Project Partners in the Consortium

Soitec

The power market is part of Soitec’s strategy. SiC will enlarge Soitec’s portfolio to higher power components: this is a strategic growth opportunity for Soitec in the next few years. Soitec’s products will bring new solutions to key challenges of SiC ecosystems. The main expected outcome from the project is the development of the second generation of SmartSiC substrates bringing improvement in the yield, reliability and cost of ownership. This activity will be located in the initial SmartSiC pilot line in CEA, and in the new SmartSiC factory in Soitec Bernin4, which was opened in 2023.

In order to meet this main milestone, Soitec will collaborate with partners in order to deliver:

• SmartSic mSiC surface with improved crystal quality
• ultimate donor reclaiming activity reached to maximize the benefit of SmartCut donor material reuse for
• both economic and environmental reasons
• further optimization and functionalization of the pSiC handle wafer
• transfer of SmartSiC engineerted substrate activites onto 200mm substrates
• decrease in the environmental footprint of SmartSiC material production

Robert Bosch GmbH

The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. It employs roughly 429,000 associates worldwide (as of December 31, 2023). The company generated sales of 91.6 billion euros in 2023. Its operations are divided into four business sectors: Mobility, Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods, and Energy and Building Technology. With its business activities, the company aims to use technology to help shape universal trends such as automation, electrification, digitalization, connectivity, and an orientation to sustainability. In this context, Bosch’s broad footprint across industries and regions strengthens its innovativeness and robustness. Bosch uses its proven expertise in sensor technology, software, and services to offer customers cross-domain solutions from a single source. It also applies its expertise in connectivity and artificial intelligence in order to develop and manufacture user-friendly, sustainable products. With technology that is “Invented for life,” Bosch wants to help improve quality of life and conserve natural resources. The Robert Bosch GmbH contributes to the project objectives as task leader and partner in chip technology and power module development as well as in the advancement of Cu-based assembly and interconnection technology. Bosch will contribute with its expertise in silicon carbide device and power module manufacturing.

Chemnitz Power Labs GmbH

Chemnitz Power Labs GmbH, a German SME with a team of 15 members, possesses extensive expertise in reliability testing for power electronic devices. CPL provides both standard tests (such as power cycling) as well as innovative testing methods for wide band gab semiconductors. In the FastLane project, CPL will develop a new test bench with the capability of on-chip sensor monitoring and in-situ measurement of gate threshold voltage. Additionally, CPL will provide testing services based on the developed test bench to the consortium partners, enabling them to differentiate failure mechanisms more accurately.

National University of Science and Technology Politehnica of Bucharest

The National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest (UPB) is the oldest engineering university in Romania with more than 200 years of history. It has over 2500 employees and 55 research centers of which UPB-CSSNT is the most prolific.

UPB has a long history of participating and successfully implenting European projects (FP7, Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe, etc.), with UPB-CSSNT having attracted and implemented an important number of ENIAC JU, ECSEL JU, KDT JU and Chips JU project.s

In FastLane, UPB will participate in different WPs in order to characterize all the SmartSiC substrates (mSiC and polySiC wafers) that require wafer quality assessment by ensuring the strain & stress anaylsis in the form of full wafer mappings obtained by using different techniques such as micro-Raman spectroscopy and High Resolution X-Ray Diffraction. Additionally, UPB is shared WP leader in WP 7 with the lead of task 7.1.

SERMA Technologies

SERMA TECHNOLOGIES is specialized in technology expertise, analysis (bulk and surface), control, test, consulting and training, on semiconductors, materials, active and passive components, boards, systems, for signal and power electronics, batteries, hydrogen, and solar panels. Multiple industrial sectors are addressed (automotive, aeronautics, space, defense, railway, telecommunications, health care, solar, etc.), at any level of the industry cycle (R&D, engineering, reliability, availability, maintainability, etc.).
The main contributions in FastLane are the development of methodologies for characterization of innovative substrates and the participation in the development of analysis and tests providing a first evalutation of the power modules reliability.

Rheinisch-westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen - ISEA Institute

The ISEA institute of RWTH Aachen University has been active in the research fields of power electronics, power electronic components, electric drives, electrochemical energy conversion and storage system technology for more than 50 years. With over 100 scientific employees, ISEA is the largest university institution in Germany with experience in the field of essential electric drive components for electromobility. Numerous projects in the fields of traction and automotive technology, energy supply, industrial technology and household technology emphasize the broad spectrum of research at ISEA. In addition to publicly funded research projects, the focus of research and development activities is on cooperation with national and international industrial companies.

In FastLane, ISEA will take over the lead of WP 5 regarding the use case demonstrator development by developing innovative multi-level and resonant inverter topologies. The topology specific power module will be designed with a novel chip placement. Electrical drives control will be optimized with advanced inverters. Additionally, modelling and optimization from electrical drives to power module level will be carried out.

Fraunhofer Insitute for Integrated Systems and Device Technology

The Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Systems and Device Technology (IISB) in Erlangen, Germany, specializes in wide and ultra-wide bandgap (WBG / UWBG) semiconductors and efficient power electronics. Here, materials and device know-how merges with complex system development, especially for e-mobility and sustainable energy supply. Within FASTLANE, IISB provides its expertise in development and analysis of novel SiC substrates and epitaxial layers. Furthermore, the self-controlled turn-off mechanism of IISBs unique monolithically integrated 900 V SiC circuit breaker technology provides secure fault-current clearance on a nano second time scale to one of the projects flagship demonstrators.

Ion Beam Services

Ion Beam Services (IBS) is a French SME set up in 1987 and recognized as the European specialist of ion implantation. IBS offers a wide range of equipment and services for semiconductor companies: ion implanters for production and R&D, maintenance, retrofit and refurbishment of second-hand implanters. IBS is able to implant more than 65 species on a wide variety of substrates, from cryogenic to high-temperature conditions. IBS was involved in several European R&D programs for process and tool developments for advanced devices required for logic and power applications on Si, SiC, GaN and diamond. Further, IBS has developed a Plasma Immersion Ion Implantation tool (named PULSION) and a specific beamline implanter (FLEXion) for compound substrates (SiC, AsGa,..). IBS has a clean room with several ion implanters able to implant from coupons up to 300 mm wafers for R&D and/or volume production. IBS also proposes foundry services in its pilot line with lithography, deposition, etching and annealing tools (including laser anneal) for small and medium volume fabrication of sensors and high voltages devices on Si and SiC. More recently, IBS developed specific production Ion Implanters : FLEXion-P for 150 mm and 200mm SiC and GaN wafers with high energy and high temperature capabilities and MAXion with high current capabilities for high dose doping and material modification applications . Within FastLane project IBS will collaborate with CEA-LETI and the other partners to develop advanced ion implantation processes and associated tool upgrades to improve the performances of SiC devices using Beamline (FLEXion-P implanter) and Plasma Immersion Ion Implantation (PULSION implanter) for MOSFET gate channel mobility improvement and superjunctions.

Heraeus Electronics GmbH & Co. KG

Heraeus Electronics is a leading manufacturer of materials for the assembly and packaging of devices in the electronics industry. The company offers a broad product portfolio for the automotive, power electronics and semiconductor market – ranging from metal ceramic substrates and bonding wires to assembly and thick film materials. Dedicated to serving local needs and to partnering with its customers, the company established several technology and application centers in USA, Europe, and Asia offering a wide range of services.

Within the FastLane joint project, Heraeus Electronics (HET) will develop new Ag sintering materials for precious metal-free metallized AMB substrates and aluminum heat sinks. The number of metallization steps and layers will be reduced to a minimum to facilitate the production process and reduce thermal interfaces and material complexity in the power module stack. All of this will enable the design of new, cost-efficient SiC power modules with higher power density, longer lifetime and overall reliability.

Slovenska technicka univerzita v Bratislave

Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava (STUBA) belongs to the leading universities in education and R&D in the New Member States of EU. The Institute of Electronics and Photonics at STUBA is active in areas including micro-/nanoelectronics and power electronics, organic electronics and photonics, sensorics, IC and smart system design and testing. STUBA with more than 12000 students aims to be an internationally recognized, research-oriented technical university, which provides high-quality education and research in the key technology fields including electrical engineering, informatics and information technology, mechanical engineering and materials technologies, architecture and civil engineering, chemistry and food technologies. The activities of Institute of Electronics and Photonics comprise design and TCAD simulation of electronic devices, thin-film sensors, photonic structures as well as designs of analogue, logic and mixed-signal circuits and subsequent signal processing for healthcare and environmental applications. Device characterization and failure analysis either by electrical, analytical and microscopical tools is another strong field of the institute activities.
STUBA will provide its expertise in the field of electrical characterization, measurements for reliability assessment and numerical electrophysical modelling and simulations to analyze failures and wear out of electronic power SiC devices and modules. STUBA will contribute to the characterization and analysis of power SiC devices and modules. The behaviour of electronic devices in harsh environments under the repetitive switching conditions and their impact on electrical performance will be analysed by electrical methods with the aim to support the information relevant to device reliability. Numerical electrophysical simulations of complex device structures and experimental analysis of devices to be tested will be another contribution.

EEMCO GmbH

EEMCO develops and provides next generation 6” and 8” high quality n-doped 4H-SiC ingots including a technology demonstration for highly n-doped 4H-SiC ingots production. Different SiC-powder materials are exploited and graphite recovery strategies evaluated.

In FastLane, EEMCO integrates SiC substrate material related data sources along the supply chain in cooperation with partners and collaborates in further development of measurement techniques (examples: XRT, KOH etching plus microscopy and neural network defect quantification).

UAB TeraGlobus

TeraGlobus is a Lithuanian-based SME acting in the field of dissemination, exploitation and healthcare consulting in numerous EU projects, assisting partners from academia and the private sector to implement and ensure the broadest possible outreach of the measurable project outcomes. TeraGlobus has a team of experts to support engineers and individual inventors in developing international partnerships to advance their technologies from the early stage to the global market.

The main contributions to FastLane are:

• Lead of WP7 "Exploitation and dissemination"
• Lead Task 7.2 ensuring detailed collection and reporting of the consortium's exploitation and standardisation activities
• Co-lead Task 7.1 ensuring a successful outreach strategy and its realization using the pre-defined KPIs

IRT Antoine St. Exupery

IRT Antoine de St. Exupéry is a leading French research institution offering an integrated collaborative environment composed of engineers, researchers, experts and PhD students from academia and industry for research projects and R&T services. IRT is supported by technological platforms around 4 axes: advanced manufacturing technologies, greener technologies, smart technologies and methods & tools for the development of complex systems. IRT will strongly contribute to WP4 within Fastlane project with strong support in dynamic and conduction power module losses evaluation, thermal impedance characterization and electrical modelling through Neaf Field Scanning innovative methodology.

Grass Power Electronics

GPE works as a SME in the field of commercial power converters for battery storage systems and power electronic test equipment. Grid compliance and grid support (e.g. reactive power and harmonics injection) features are additional advantages, which have been implemented in the converter control software. A further area of experience is electric vehicle charging (AC and DC). The power converters have been designed modular and rated at 50 kW or 100 kW modules, which can be combined to achieve higher power levels (e.g. 300 kVA) and to control the connected batteries individually. A typical application of such a system is battery buffered fast chargers with a power range of about 300 kVA for charging on much lower grid capabilities.

GPE has many activities in software development for power converters incl. system control, power management and secure data communication. In the Fastlane project two demonstrators will be developed using the SiC devices from Fraunhofer and Bosch. First demonstrator will be a DC current limiter, which will protect batteries from short circuit or other excess currents in a 800 V storage system. Second demonstrator will be a power supply system for a decentralized electrolyser. High conversion efficiency and size / weight issues are main requirements for the demonstrator system. Additionally, the system will be designed to use the heat losses of the electrolyser for industrial processes.

SiCreate GmbH

Sicreate provides high purity (5N+) source powder and develops customized source powders for the co-doping SiC crystal growth. Additionally, Sicreate recovers of high purity graphite for SiC powder production. In FastLane, Sicreate demonstrates a pilot line for SiC powder production.

Technical University Vienna

The Technical University of Vienna (TU Wien) is a public research university with scientific activities in the fields of technology and natural sciences. The university is active in both teaching and research activities, focusing on the areas of natural sciences, engineering and computer science. The scope of the university’s research and curriculum ranges from pure and basic scientific principles to applied technological concepts. TU Wien’s competencies are further supported by internal interdisciplinary collaborations, as well as cooperation with other universities and industrial partners.

The Division of Imaging and Instrumental Analytical Chemistry of TU Wien, which belongs to the Institute of Chemical Technologies and Analytics (CTA), contributes to the FAST LANE project in WP1 and WP2. Laser-based analytical techniques will aid in the evaluation of material requirements for SiC-based semiconductors, as well as their fast and reliable quantitative analysis and imaging, starting from the raw material all the way up to the device level.

Kompetenzzentrum Automobil- und Industrieelektronik (KAI) GmbH

KAI GmbH was founded in 2006 and is now a legally independent subsidiary of Infineon. It is a well-established industrial research center with a broad national and international network of industrial and academic partners. The core competencies of KAI are in the area of advanced semiconductor materials research, power electronics reliability test concepts, statistical lifetime modeling, and multi-physics FEM simulation. In FastLane, KAI will support the partners with analytical tools for quantitatively analyzing contaminants and dopant regions on wafer and device levels. With the development of innovative laser-based measurement procedures adapted for the value chain of SiC, KAI will support the partners in optimizing their manufacturing process.

AMX Automatrix

AMX Automatrix is one of the branches composing Copromec Group. Initially it was launched as a company focusing on automation solutions tailored for the electric automotive sector. Leveraging our extensive in-house expertise and a collaborative approach with costumers, we specialized in the production of sintering equipment collaborating with the top players of the semiconductor, power electronics and automotive market. Over the years, our focus on sintering machines has been complemented by continuous research and development. Driven by a passion for innovation and a dedication to delivering top-quality solutions, AMX continues to push the boundaries of sintering technology and automation, setting new benchmarks in the industry and providing our customers with the best possible equipment for their needs.

We provide customers with the opportunity to conduct tests and create samples of their products utilizing our internal laboratory. Our expertise extends to managing the entire die-attach process, including Ag-silver paste dispensing, sintering, multi-level inspection, and shear testing. All the equipments are connected in line in order to provide to the customer full data traceability. In addition to offering support for prototyping phases, we are equipped to manage complete production processes to meet our customers’ requirements. With a wealth of experience in die-attach processes, we stand ready to assist customers at every stage of their research and development efforts.

Zadient Technologies SAS

Zadient is a venture-backed startup developing key enabling materials and technologies for the Energy Transition. Zadient operates at the very start of the silicon carbide semiconductor value chain, producing the high purity source material from which SiC wafers and chips are fabricated. Zadient’s source material is produced in a chemical plant specifically designed for the manufacture of semiconductor source materials reaching purities of 8N (99.999999%) which allow higher yields to be achieved in the subsequent PVT growth of SiC crystals. In the Fastlane project Zadient is developing novel crushing technologies which allow crystal growers to choose from a wide selection of particle size ranges and distributions of its source material. In parallel, Zadient plans to further reduce impurities in its source material to 9N levels and improve the overall efficiency of its production process.

Brightloop

BrightLoop designs and manufactures high performance power converters to accompany the electrification of heavy vehicles, such as construction equipment or mining trucks, and the adoption of hydrogen fuel cells as an energy source for mobility. BrightLoop currently holds a leading position in these niche markets, with the products featuring the best power density on the market, with its 2nd generation of DCHV product line.
To keep this performance leading position, an intensive technology and product roadmap is continuously deployed, and a 3rd generation is planned from 2024. As part of this effort, the FASTLANE project will provide a unique opportunity to work upstream on the possibilities offered by recent advances in the PCB Embedded Component Packaging techniques and pave the way to a 4th generation of DCHV converters and inverters. With its unique know-how in converter and inverter design, BrightLoop will design the most optimized SiC-based ECP power transistors, to be deployed in its 4th generation of converters, and a cutting-edge performance inverter.

ECM Greentech

As an independant French industrial group, ECM design and manufacture equipments and their associated processes for the treatment and transformation of materials. Our solutions aim to improve the performance of industries and contribute to their technological and ecological transitions.
To support the FASTLANE project, ECM will contribute as Thermal Equipement manufacturer and related Semiconductor process services. Due to the low intrinsic diffusion coefficient of dopants/impurities in the SiC, the SiC devices related process flows require very high temperatures processing steps (far above usual semiconductor temperatures). Based on its thermal kmowhow, ECM will develop an equipment solution to ensure flexibility of such high temperature processing steps needed for post-ion implant annealing processes as for oxidation processes Based on its thermal kmowhow, ECM will develop an equipment solution to ensure flexibility of high temperature processing steps needed for post-ion implant annealing processes as for oxidation processes.

Mercedes Benz AG

Mercedes-Benz AG is responsible for the global business of Mercedes-Benz Cars and Mercedes-Benz Vans with over 170,000 employees worldwide. Ola Källenius is Chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz AG. The company focuses on the development, production and sales of passenger cars, vans and services. Furthermore, the company aspires to be leading in the fields of connectivity, automated driving and alternative drives with its forward-looking innovations. In addition to Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes-AMG, Mercedes-Maybach and Mercedes me. With Mercedes-Benz AG, the Group is one of the leading global suppliers of premium and luxury cars and vans. In 2023 it sold nearly 2.49 million vehicles. In its two business divisions, Mercedes-Benz AG is continually expanding its worldwide production network with around 35 production sites on four continents, while aligning itself to meet the requirements of electric mobility. At the same time, the company is developing its global battery production network on three continents. Sustainable actions play a decisive role in both business divisions.