Flattened Power Converter Design with Improved Thermal Performance for High-Power-Density Energy Conversion

This paper proposes a flattened power electronic design approach to enhance both power density and thermal management performance. As essential components in electrified energy conversion, evaluations of power converters are strongly based on their power density. Achieving a compact design typically requires a well-optimized printed circuit board (PCB) layout, optimal component design and selection, and an efficient thermal management system. During high-power operation, significant power losses can lead to substantial heat generation. Without effective thermal mitigation, this heat buildup may result in excessive temperature rises or even system failure. To address this challenge, this paper developed a flattened power converter design methodology to increase the effective heat-dissipation area without expanding the total volume consumption. This proposed design improves thermal performance and, in turn, enhances overall power density. A three-phase inverter prototype is developed and tested to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.