Full power for greater energy efficiency

The many years of development experience in Villach are bearing fruit: Infineon is the world market leader in power semiconductors. To maintain this success, the team in Villach is already working on the next generation of chips, made of new materials such as silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN). These so-called wide band gap technologies can convert power much more efficiently, making units smaller and lighter. This enables charging stations for electric cars with significantly shorter charging times or the mobile infrastructure for 5G networks.

The goal in the automotive research field is to design the next generation of vehicles. Power electronics, microcontroller solutions and sensor technologies designed in Villach enable innovative applications for the cars of the future. These include, for example, 3D magnetic sensors, which are able to measure movements in all directions. This makes them universally deployable for joystick-type applications, for example for multimedia systems in cars and consumer electronics.

Another key area is the development of “smart” switches for intelligent power distribution in vehicles. These make it possible to detect and isolate faults in the entire on-board system. This field of application takes on a whole new dimension due to the functional safety requirements of connected and autonomous vehicles. Products developed in accordance with the ISO 26262 series of standards are used for automotive safety applications. Infineon is therefore developing highly available and fail-safe components for the mobility of the future.

Expertise at Villach contributes to linking the real with the digital world. Here, the focus is on the development of circuits that process digital as well as analog signals. One key aspect is the field of microcontrollers with worldwide responsibility for analog-mixed-signal know-how. In the field of power management, numerous power driver solutions have been developed for industrial applications and data centers. Sensors for computers and consumer electronics are another area of focus. In addition to a variety of other analog-mixed-signal solutions, we have also achieved system competence for 5G base stations and advanced the development of the high-speed mobile communications network of the future.