ECSEL JU Project OSIRIS

OSIRIS proposes a large improvement of Silicon Carbide (SiC) wafers. SiC is a semiconductor material with unique electrical and thermal properties suitable for high temperature and high power applications. OSIRIS expects to achieve a thermal conductivity increase by 30%, which signals a major breakthrough for devices that must handle high power. For next-generation transistors, these new wafers will bring significant cost savings. 

OSIRIS will bring in two innovations which address both the material properties and the present cost issues. Firstly, a 30% higher thermal conductivity of SiC wafers has recently been demonstrated by OSIRIS partners, through the use of selected isotopes for the material constituents, which through this project can become industrial reality. Secondly, it is proposed to use the cheaper silicon carbide substrates as a “handle” for microwave Gallium Nitride (GaN) devices, growing these devices on top of a highly resistive isotopic SiC layer. These innovations will greatly contribute to improving overall power device performance, particularly by decreasing junction temperature (power efficiency, robustness, footprint), and reducing the production cost, in addition for (microwave) GaN devices.