1-phase string inverter solutions

Design efficient, accurate, and reliable string inverters with Infineon’s advanced products like power transistors, gate drivers, sensors, and more

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Overview

Single-phase string inverter, a type of PV inverter, convert DC power from series connected solar panels into 110/230 V AC power for residential and commercial grids. String inverters offer up to 98% efficiency and the flexibility and scalability to support power harvesting from 1–200 kW. The inverter optimizes energy yield with maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and the secondary side ensures AC grid compatibility and key protection features.

Benefits

  • One-stop-shop for semiconductors
  • Proven quality and reliability
  • High-efficiency power transistors
  • Application-tuned gate drivers
  • High-accuracy current sensors
  • Powerful industrial grade MCUs

About

Infineon offers comprehensive solutions for string inverters, from power transistor and gate drivers to current sensors and controllers, engineered to meet the performance, reliability, and connectivity requirements of solar power inverter market. 

Convection-cooled string inverters require high efficiency at a reasonable BoM cost. Infineon strengthens DC-AC inverter design demands with solutions that achieve optimal balance of performance, thermal capability, and cost. 

Infineon's portfolio for PV string inverters designs: 

- CoolGaN™ HEMTs: Highest power density and efficiency

-CoolMOS™  MOSFETs: High voltage performance

- CoolSiC™ MOSFETs: Superior thermal performance and switching

- CoolSiC™ diodes: Zero reverse recovery , higher energy yield

- EiceDRIVER™: Robust control and protection for SiC/GaN

- XMC™ and PSOC™ MCUs: Real-time MPPT and grid synchronization

- CoolSET™ integrated power stages: Space-saving auxiliary power integration

- XENSIV™ current sensors: Accurate control and system protection

- AIROC™: Wireless connectivity for smart monitoring

- EXCELON™: High-endurance non-volatile data logging

- ISOFACE™: Robust isolation for control logic

TRENCHSTOP™ IGBT and CoolMOS™: Two decades of success 

With proven performance, Infineon's TRENCHSTOP™ IGBT and CoolMOS™ N-channel MOSFET products have set the industry standard for over two decades. They meet the most stringent requirements, offering a highly reliable foundation for a broad range of PV inverter applications. 

CoolSiC™: Efficiency and reliability

CoolSiC™ (silicon carbide ) MOSFET technology opens up new era of flexibility for designers to harness unprecedented levels of efficiency and system reliability. These silicon carbide (SiC) solutions provide significantly improved reverse-recovery characteristics to reduce power losses. 

CoolGaN™: High efficiency with e-mode

For power conversion in the 600 V range, Infineon’s CoolGaN™ (gallium nitride) transistor offer the ultimate efficiency. With proven leadership in semiconductor market, Infineon’s GaN technology brought the e-mode concept to maturity with end-to-end production in high volumes, ensuring peak performance in next-generation solar inverter topologies. 

Infineon’s EiceDRIVER™ portfolio is the industry-leading choice for driving MOSFETs, IGBTs, and wide-bandgap devices, due to their high common mode transient immunity (CMTI).

EiceDRIVER™ 2EDi dual-channel isolated family of gate driver ICs is designed for robust operation in high-performance CoolMOS™, CoolSiC™, and OptiMOS™ MOSFET half-bridges. They are used in primary- and secondary-side controlled hard- and soft-switching topologies and are pivotal to optimizing power conversion efficiencies and ensuring a robust switched mode power supply operation under nominal and abnormal operations. 

Additionally, EiceDRIVER™ gate driver family includes isolated, level shift, and low-side ICs optimized for IGBT discrete and modules in all applications. They offer the following features: 

  • Desaturation detection (DESAT)
  • Active Miller clamp
  • Short-circuit clamping
  • Overcurrent protection (OCP)
  • Undervoltage lockout (UVLO)
  • Slew rate control (SRC)
  • Two-level turn-off
  • Soft shutdown
  • Galvanic isolation

When paired with Infineon power transistors, these drivers allow designers to push the boundaries of power density and achieve maximum reliability in string inverter applications. 

Infineon’s XENSIV™ high-precision coreless open-loop current sensors leverage differential Hall effect technology to deliver high accuracy in 1-phase string inverter environments.

In addition, XENSIV™ sensors offer a less bulky and cost-effective option compared to traditional core-based current sensors. By eliminating the iron core or the flux concentrator, XENSIV™ sensors are immune to hysteresis and magnetic saturation, resulting in a highly linear analog output signal.

Performance benefits of Infineon’s XENSIV™ current sensors: 

- High noise immunity: Uses differential measurement with two Hall cells to maintain accuracy despite crosstalk or magnetic stray fields

- Protection features: Provides a warning signal in case of an over- or undervoltage condition for the supply voltage

- Programmable flexibility: System designers can program the sensitivity and threshold levels of overcurrent signals without external components

Infineon’s microcontroller units (MCUs) provide the advanced real-time control for optimized MPPT and grid synchronization required by solar inverter systems.

For additional protection and to increase system robustness, these microcontrollers are paired with Infineon’s CoolSET™ AC-DC integrated power stages. To achieve fast start-up performance, the fifth-generation controller utilizes the high-voltage power supply integrated circuit together with an internal AC-DC switching regulator to operate the start-up sequence in a safe and rapid manner, which is commonly known as a cascode configuration.

What are Infineon’s industrial MCUs and auxiliary power supply products for string inverters?

In solar panel inverters, Infineon’s MCUs serves as the brain and manages complex tasks like maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and grid synchronization. To ensure these solar inverters remain reliable in harsh outdoor environments, they are paired with CoolSET™ AC-DC integrated power stages for the auxiliary power supply. In addition, the cascade configuration enables string inverters to start safely and quickly, ensuring no solar energy is wasted during early morning power-on sequences.

Infineon’s EXCELON™ family of memory products offer high energy efficiency, high density, and reliable data logging, required for modern 1-phase string inverters.

What makes EXCELON™ F-RAM suitable for PV applications?

Infineon's next-generation ferroelectric RAM (F-RAM) memory delivers the industry’s lowest power mission-critical nonvolatile memory. It combines ultra-low-power operation with high-speed interfaces, instant nonvolatility, and unlimited read/write cycle endurance, making it ideal for continuous, high-reliability data tracking in PV systems.

How does connectivity add value? 

Infineon’s AIROC™ Wi-Fi + Bluetooth® combos accelerate time-to-market for smart applications. AIROC™ Wi-Fi + Bluetooth® SoCs’ on-chip MCUs, memory, and networking protocols enable seamless cloud-connected monitoring and secure remote management required for solar power inverters.

Infineon offers comprehensive solutions for string inverters, from power transistor and gate drivers to current sensors and controllers, engineered to meet the performance, reliability, and connectivity requirements of solar power inverter market. 

Convection-cooled string inverters require high efficiency at a reasonable BoM cost. Infineon strengthens DC-AC inverter design demands with solutions that achieve optimal balance of performance, thermal capability, and cost. 

Infineon's portfolio for PV string inverters designs: 

- CoolGaN™ HEMTs: Highest power density and efficiency

-CoolMOS™  MOSFETs: High voltage performance

- CoolSiC™ MOSFETs: Superior thermal performance and switching

- CoolSiC™ diodes: Zero reverse recovery , higher energy yield

- EiceDRIVER™: Robust control and protection for SiC/GaN

- XMC™ and PSOC™ MCUs: Real-time MPPT and grid synchronization

- CoolSET™ integrated power stages: Space-saving auxiliary power integration

- XENSIV™ current sensors: Accurate control and system protection

- AIROC™: Wireless connectivity for smart monitoring

- EXCELON™: High-endurance non-volatile data logging

- ISOFACE™: Robust isolation for control logic

TRENCHSTOP™ IGBT and CoolMOS™: Two decades of success 

With proven performance, Infineon's TRENCHSTOP™ IGBT and CoolMOS™ N-channel MOSFET products have set the industry standard for over two decades. They meet the most stringent requirements, offering a highly reliable foundation for a broad range of PV inverter applications. 

CoolSiC™: Efficiency and reliability

CoolSiC™ (silicon carbide ) MOSFET technology opens up new era of flexibility for designers to harness unprecedented levels of efficiency and system reliability. These silicon carbide (SiC) solutions provide significantly improved reverse-recovery characteristics to reduce power losses. 

CoolGaN™: High efficiency with e-mode

For power conversion in the 600 V range, Infineon’s CoolGaN™ (gallium nitride) transistor offer the ultimate efficiency. With proven leadership in semiconductor market, Infineon’s GaN technology brought the e-mode concept to maturity with end-to-end production in high volumes, ensuring peak performance in next-generation solar inverter topologies. 

Infineon’s EiceDRIVER™ portfolio is the industry-leading choice for driving MOSFETs, IGBTs, and wide-bandgap devices, due to their high common mode transient immunity (CMTI).

EiceDRIVER™ 2EDi dual-channel isolated family of gate driver ICs is designed for robust operation in high-performance CoolMOS™, CoolSiC™, and OptiMOS™ MOSFET half-bridges. They are used in primary- and secondary-side controlled hard- and soft-switching topologies and are pivotal to optimizing power conversion efficiencies and ensuring a robust switched mode power supply operation under nominal and abnormal operations. 

Additionally, EiceDRIVER™ gate driver family includes isolated, level shift, and low-side ICs optimized for IGBT discrete and modules in all applications. They offer the following features: 

  • Desaturation detection (DESAT)
  • Active Miller clamp
  • Short-circuit clamping
  • Overcurrent protection (OCP)
  • Undervoltage lockout (UVLO)
  • Slew rate control (SRC)
  • Two-level turn-off
  • Soft shutdown
  • Galvanic isolation

When paired with Infineon power transistors, these drivers allow designers to push the boundaries of power density and achieve maximum reliability in string inverter applications. 

Infineon’s XENSIV™ high-precision coreless open-loop current sensors leverage differential Hall effect technology to deliver high accuracy in 1-phase string inverter environments.

In addition, XENSIV™ sensors offer a less bulky and cost-effective option compared to traditional core-based current sensors. By eliminating the iron core or the flux concentrator, XENSIV™ sensors are immune to hysteresis and magnetic saturation, resulting in a highly linear analog output signal.

Performance benefits of Infineon’s XENSIV™ current sensors: 

- High noise immunity: Uses differential measurement with two Hall cells to maintain accuracy despite crosstalk or magnetic stray fields

- Protection features: Provides a warning signal in case of an over- or undervoltage condition for the supply voltage

- Programmable flexibility: System designers can program the sensitivity and threshold levels of overcurrent signals without external components

Infineon’s microcontroller units (MCUs) provide the advanced real-time control for optimized MPPT and grid synchronization required by solar inverter systems.

For additional protection and to increase system robustness, these microcontrollers are paired with Infineon’s CoolSET™ AC-DC integrated power stages. To achieve fast start-up performance, the fifth-generation controller utilizes the high-voltage power supply integrated circuit together with an internal AC-DC switching regulator to operate the start-up sequence in a safe and rapid manner, which is commonly known as a cascode configuration.

What are Infineon’s industrial MCUs and auxiliary power supply products for string inverters?

In solar panel inverters, Infineon’s MCUs serves as the brain and manages complex tasks like maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and grid synchronization. To ensure these solar inverters remain reliable in harsh outdoor environments, they are paired with CoolSET™ AC-DC integrated power stages for the auxiliary power supply. In addition, the cascade configuration enables string inverters to start safely and quickly, ensuring no solar energy is wasted during early morning power-on sequences.

Infineon’s EXCELON™ family of memory products offer high energy efficiency, high density, and reliable data logging, required for modern 1-phase string inverters.

What makes EXCELON™ F-RAM suitable for PV applications?

Infineon's next-generation ferroelectric RAM (F-RAM) memory delivers the industry’s lowest power mission-critical nonvolatile memory. It combines ultra-low-power operation with high-speed interfaces, instant nonvolatility, and unlimited read/write cycle endurance, making it ideal for continuous, high-reliability data tracking in PV systems.

How does connectivity add value? 

Infineon’s AIROC™ Wi-Fi + Bluetooth® combos accelerate time-to-market for smart applications. AIROC™ Wi-Fi + Bluetooth® SoCs’ on-chip MCUs, memory, and networking protocols enable seamless cloud-connected monitoring and secure remote management required for solar power inverters.

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