DOE Seeks Input on Strengthening America's Power Electronics Sector

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO) released a request for information (RFI) to solicit feedback from stakeholders on AMMTO’s Wide Bandgap Power Electronics Strategic Framework draft.  The document outlines an effective strategy for growing the U.S. industry for wide bandgap (WBG) power electronics by advancing materials performance and overcoming manufacturing challenges to promote technology adoption in key application areas over the next decade.

Power electronics are essential to the conversion and control of electrical power in U.S. critical infrastructure. Silicon power electronics have been relied on for decades to meet infrastructure’s power conversion and control needs, but intensifying performance requirements have surpassed what traditional silicon power electronics can offer. 

WBG semiconductor power electronics offer a replacement that has the potential to address the U.S. infrastructure’s changing needs and enable our nation’s energy system resilience. To achieve this potential, technological innovation is needed across the entire power electronics system.

The AMMTO WBG Power Electronics Strategic Framework aims to establish a vision, goals, and pathways for the U.S. domestic WBG power electronics industry to overcome key technical challenges within the next decade. AMMTO is seeking input on its draft framework, to improve its accuracy and value to the power electronics industry.

With this RFI, AMMTO seeks input on the following categories:
•    Overall document structure/content.
•    Power electronics application areas.
•    WBG materials and devices.
•    Packaging and passive devices.
•    Techno-economic and lifecycle analyses for WBG power electronics.
•    Education and workforce development for the WBG power electronics industry.

Feedback will be used as input to update the draft framework and help DOE shape key decisions concerning the future of the AMMTO power electronics program and its impact. 

Responses to the RFI must be submitted electronically to [email protected] no later than 5:00 pm ET on Friday, April 11, 2025.

View the full RFI.