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    Power Electronics for Aerospace Including eVTOL and Electric Aircraft

    D30.1 - Design and Development of a 1 kV / 3.6 MVA PEBB DC–AC Inverter for Electric Aircraft Powertrains

    Thursday, March 26, 2026
    12:00 PM - 1:45 PM CT
    Location: Poster 8
    Abstract— The transition from conventional to more-electric aircraft architectures is driven by the need to reduce fuel consumption, emissions, and overall operating cost. This paper presents the design and development of a 1 kV, 3.6 MVA electric aircraft powertrain based on a Power Electronics Building Block (PEBB) DC–AC inverter. The system converts a 1 kV DC output from a fuel cell/DC source into an AC waveform suitable for propulsion motor operation. A half-bridge inverter topology is selected based on system requirements, and key components, including a 1.7 kV SiC power module and DC-link capacitors, are evaluated and designed. A high-altitude-capable main board PCB is developed in Altium Designer using aerospace insulation and creepage/clearance standards. A 1 kV, 200 kVA single-phase PEBB prototype is fabricated and experimentally validated, demonstrating the feasibility and high power-density potential of the proposed modular inverter architecture.