he 6th Annual IEEE / PMSA Workshop on Wide Bandgap Power Devices & Applications (WiPDA) [ www.wipda.org ] will be held in Atlanta, Georgia from October 31 to November 2, 2018. This annual event provides engineers and scientists with opportunities share their experiences with wide bandgap (WBG) semiconductors technology. This year's workshop features seven tutorials, eight keynote sessions, a panel session, 12 technical sessions, and a poster session.  An industry exhibition will also be held all three days.  The workshop takes place at the Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center [ www.gatechhotel.com ] in midtown Atlanta. 

The workshop is brought to you by this year's Platinum Sponsor: Infineon Technologies.  Financial support is also provided by the Gold Sponsors, PowerAmerica, SemiProbe, and Silvaco, as well as the Silver Sponsor, Innocit LLC.  Additionally, the workshop is supported by the IEEE Power Electronics Society (PELS), the Power Supply Manufacturer's Association (PMSA), and the IEEE Electron Devices Society (EDS). 

Tutorials:

The tutorials focus on applications and devices in SiC, GaN, and ultra-wide bandgap (UWBG) semiconductors.  Presenters include representatives from industry and academia.  The seven tutorials topics are:

• SiC Power Device Reliability – by D. A. Gajewski, Wolfspeed.
• Measurement and Analysis Method of Parasitic Capacitance and Inductance in Power Devices and Power Electronic Circuits – by R. Takeda, Keysight Technologies.
• Silicon Carbide Power Devices: Making the Transition from Silicon – by V. Veliadis, North Carolina State University.
• Developing High Power, Medium Voltage Silicon Carbide based Power Electronics – by J. Wang, The Ohio State University; M. Scott, Miami University; H. Cai, Southeast University.
• Advanced Power Module Packaging: from Design to Validation – F. Luo, D. Huitink, and Y. Peng, University of Arkansas.
• How to Design High Efficiency and High Density GaN Switching Power Supply – R. Yu, and Q. Huang, University of Texas at Austin.
• Emerging Ultra-Wide Band Gap (UWBG) Power Electronic Devices – S. Krishnamoorthy, University of Utah.

Technical Program:

Four keynote presentations will be held on November 1st and another four on the November 2nd.  A panel session will held on November 1st. It will be followed by the first round of technical sessions.  A total of 50 oral presentations will be given across 12 technical sessions.  The poster session will be held on the evening of November 1st, and it includes research from 24 teams.  This event will be held in conjunction with the conference banquet.  Day two begins with another round of keynote presentations.  This is followed by three rounds of technical sessions. 

The oral and poster presentations cover research topics in the following areas:

• Heteroepitaxial and Bulk Materials Growth
• Gate Dielectrics and Surface Passivation
• Device Structures and Fabrication Techniques
• Device Characterization and Modeling
• Very-High Efficiency or Compact Converters
• Safe Operating Areas of Wide Bandgap Devices
• Harsh Environment (High Temperature) Operation and Reliability
• Packaging Power Modules and ICs
• Hard-Switched and Soft-Switched Applications and Analysis
• Gate Drivers and Other Auxiliary Circuits
• High-Performance Passive Components
• Applications in Renewable Energy and Energy Storage Systems, Transportation, Industrial Drives, and Grid Power Systems

Area Attractions:

The conference is located minutes away from many famous attractions including: Fox Theatre; Margaret Mitchell House; World of Coca-Cola; Georgia Aquarium; Piedmont Park; Ferst Center for the Arts; Centennial Olympic Park; Skyview Atlanta Ferris Wheel, CNN's Headquarters, High Museum of Art, Atlanta Botanical Gardens, and the Martin Luther King Center.

Sports fans can make arrangements to see the Atlanta Hawks, the city's NBA team, or Atlanta United during their visit.  Tours are available of Mercedes-Benz Stadium; home of the Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta United.  Furthermore, the city offers many beautiful and challenging golf courses.  In the case of inclement weather, attendees can tour the College Football Hall of Fame.

Conclusions:

For questions and concerns about the workshop, please contact one of the members of the organizing committee.  We look forward to seeing you this fall in Atlanta, Georgia.

• Maryam Saeedifard,  General Chair, Georgia Tech
• Victor Veliadis,  Vice-Chair, NC State/Power America
• Dong Cao, Technical Program Co-Chair, North Dakota State University
• Mahshid Amirabadi,  Technical Program  Co-Chair,  Northeastern University
• Khurram Afridi,  Technical Program Co-Chair, University of Colorado – Boulder
• Sandeep Bahl, Technical Program Co-Chair, Texas Instruments
• Eric Persson,  Plenary Sessions Chair, Infineon
• Babak Parkhideh,  Treasurer, North Carolina - Charlotte,
• Karthik Kandasamy,  Local Organizing Committee, Georgia Tech
• Suman Debnath,  Tutorials Co-Chair, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
• Jiangchao Qin,  Tutorials Co-Chair, Arizona State University
• Mark Scott,  Publicity Chair, Miami University
• Shyh-Chiang Shen,  Publications Chair, Georgia Tech
• Lingxiao Xue,  Website Chair, Navitas Semiconductor
• Stephen Oliver,  PSMA Rep., Navitas Semiconductor
  

Provided by Mark Scott WiPDA 2018 Publicity Chair

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