Implementation of Silicon Carbide Four-Switch Three-Phase Inverters

The paper presents a silicon carbide (SiC) four-switch three-phase (FSTP) inverter as a low-cost, compact, and highly efficient alternative to traditional six-switch three-phase (SSTP) inverters. The integration of SiC semiconductor technology with a four-switch three-phase topology can effectively reduce the cost and size of SiC inverters due to the low part counts in the topology while leveraging the advantages of SiC devices. A SiC FSTP inverter prototype has been developed and tested in this study. A unique control methodology for the inverter is proposed and employed. It is not only straightforward to implement but also highly effective in addressing the imbalance issue inherent in the FSTP topology. Simulation models based on MATLAB Simscape, are also utilized to validate the inverter's performance and predict its efficiency. The SiC FSTP inverter, as well as a Si FSTP and an SSTP inverter with comparable designs, have been tested with the same inductive load. Both simulation and experimental results consistently indicate that the SiC FSTP inverter outperforms its counterparts, proving to be the most efficient and cost-effective option under the testing conditions studied in this paper.