INTRODUCE YOURSELF

My name is Asger Bjørn Jørgensen and I work as a research assistant on the APETT project. I received my Bachelors degree in Energy Engineering from Aalborg University in 2014. I was a visiting scholar at University of New South Wales, Australia in 2015 and graduated in 2016 from Aalborg University with a Masters degree in Power Electronics and Drives.

DESCRIBE YOUR FUTURE WORK IN BRIEF?

One of the goals of the APETT project is to decrease the size of power electronics by a factor of three.  We believe that one solution is to utilize new wide-band gap semiconductor materials such as silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN). The main focus of my research is to harvest the benefits of these materials through improved packaging and more integrated design of the semiconducting device. To achieve this we do extensive 3D design and simulation of both electrical and thermal performance, before building prototypes in our laboratory facilities.

HOW DID YOU HEAR ABOUT APETT?

Throughout my Master studies I was part of several student projects which included topics of wide band gap semiconductors and packaging. Thus, I was informed of this new project coming up, which had similarities to the projects I had done.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO APPLY – WHY DO YOU THINK APETT WAS INTERESTING?

The APETT project is working with cutting edge technology within a field that I find highly interesting. In addition, the packaging lab at the Department of Energy Technology offers equipment and tools which is only available at a few other places in the world. The time from coming up with a new design, building it and testing it is really small – and since I will be part of every process step I gain a much deeper insight to the topic.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT WORKING IN AN INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENT? (CHALLENGES/BENEFITS)

People coming from the same country, university or education have had similar study curriculums, which means that their knowledge and experience might be almost identical. It is beneficial to have people from other countries as well as other educations, as they are likely to ask other questions and suggest alternative solutions.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE CLOSE COLLABORATION WITH THE INDUSTRY?

Working with industry is very beneficial. You gain additional knowledge of why systems are designed in a certain way to accommodate issues within the field. You can easily work on a problem and find a solution, which is very smart to solve the exact issue at hand. However, if it does not take into consideration some main functionalities that are required for a real design it could easily prove your idea impractical.