Shova Neupane receives the EPCIA Student award
Shova Neupane has been awarded the EPCIA Student (PD) award for her exceptional work in passive electronic components. The award, with a cash prize of €5,000, was presented by the European Passive Components Manufacturers (EPCIA) to recognize the outstanding academic work presented in Dr Neupane's postdoctoral thesis.
Dr Neupane's exceptional work in passive electronic components and the recognition she received from the EPCIA Student Award Committee demonstrate her commitment to advancing the field of electronics. Her research could change the industry, making it more efficient and environmentally friendly.
"The European Passive Component Industry Association (EPCIA) student award is a prestigious award for an early career starter in passive electronic components. It is the first step to getting recognition for my hard work and dedication to outstanding research achievements in this field. This award motivated me to accept the challenges of exploring the topic and exploring more. Overall, this award is a meaningful and rewarding experience for me, and I take it as a stepping stone for my further academic, industry and professional success," she says.
The EPCIA Student Award Committee evaluated her work on new Polymer Aluminium Electrolytic Capacitors, which explores using aluminium electrolytic capacitors as DC-link capacitors. The study revealed that using this technology could lead to the development of ultra-compact integrated inverter designs. However, traditional aluminium electrolytic capacitors have a high equivalent series resistance (ESR), leading to increased self-heating and decreased ripple current handling. Dr Neupane's research proposes using a poorly conducting liquid electrolyte in traditional electrolytic capacitors and substituting it for better conducting material.
Dr Neupane's work has shown that PEDOT: PSS-based electrolytes provide significantly better ESR and current handling. However, the technology has yet to reach the operating voltages that the automotive industry desires for DC-link capacitors in power converters in electric cars. By developing this technology to operate reliably at voltages of 450 V, polymer aluminium electrolytic capacitors could compete with film capacitors as DC-link in power converters in electric vehicles.
Dr Neupane built an encapsulated capacitor element to achieve this goal using a standard electrolytic capacitor (e-caps) preparation method.
She tested the lifetime behaviour of the successfully prepared e-caps, and X-ray tomography measurements determined the physical status of the encapsulated e-caps.
The EPCIA is an organization that represents and promotes the common interests of European Passive Components Manufacturers. Ralph Bronold, President of EPCIA, Christophe Potier, Vice President of EPCIA, and Prof. Thomas Ebel, CIE, have all underlined the importance of such R&D projects for the passive components industry. They encourage students across all European universities to work in this area and to apply for the EPCIA Student Award in 2023.