This work proposes a comparison among GaN and SiC device main parameters measured with a dedicated and low-cost embedded system, employing an STM32 microcontroller designed to the purpose. The system has the advantage to avoid the use of expensive laboratory measurement equipment to test the devices, allowing to obtain their behavior in operating conditions. The following KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are measured and critically compared: threshold voltage, on-resistance and input capacitance. All the measurements are carried out in a short time interval and on a wide range of switching frequencies, ranging from 10 kHz to 1 MHz. This investigation is focused on the deviation of the figures of merit when the switching frequency changes, since it is crucial for wide-bandgap devices. The devised, low-cost, microcontroller unit allows high flexibility and system portability, while the employed equivalent-time sampling technique overcomes some issues related to the need of high sampling frequency. It allows good performances with common microcontroller embedded AD converters. To validate the proposed system, the obtained results have been compared with the time-domain waveforms acquired with a traditional laboratory oscilloscope and a study of the system’s measurement errors has been carried out. Results show that GaN devices achieve a higher efficiency with respect to SiC devices in the considered range of switching frequencies. The on-resistance exhibited by GaN devices shows, as expected, an increase with frequency, which happens to switching losses, too. On the other hand, GaN devices are more sensitive to parasitic effects and the high dV/dt, due to the reduced switching times, can excite unwanted ringing phenomena.

This work examines the FPGA programmable logic platforms applied to minimum losses control of a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM), which represents a flexible solution for the implementation of an advanced digital control algorithm, given their intrinsic parallel structure and the capability to be directly reprogrammable in the field. In particular, design and validation of a FPGAbased Hardware-In-the-Loop (HIL) simulator is proposed, by investigating about data format, quantization and discretization effects and other issues arising during the experimental validation of a controller prototype, in order to reduce the embedded software development cycle and test control systems. The proposed simulator has been applied to control a PMSM. Specifically, two different minimum losses control techniques have been implemented as well as a space vector modulation of a three-phases voltage source inverter. The results given in this paper show the comparison of this two different algorithms and the effectiveness of the proposed HIL simulator.

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