Wide Band Gap (WBG) Power Devices are driving power electronics conversion towards nearly lossless operation and enabling a high degree of compactness, which allows integration into a continuously expanding range of applications.
The use of high switching frequencies, made possible by these new devices, has the potential to redefine the role of power electronics beyond traditional power conversion.
In the future, power electronics may enable both energy conversion and communication within the same system, paving the way for applications in computing as well.
High switching frequencies allow for greater integration of passive components, but also create new demands for specialized packaging solutions.
As a result, both WBG and ultra-wide band gap technologies impact not only the functionality of power electronics in terms of communication and computation but also drive and require higher levels of integration.
Interestingly, these trends are leading to increased use of MEMS technologies, which are well suited for integrating passive components and sensors, complementing the capabilities of active power devices. The lecture will give an overview of such developments showing how WBG power devices and MEMS have the potential to redefine power electronics.
Brief Bio:
Marco Liserre obtained the MSc and PhD degrees in Electrical Engineering from the Politecnico di Bari in 1998 and 2002 respectively. He has been Associate Professor at the Politecnico di Bari and, since 2012, Professor of Reliable Power Electronics at Aalborg University (Denmark). Since 2013 he is Full Professor and holds the Chair of Power Electronics at the University of Kiel (Germany). He has been offered and declined professorships at several universities. He has published more than 700 technical papers (1/3 of them in international refereed journals), one book and 7 granted patents (4 with companies). These works have received more than 60,000 citations. Marco Liserre was selected as an Highly Cited Researcher in the field of Engineering (Clarivate Web of Science) from 2014 to 2021. Several of his students (MSc, PhD and post-docs) are in leading positions in industry and universities worldwide. In 2023, he joined the Fraunhofer ISIT on a part-time basis as deputy director and director of the new division "Electronic Energy Systems", as well as of the Kiel branch of the Fraunhofer ISIT. From 2025 he is acting director of Fraunhofer ISIT.
He is a IEEE Fellow member (class 2013) and member of IES, PELS, PES, IAS and SA. He has served all these societies in various capacities. He was IES Vice-president of Publications and Founding Editor-in-Chief of the Industrial Electronics Magazine. In PELS, he is Vice-president of Technical Operation. He has co-chaired several IEEE conferences being several times Chairman, including of Powertech 2025, in Kiel, co-sponsored by PES. He has received 16 awards from IEEE, PCIM and EPE-PEMC, including the prestigious 2018 IEEE-IES Mittelmann Achievement Award and the 2023 IEEE-PELS R. David Middlebrook Achievement Award. In 2023, he was awarded the title of "Ufficiale" by the President of the Italian Republic.
