CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY, CLEVELAND, USA. Engineers have found a way to make integrated amplified circuits work in extreme temperatures of up to 600 degrees Celsius by using silicon carbide as a semiconductor.
Silicon is the conventional material usually used as a semiconductor in circuits. However, it can no longer function as such at 300 degrees Celsius. In order to circumvent this limitation of silicon, wires are used in order to connect circuits to these extreme conditions. This produces errors in the information gathered by the sensors from interference and inaccurate information.
What Dr. Garwick and his colleagues, Soong and Mehregany of Case School of Engineering, did is to use silicon carbide which functions as a semiconductor in very high temperatures.
This innovation will surely find its place in nuclear reactors, rocket engines and many other functions. It promises more accurate, clear and reliable information from extreme conditions.
| Invention | Silicon Carbide Semiconductors |
|---|---|
| Organization | Case Western Reserve University |
| Researcher | Steven L. Garwick, Chia-Wei Soong, Mehran Mehregany |
| Field(s) | Physics, Industrial Engineering |
| Further Information | e! Science News |
