Moving targets: How improvements to SiC, GaN power electronics will redefine EVs

Smaller devices that can do the same or more efficient work than silicon can lead to markedly smaller EV powertrain components.

This story starts in 2017, when the Department of Energy's U.S. DRIVE partnership laid out targets for power electronics for 2025 in a technical team roadmap: power density of 100 kW/l for a powertrain that would last either 300,000 miles or 15 years, at a cost of no more than $2.70 per kW.

Progress in the intervening years led to an updated roadmap in 2024, specifying stricter 2025 targets of 150 kW/l power density at a cost of no more than $1.80 per kW, based on a 600-volt system. Along with that came more refined targets for 2030 and 2035. For 2030, the goal is an 800-volt system that produces peak power of 200 kW maintained for 30 seconds, and a power density of 200 kW/l that costs no more than $1.35 per KW. The goal for 2035 now sits at 225 kW/L for $1.20.