SoylentNews

upstart writes in with an IRC submission:

Surpassing Silicon: Paper-Thin Gallium Oxide Transistor Handles More Than 8,000 Volts:

People love their electric cars. But not so much the bulky batteries and related power systems that take up precious cargo space. Help could be on the way from a gallium oxide-based transistor under development at the University at Buffalo.

In a study published in the June edition of IEEE Electron Device Letters, electrical engineers describe how the tiny electronic switch can handle more than 8,000 volts, an impressive feat considering it's about as thin as a sheet of paper.

The transistor could lead to smaller and more efficient electronic systems that control and convert electric power — a field of study known as power electronics — in electric cars, locomotives and airplanes. In turn, this could help improve how far these vehicles can travel.

[...] Tests conducted [...] in March show the transistor can handle 8,032 volts before breaking down, which is more than similarly designed transistors made of silicon carbide or gallium nitride that are under development.

"The higher the breakdown voltage, the more power a device can handle," says Singisetti. "The passivation layer is a simple, efficient and cost-effective way to boost the performance of gallium oxide transistors."

Journal Reference:
Shivam Sharma, Ke Zeng, Sudipto Saha, Uttam Singisetti. Field-Plated Lateral Ga₂O₃ MOSFETs With Polymer Passivation and 8.03 kV Breakdown Voltage, (DOI: 10.1109/LED.2020.2991146)

Original Submission