Other inverter wins. Separately, BorgWarner has also logged a several other wins recently for its inverter family.

• In North America, BorgWarner has secured a contract with a major OEM to supply high voltage inverters for battery electric vehicle (BEV) platforms including a variety of passenger cars and trucks. The business award marks the company’s largest major silicon carbide based (SiC) inverter win and the first silicon-carbide-based inverter win in North America. The launch of the inverter is slated for 2024.

• BorgWarner’s 400V Silicon Carbide (SiC) inverter has been selected to help power various models of a European OEM’s battery electric vehicles. The inverter features dual-sided cooled power switches, providing a significant breakthrough in support of vehicle electrification and offering OEMs superior operational characteristics such as enhanced driving performance and longer range. Vehicle production with BorgWarner’s SiC inverter is slated for 2023.

  The new SiC inverter design builds on BorgWarner's proven cooling technology to reduce semi-conductor area and SiC material, offering a lighter and smaller system at lower cost compared to other silicon-based inverters. The system features greater durability through its wire-bondless power switch design in which the silicon-isolated gate bipolar transistor power switches have been replaced by SiC metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor power switches. This delivers up to a 70% reduction in switching losses, offering OEMs improved performance and reduced costs for their electrified propulsion systems.

As part of its Charging Forward initiative, BorgWarner is accelerating the company’s electrification strategy and has announced plans to grow electric vehicle revenues to approximately 45% by 2030, along with a commitment to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035.