Power electronics packaging challenges for future warship applications

Power conversion and solid state protection technologies are critical enablers to the accomplishment of the Navy's vision for shipboard Next Generation Integrated Power Systems but for most commercial offerings of this equipment the simultaneous achievements of high power density with electromagnetic and thermal compatibility and high reliability are prohibitive cost drivers. The increasing availability of wide bandgap power semiconductors provides the opportunity for the development of power electronic systems with a smaller footprint, higher efficiency and lower demands for external thermal management - enabling more widespread introduction of power electronic systems into the shipboard environment with lower system integration costs. However, the shipboard environment poses challenging competing requirements that cannot be ignored. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the future packaging challenges in three areas: modularity, increased module functionality and retrofit. These challenges are illustrated by three specific examples: medium voltage solid state transformer, medium voltage dc solid state circuit breaker and low voltage variable speed drive.