ark your calendars for June 9-12, 2021 when power electronics professionals come together for APEC 2021, the premier event in applied power electronics, bringing together thousands of professionals from around the world for networking, learning and strategic business development. Here's a lineup of the excellent program for this year's conference:

Plenary Sessions

The APEC Plenary Sessions continue a long-standing tradition of addressing issues of immediate and long-term interest to the practicing power electronics professional. This year's lineup includes seven distinguished invited professionals who will share their thoughts on six topics, ranging from automotive and wide bandgap technologies to energy storage and the future of power passives:

• "Auxiliary Automotive Drives Revolutionized by Power Electronics" Annette Muetze, Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing, Graz University of Technology
• "Wide Bandgap Technologies: Enabling a Broader Power Application Domain" Edoardo Merli, Power Transistor Macro-Division General Manager and Group Vice President, STMicroelectronics
• "The Present and Future of Magnetics and Other Power Passives" Charles R. Sullivan, Professor of Engineering, Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth
• "Native American Energy Sovereignty: Energy Storage and Power Electronics Benefits" Stanley Atcitty, Distinguish Member of Technical Staff Sandia National Laboratories
• "Maturing Wide Bandgap Semiconductors Fosters Standardization (JEDEC JC-70 addresses unique characteristics and behaviors of WBG)" Stephanie Watts Butler, Texas Instruments; JC-70 Chair, Peter Friedrichs, Infineon; JC-70.2 Co-Chair
• "Quantum Computing - The New Computing Paradigm" Heike Riel, IBM Fellow, Lead IBM Research Quantum Europe & Africa IBM Research

Technical Sessions

The Technical Program at APEC is peer-reviewed and papers are carefully selected in a review process that highlights the most innovative technical solutions at the highest quality possible. Selected papers cover all areas of technical interest for the practicing power electronics professional, with papers of broad appeal presented during lecture sessions and those with a specialized focus presented during dialogue sessions. Click here to access the preliminary Technical Session Presentations schedule.

Industry Sessions

Industry Sessions present information on current topics in power electronics from industry sources and run in parallel with the traditional Technical Sessions track. Speakers are invited to make a presentation only, without submitting a formal manuscript for the APEC Proceedings. This allows APEC to present information on current topics in power electronics from sources that would not otherwise be present at an industry conference While many of these sessions are technical in nature, some also target business-oriented people such as purchasing agents, electronic system designers, regulatory engineers, and other people who support the power electronics industry. Click here to access the preliminary Industry Session Presentations schedule.

RAP Sessions

This year's RAP sessions, a perennial favorite at APEC, will be back in full force. RAP Sessions allow for exciting dialogue among attendees and presenters and will take place Thursday, June 10. Here's the line-up:

• RAP Session 1: Distributed vs. centralized control for micro-grid and nano-grid
• RAP Session 2: Does high level of integration make power converters more reliable or not?
• RAP Session 3: Where does the expertise for the next generation of magnetics come from? The Magnetics companies or the engineer designing the power supply?

Professional Education Seminars

APEC Professional Education Seminars (PES focus on practical aspects of the power electronics profession and provide in-depth discussion of important and complex power electronics topics. Given by distinguished speakers and experts, each seminar combines practical application with theory, and is designed to further educate the working professional in power electronics or related fields. The preliminary list of seminar topics include:

• Hybrid and Resonant Switched-Capacitor Power Converters: New Circuit Topologies and Control Techniques for High Power Density Designs
• New Developments in Topologies and Magnetics to Reach 99% Efficiency Using the Latest Semiconductor Devices
• Selecting the Best Power Semiconductor Device for Your Application
• Isolated Gate Driver ICs in Power Electronics Systems – Insulation specifications, IC verification, Application Requirements and Design Optimization
• Integrated PCB Winding Magnetic Components for High-Frequency Power Converters
• Practical Considerations for the Application of High-Power Si and SiC Modules
• Designing Compensators for the Control of Switching Power Supplies
• Traditional and Emerging Digital Control Techniques in Power Electronics
• EMC Design Fundamentals for Power Electronics Converters
• Silicon Carbide (SiC) Power Converters: EMC Design Fundamentals, Layout Techniques, and Construction Methods
• Reliability Analysis Methods and Tools for Power Electronic Components and Systems
• Fundamentals of Switched Reluctance Motor Drives
• Future Power Electronics 4.0 SiC/GaN 3-phase PWM Converter Concepts
• A Practical Guide to SiC MOSFET and Schottky Applications
• SiC Power Conversion and System Packaging Technologies for High Temperature High Pressure Harsh Environment Applications Maximizing GaN FET and IC Performance

Please visit the APEC website https://apec-conf.org/ for additional information and updates.

Provided by Greg Evans, APEC 2021 Publicity Chair

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