The normally off silicon carbide power vertical JFET (VJFET) can perform the role of switch, rectifier, or switch with anti-parallel rectifier. This innovative feature eliminates the need to qualify a separate diode that can withstand the rugged environment of, for example, the surface of Venus on-board a surface planetary probe, or that can be derated to exhibit high-reliability in merely harsh terrestrial environments in aerospace, automotive, or energy exploration. The VJFET reported here is a vertical trench JFET fabricated in 4H-SiC. It has demonstrated feasibility of at least a 500-h life at 500degC. This paper also demonstrates a simple half-bridge variable speed motor drive that is free of discrete pn-junction or Schottky barrier rectifiers and is simple to control with pulse width modulation because it does not need a high-temperature high-side gate driver. Extending the approach to a full-bridge or a six-pulse (three-phase) bridge is straightforward
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