A Compact Power Stage Design for 10-kV SiC Device-Based Converters with Heatsink Electric Field Shaping

The 10-kV SiC device imposes high insulation requirements on the corresponding power stage design. As the voltage stress and clearance distance increases, achieving a compact design of the converter will be challenging. In this paper, a compact power stage design is realized by adopting a new heatsink configuration. With the new heatsink configuration, a field shaping structure is proposed to suppress concentrated electric field close to the edges, so that the clearance between heatsinks can be reduced. Simulation and experimental tests have validated the design. The proposed design has been tested up to 6250 V/10 A, and the gate drive and bus-bar design are also discussed in this paper.