In the field of power electronics, advances in device
development have traditionally been the driving force
for innovation. For the area of medium and high
power, this development can be illustrated in terms of
switching power of bipolar devices, Figure 1. Although
a relatively mature state has been reached, there is
still an evolution at a remarkable speed. Presently, the
major representatives are the IGBT and the IGCT. A
sizeable effort is spent on new materials like SiCdevices,
which promise a significant reduction in
switching losses. Hybrid integration of power devices
into relatively large building blocks is an important
issue. The current trends connected with present and
future improvements of performance will be discussed.