news New high-power semiconductors research lab Highlights ABB Semiconductors September 2013 Page 2 Editorial Interview with Dr. Jan-Henning Fabian

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1 news 3 13 ABB Semiconductors September 2013 Highlights Page 2 Editorial Interview with Dr. Jan-Henning Fabian Page 3 Products in the pipeline New qualified products Phased-out products Obsolete products Lead time indicator New high-power semiconductors research lab ABB has seven Corporate Research Centers worldwide, one of them is in Baden- Dättwil, Switzerland. Approximately 220 researchers from more than 33 nations deliver leading-edge technologies and innovative solutions in the field of power electronics and current interruption & limitation, just to mention two focus areas. Their most recent achievement is the world s first circuit breaker for high-voltage direct current (HVDC). It combines a very fast mechanics with power electronics, and will be capable of interrupting power flows equivalent to the output of a large power station within 5 milliseconds (Newsletter 1-13). Just recently, ABB announced to invest $20 million in a new research lab for next generation high-power silicon and wide band-gap (WBG) semiconductor devices. This investment is in conjunction with the expansion of ABB s semiconductor factories in Lenzburg, Switzerland, and Prague, Czech Republic, where in the past few years more than $200 million have been invested. Ground breaking for the new fab in Baden-Dättwil was in March 2013 (picture). The facility is planned to be in operation in summer For more information see the interview with Dr. Jan-Henning Fabian, Power Electronics department manager at the Corporate Research Center in Baden-Dättwil, on page 2. Page 4 Product in focus: SiC power devices Portrait: Budaker Ltd. Process change notifications Page 5 Application in focus: SiC applications ABB Semiconductors International Sales Meeting 2013 Page 6 Technology in focus: WBG materials Publications calendar

2 2 Editorial ABB is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. ABB s technology leadership is built on innovation. ABB has not only pioneered many of today s power and automation technologies, but maintains a technology advantage in these areas through sustained investment in research and development. ABB spends more than $1.3 billion annually in R&D. Innovation is key for ABB to keep its technology leadership also in high-power semiconductors. There is intensive research and development activity worldwide on wide bandgap (WBG) materials for next generation power semiconductors. Silicon carbide (SiC) in particular is regarded as the main WBG material for higher power applications in future systems. ABB s recent investment of $20 million in a new power semiconductors research lab in Dättwil is therefore the subject of this newsletter s cover story. Dr. Jan-Henning Fabian, manager of the Power Electronics department of the ABB Corporate Research Center in Switzerland talks on what is planned there. Read his interview on page 2. Following the subject, Dr. Munaf Rahimo, Corporate Executive Engineer at ABB, focuses on silicon carbide in the Technology in Focus, Application in Focus and Product in Focus articles on pages 4, 5 and 6, respectively. As usual, this newsletter issue also provides the latest product information (products in the pipeline, new qualified products, phased out and obsolete products), lead time updates and the publications calendar. Power and productivity for a better world! Yours, Christoph Holtmann Communications Interview with Dr. Jan-Henning Fabian New high-power semiconductors research lab for WBG materials Christoph Holtmann: Dr. Fabian, you are the manager of ABB s Power Electronics department at the Corporate Research Center in Dättwil, Switzerland. Would you please tell us more about the new lab for power-electronics research? Jan-Henning Fabian: ABB Corporate Research - in close collaboration with ABB Semiconductors - is extending the power device research and invests $20 million to build a new research lab for ABB s next generation power semiconductors based on silicon as well as on wide bandgap materials like silicon carbide. The new building will have a total building footprint of 1,100 square meters with a 600 square meters state-of-the-art clean room being the heart of the building. Ground breaking was in March this year and we expect the new lab being operational in summer This investment in power semiconductor research, following ABB s recent investment of $200 million in its high-power semiconductor production plant in Lenzburg, Switzerland, clearly demonstrates that ABB sees a great potential in power electronics. Christoph Holtmann: Why does ABB such a big investment for power electronics in Switzerland? Jan-Henning Fabian: The physical proximity of the research lab in Dättwil and the high-power semiconductor factory in Lenzburg is a great advantage for the joint development of innovative new products based on existing and on new technologies. Further, with ABB s Power Electronics and Medium Voltage Drives business units in Turgi, two world-class users of high-power semiconductors are also just next door, making Switzerland ABB s center of competence for power electronics. Equally important for the new activities is the recruitment of highly educated scientists and researchers with the corresponding qualification in the field of power electronics and semiconductors. In Switzerland, we see good opportunities in winning international experts for ABB. Christoph Holtmann: When do you think we can expect the first results on the next generation power semiconductors? Jan-Henning Fabian: In the new lab power semiconductors based on silicon, the today s standard material for high-power semiconductors, as well as on wide bandgap materials like silicon carbide will be researched. Research based on silicon power semiconductors will be continuously transferred to Lenzburg. The research on wide bandgap materials is to demonstrate the potential of new materials. Christoph Holtmann: Which applications benefit from ABB s current and next generation semiconductors? Jan-Henning Fabian: You can find ABB s high-power semiconductors in industrial motor drives, in trams, regional and high-speed trains, in marine drives, in gas compressors or in rectifiers of large aluminum smelters, just to name a few. ABB s today s and also future high-power semiconductor generations are fundamental for the grid integration of renewable energy sources, eg the connection of off-shore wind farms and the transmission of power over long distances (high voltage DC transmission, HVDC). ABB s high-power semiconductors are key in future smart grids with flexible AC transmission systems (FACTS) and HVDC solutions. Another possible future application is the power electronic traction transformer. Thanks to ABB s high-power semiconductors such traction transformers become smaller in size and less in weight. DC power distribution systems are a further field of applications where ABB s next generation power semiconductors will play a major role. Dr. Jan-Henning Fabian, Departement Manager Power Electronics, ABB Corporate Research, Switzerland.

3 3 Products in the pipeline Part Nr. Voltage Current Configuration Housing Samples 5STF 28H2060 2,000 V 2,667 A fast switching 5,500 V Diode: Alloyed technology with excellent surge current ratings Operating temperature from -40 C up to 190 C thyristor H housing contact factory 5SDD 55L5500 5,000 V 5,370 A rectifier diode L housing contact factory 5SDD 55M5500 5,500 V 4,850 A rectifier diode M housing contact factory Product features Reduced clamping force requirements due to smaller diode diameter Target market: industry and traction Phased-out products Material Last Deliveries 5SLX 12L2515 Nov SMX 12L2516 Nov Obsolete products Material 5SMX 76E1264 5SMX 86E1264 5SMX 86E1274 Replaced by 5SMX 76E1280 5SMX 86E1280 5SMX 86E1280 New qualified products Part Nr. Voltage Current Configuration Housing 5SNA 1500E ,300 V 1,500 A single IGBT HiPak2 5SDF 20L4520 4,500 V 2,010 A fast recovery L 5SDF 28L4520 4,500 V 2,750 A fast recovery L 5SMY 12M6500 5SMY 12N4500 5SNA 1500E SNG 0250P SHX 26L4510 5SHX 19L6010 5SHY 35L4510 5SHY 35L4512 5SMY 12M6501 5SMY 12N4501 5SNA 1500E SNG 0250P SHX 26L4520 5SHX 19L6020 5SHY 35L4520 5SHY 35L4522 5SLD 1200J ,500 V 1,200 A dual diode HiPak1 5SNA 1300K ,500 V 1,300 A StakPak K 5SNA 2000K ,500 V 2,000 A StakPak K Product features 4,500 V IGCT diodes: Tvj up to 140 C Very soft switching Suitable for HPT-IGCTs 3,300 V HiPak2 New improved HiPak package, the 3,300 V 1,500 A HiPak2 is the first product in the improved package. Shipments to start in November 2013 Epoxy-less design, complies with Fire&Smoke traction standards Increased case temperature rating of 150 C 4x higher bond-wire power cycling performance Bonded internal auxilliary connection replace solder joints Overall improved reliability and quality 4,500 V dual diode: 1,200 A dual diode Suitable as companion diode for 5SNA 1200G in 3 level or chopper topologies 4,500 V StakPak: 2,000 A press-pack IGBT module Suitable for series connection in very high power applications such as HVDC and FACTS Lead time indicator The table below shows our approximate current lead times. In general the lead times are more or less the same as reported in June. The only changes are slightly improved lead times for welding diodes and slightly longer lead times for GTOs and StakPak modules. For exact lead time information please contact your ABB Semiconductors sales contact or our local distributor. The detailed Lead Time Indicator was sent to our official distributors last week. PCTs 5 9 weeks * Diodes 6 10 weeks * Welding Diodes 5 6 weeks * IGCTs 5 6 weeks * GTOs 5 11 weeks * HiPaks 2 4 weeks* StakPaks weeks* IGBT & Diode Dies 2 10 weeks* *) The lead times above are estimates and are not guaranteed. For exact lead times, please contact your ABB Semiconductors sales contact or our local distributor.

4 4 Product in focus SiC power devices Portrait: ABB Distributor Budaker Ltd. 1,200 V, 100 A full SiC module with MOSFETs and diodes developed and manufactured at ABB Corporate Research. The development efforts for realising viable solutions for silicon carbide (SiC) power device concepts has been continuously confronted by many technical challenges ranging from starting material qualities, process capabilities and device operational issues. Nevertheless, the late 1990s witnessed the commercialization of the first SiC based power diodes rated at 600 volts from more than one manufacturer. Today, the diode platform has evolved into the third generation and is being extended to 1,700 V diodes, with a potential roadmap towards higher voltages in the coming decade. Despite the current higher costs associated with SiC power devices, the market share of these diodes has increased tremendously in many applications seeking lower losses and higher operating frequencies. On the other hand, SiC power switches are also being developed based on concepts such as power MOSFETs, JFETs and bipolar transistors. The first commercial MOS- FETs rated below 1,700 V are available today albeit in limited quantities and high prices and are envisioned to gain prominence in many applications over Process change notifications the next ten years. Improvements in the commercially suitable starting material quality have resulted in the increase of SiC wafer sizes from 2 inch to the current 4 inch standard. Furthermore, 6 inch wafer size capability has been developed and is currently available from one manufacturer. Such developments are crucial for the reduction of the component costs for allowing further exploitation of the SiC power devices in future systems. This trend points in the direction of further market penetration and commercial realization of SiC power devices in the coming years especially in the low to medium voltage range from 600 V up to 1,700 V and potentially beyond. ABB is at this time not commercially offering SiC power semiconductor devices but is very active in R&D in that field. Hybrid prototype devices in HiPak packages (SiC diodes, Si IGBTs) as well as full SiC power devices in specifically optimized packages (picture) are researched. PCN Nr. Part Nr. Subject Deadline for acceptance IGCT IGCTs Change of test equipment August 2013 GTO GTOs Change of test equipment August 2013 FRD Fast recovery diodes Change of test equipment August 2013 IGBT All HiPak modules Additional supplier qualification August 2013 Budaker Ltd. was established in 1991 in Budapest, Hungary, as a family owned enterprise. The company promptly became a reliable supplier of power semiconductors, communication electronics and electro-technics for public transportation companies. Today, we serve the Hungarian market with 9 employees. The company s turnover in 2012 was 1.1 million. The list of our satisfied customers include Budapest Public Transportation Co., MÁV Hungarian Railways and BKV Railway Vehicle Repair and Service Ltd., to name just a few. Customer satisfaction is constantly monitored according to the ISO 9001 standard to which Budaker has been registered. In the field of power components, specifically for the traction market, we provide thyristors, diodes, GTOs and IGBTs from ABB, Infineon and IXYS. Since 2011 we supply diodes for the refurbishing of V43 locomotives. In 2013 we began to work in close partnership with ABB and Tunkr s.r.o to provide complete solutions for the modernizations of the TW600 tram chopper and drive unit. Further, Budaker is a distributor for Esterline Souriau for the Eastern European market, providing complete connection solutions where high performance high reliability in severe environments is crucial. Due to the growing demand of modernization in the area of public transportation our main focus is to provide high quality service and technical support.

5 5 Application in focus SiC applications ABB Semiconductors International Sales Meeting 2013 From September 17 19, ABB Semiconductors conducted its biannual International Sales Meeting This year the meeting was held in Prague, Czech Republic, and attended by 36 distributors representing 21 countries from 4 continents. Sales and product strategies as well as current business and future market developments were discussed. Photovoltaic power plant. While further innovations in silicon based power semiconductors are continuously pushing the boundaries of performance, certain application requirements, eg very high temperature operation (> 200 C), very high switching frequency (> 10 kilohertz), and/ or high voltages (> 10 kilovolts), might prove to be more suitable for emerging wide bandgap (WBG) power semiconductors, especially silicon carbide (SiC) in the higher power range. Most of the SiC technology developments were focused in the past either at voltages around 600 to 1,200 volts for very high frequency operation or at very high voltages above 10 kilovolts for grid applications. At low voltage levels, a certain performance/cost level could be difficult to reach for silicon carbide technology where the competition is fierce from special silicon concepts such as super junction MOSFETs and upcoming gallium nitride (GaN) on silicon (Si) technologies. Therefore, today we observe a development trend towards voltage levels exceeding 1,200 volt where many interesting applications in the high power range can be identified including traction and industrial drives. In parallel, new market developments, in particular in renewable and automotive applications, have brought forward the need for higher frequency/temperature devices (eg hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), photovoltaics (PV), etc.) At such power levels, the first advantages from SiC devices are offered with hybrid structures combining optimised and fast silicon IGBTs with silicon carbide diodes with the ability to operate at higher frequencies up to kilohertz and higher temperatures up to 175 C 200 C. The next commercial development will provide a full silicon carbide solution with a switch and diode combination with even higher frequency and temperature capabilities albeit coupled with developments in the packaging technologies, component cooling and high frequency system platforms. The market and technologies are being also helped with the growing trends towards renewable energy conversion, electrification of automotive applications and higher efficiency and control of energy usage. New converter topologies to meet such trends are in the development phase with higher demands for lower voltage based components having higher frequency and temperature operational ranges. The current and near future silicon carbide solutions fit perfectly into these applications while matching all the performance requirements demanded by the next generation systems. The International ABB Sales Meeting, however, was not only about business & strategy, markets & future, but also about meeting friends from around the world and spending quality time together. One of the meeting highlights was the awards ceremony, acknowledging two of our worldwide distributors for their outstanding 20 years of continuous dedication and commitment as our valued distributor in the assigned territory: Milim Syscon Co., Ltd. from Korea and Industrade Co., Ltd. from Taiwan.

6 6 Technology in focus WBG materials for power semiconductors (a) (a) 4 inch 1,700 volt SiC Junction Barrier Schottky diodes wafer (5x5 mm 2 chips), (b) 4 inch 4,500 volt SiC pin-diode (2.5x2.5 mm 2 chips) wafer. Both developed at ABB Corporate Research. Over the past four decades, silicon based power semiconductors have established themselves as the devices of choice in the vast majority of power electronics applications. The dominant role of silicon power devices was mainly helped by the tremendous advancements over the years due to the improvement in material growth and preparation techniques, process fabrication methods and optimised device design concepts. In parallel to the development of silicon power devices, components based on wide bandgap (WBG) materials such as silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) are continuously being investigated and developed for power electronics systems due to the substantial advantages their inherent material properties could potentially realise. (b) Silicon carbide in particular is regarded as the main WBG material for higher power applications due to its vertical design which enables higher current ratings. Hence, in the past 20 years, silicon carbide based power devices have experienced extensive research and development efforts with regards to advancements in the starting material quality and realization of device process and design concepts which in principle, are not too different from their well-established silicon counterparts. However, silicon carbide as a wide bandgap semiconductor exhibits higher bandgap energy (3.03 ev) when compared to silicon (1.12 ev) which enables the devices to have very high electric field strengths for achieving higher breakdown voltages in thinner devices and lower leakage currents when compared to silicon. These two features would result in substantial reductions in the static and dynamic losses and hence the opportunity to operate at higher power densities for a wider range of operating frequencies and temperatures. A wide range of device concepts based on epitaxial growth for the required thin base regions have been investigated. These include unipolar devices such as the Schottky diode, the JFET and the MOSFET, and bipolar device concepts including the bipolar diode, the bipolar transistor, IGBTs and thyristor based structures. Development prototypes were manufactured with voltage ratings ranging from few hundreds of volts up to 20 kilovolts. However, the first products released were rated below 1,200 V and a few tens of amperes. Publications calendar E&E Faszination Elektronik, May Jahre ABB Leistungselektronik Bodo s Power Systems, May 2013 From mercury-arc to hybrid breaker, 1 st part ABB Review, June 2013 From mercury-arc to hybrid breaker Bodo s Power Systems, July 2013 From mercury-arc to hybrid breaker, 2 nd part Bodo s Power Systems, September 2013 ABB IGCTs: Benchmark perfomance with developments on many fronts Power Electronic Europe, September 2013 Improved HiPak modules from ABB for power electronic applications For more information please contact: ABB Switzerland Ltd. Semiconductors Fabrikstrasse Lenzburg, Switzerland Phone: Fax: abbsem@ch.abb.com m.abb.com Note We reserve all rights in this document and in the subject matter and illustrations contained therein. Any reproduction, disclosure to third parties or utilization of its contents in whole or in parts is forbidden without prior written consent of ABB AG. Copyright 2013 ABB All rights reserved