Douglas C. Hopkins
Research Professor, Dir. PREES Lab
Biography
Prof. Hopkins' Primary Research Areas:
• Very High-Frequency, Ultra-High-Density power electronic systems, Integrated Power Electronics*, Wide Band Gap (WBG: GaN & SiC) devices, and Advanced Packaging**
• Solid-State Protection (e.g. SSCBs) and Harsh-Environment power electronics (e.g. automotive and military)
* IEEE/EPS Heterogeneous Integration Roadmap (HIR) Chapter 10 - "Integrated Power Electronics"
** Power electronics packaging, organic- and ceramic-based circuits, high temperature(>300˚C) circuits integrated ceramics and metal matrix composites
Professor Hopkins has been with the ECE Department since 2011, is Director of the Laboratory for Packaging Research in Electronic Energy Systems (PREES), part of the FREEDM Systems Center, and is an affiliate faculty with the Center for Additive Manufacturing and Logistics (CAMAL). He received his Ph.D. from Virginia Tech (1989). He has held Visiting Faculty appointments with the Army, NASA, Lawrence Livermore, and the Ohio Space Institute, was a reviewer with the Nat’l Academy of Science. His early career was at the R&D centers of General Electric and Carrier Air-Conditioning companies, and has had numerous consulting projects with Emerson, Grundfos, Eaton, and Verizon among others. He co-founded DensePower, LLC as president and CTO, and has published over 200 journal and conference articles, and conference tutorials and workshops.
Dr. Hopkins founded/cofounded the: IEEE EPS/PELS joint Power Packaging Committee (1994), Int’l Wksp on Integrated Power Packaging (IWIPP, 1998), IEEE/IMAPS/PSMA “Int’l Symp. on 3D Power Electronics Integrations and Manufacturing” (3D-PEIM, 2016), and the IMAPS “International Symposium on Advanced Power Electronics Packaging (APEPS, 2021). He received the IMAPS Outstanding Educator Award (2013), is an IMAPS Fellow (2007) and member of the IMAPS Executive Council (2019-). He also chairs the EPS Power & Energy TC (2022-).
Prof Hopkins also conducts engineering consulting and expert witness activities through DCHopkins & Associates, LLC. Further information is available from www.DCHopkins.com
Education
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Ph.D.
1989
Electrical Engineering
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg
Research Focus
Recent Publications
- Power Conversion Systems Enabled by SiC BiDFET Device (2023)
- The BiDFET Device and Its Impact on Converters (2023)
- 3-D Prismatic Packaging Methodologies for Wide Band Gap Power Electronics Modules (2021)
- A 40kV/mm Organic Substrate for Low Voltage Power SiP and >10kV Power Modules (2021)
- A New Cascaded SuperCascode High Voltage Power Switch (2021)
- Accessible & Adaptable Approach for Calculating the Thermal Resistance of a Power Package using ParaPower (2021)
- Advanced Dual-Sided Half-bridge Packaging with Epoxy Insulated Metal Substrates (eIMS) (2021)
- Advances in Highly Thermally Conductive Organic Power Packaging (2021)
- Analytical Method to Optimize the Cascaded SuperCascode Power Switch Balancing Network (2021)
- Bidirectional Solid-State Circuit Breaker using Super Cascode for MV SST and Energy Storage Systems (2021)
Expert In
Power Electronics Packaging
Involvement
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IEEE Power Electronics Society - Technical Committee on Power Components, Integration, and Power ICs (TC2)
Member -
IEEE Power Electronics Society - Technical Committee on Emerging Power Electronic Technologies (TC-6)
Member -
Int'l Microelectronic Packaging & Assembly Society (IMAPS) - Executive Council
Director -
IMAPS Int'l Advanced Power Electronics Packaging Symp (APEPS 2022)
General Chair -
IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Power Electronics-JESTPE
Assoc Editor -
ASME Journal of Electronics Packaging; IEEE Trans. on: 1. Aerospace and Electronic Systems, 2. Advanced Packaging , 3. Components and Packaging Technologies, 4. Industrial Electronics, 5. Power Electronics.
Journal Reviewer
Awards & Honors
- 2021 - Cert. of Appreciation as Founder and General Chair, Int'l Symp on Advanced Power Electronics and Packaging Systems (APEPS)
- 2016 - Cert. of Appreciation as Founder and General Chair, Int'l Symp on 3D Power Electronics Integration and Manufacturing (3D-PEIM)
- 2013 - "Outstanding Educator Award" - International Microelectronics and Packaging Society
- 2007 - Fellow – International Microelectronics and Packaging Society (IMAPS)
- 2001 - "Outstanding Contribution to Education, Research and Professionalism," IEEE – Region I
- 1999 - IEEE Third Millennium Medal recipient
- 1992 - Senior Member – Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Recent News
New Tech Promises to Boost Electric Vehicle Efficiency, Range
Posted on September 15, 2016 | Filed Under: Faculty and Power and Research
Researchers in NC State’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering’s FREEDM Systems Center have developed a new type of inverter device with greater efficiency in a smaller, lighter package – which should improve the fuel-efficienc …
Successful Inaugural 3D-PEIM Symposium
Posted on August 22, 2016 | Filed Under: Events and News
A true success – on June 13-15, 2016, over 80 participants, 11 from outside the US, attended the 1st International Symposium on 3D Power Electronics Integration and Manufacturing (www.3D-PEIM.org) in Raleigh, North Carolina. The symposium o …