Images courtesy of Cree
Previously known as the maker of LEDs and related lighting products, today Cree is an innovator and developer in cutting-edge silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) wide bandgap (WBG) semiconductor technologies. In recent years, the company has created a host of products for the transportation, industrial, energy, and communications markets through its Woofspeed® line of power and radio frequency (RF) semiconductors products. Cree/Wolfspeed credits its close working relationship with PowerAmerica, one of 14 DOE-funded manufacturing institutes, for part of its success, most notably, for the accelerated development and reliability testing of its medium-voltage (3.3kV to 10KV) SiC power device technology. This relationship has enabled Cree/Wolfspeed to hasten the introduction of SiC power device technology products for use in electric vehicle drivetrains, industrial electronics, and grid-tied power electronics applications. Directly related to this is the company’s May 2019 announcement of a $1 billion, five-year investment to create an automated 200mm silicon carbide fabrication facility and a materials mega factory at its U.S. campus headquarters in Durham, N.C. The goal is generating 30-fold increase in both SiC wafer fabrication capacity and related materials production.