Custom Electronics for the Clean Energy Transition
The renewable energy sector depends on high-efficiency power electronics that convert, store, and manage energy from intermittent sources. Whether you are developing a residential solar inverter, a utility-scale battery storage system, or a wind turbine monitoring platform, the electronics must deliver maximum conversion efficiency, robust protection, and reliable operation across decades of outdoor service.
Specto Silicon designs the circuit boards, control systems, and embedded platforms that sit at the heart of renewable energy products. We combine deep expertise in power electronics with practical knowledge of the standards, safety requirements, and environmental conditions unique to this industry.
Power Conversion Electronics
Efficient power conversion is the foundation of every renewable energy system. We design DC-DC converters, DC-AC inverters, and AC-DC rectifier stages using topologies selected for your specific voltage, current, and efficiency targets. Our designs leverage wide-bandgap semiconductors — silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs and gallium nitride (GaN) FETs — to achieve conversion efficiencies above 98% while reducing heatsink size and weight. We handle the complete power stage design: gate driver circuits with dead-time control, output filter inductors and capacitors, snubber networks, and thermal management including heatsink specification and forced-air or liquid cooling interfaces.
MPPT Charge Controllers
Maximum Power Point Tracking is essential for extracting the highest possible energy from photovoltaic arrays under varying irradiance and temperature conditions. We design MPPT controller boards that implement perturb-and-observe, incremental conductance, and adaptive algorithms running on low-power microcontrollers. Our designs support multiple independent MPPT inputs for split-array configurations, handle input voltages from 12 V residential panels up to 1500 V utility-scale strings, and include arc-fault detection circuitry mandated by NEC 690.11 and IEC 63027. Each controller incorporates overvoltage, overcurrent, reverse-polarity, and ground-fault protection.
Battery Management Systems (BMS)
Safe and efficient operation of lithium-ion, lithium iron phosphate (LFP), and other battery chemistries requires precise cell-level monitoring and balancing. We design BMS electronics that measure individual cell voltages to millivolt accuracy, monitor temperatures at multiple points within the pack, calculate state of charge (SoC) and state of health (SoH) using coulomb counting and impedance spectroscopy, and perform active or passive cell balancing. Our BMS designs include pre-charge circuits, contactor driver stages, current sensing via hall-effect or shunt-based methods, and communication interfaces (CAN bus, SMBus, or proprietary) to the host system. We design for compliance with IEC 62619, UL 1973, and UN 38.3 transport testing requirements.
Grid-Tie Inverter Controls
Grid-connected inverters must synchronise with the utility grid in real time, inject clean sinusoidal current, respond to grid disturbances, and comply with interconnection standards such as IEEE 1547, IEC 61727, and local utility requirements. We design the digital control boards that drive these inverters: phase-locked loop (PLL) circuits for grid synchronisation, PWM generation hardware with dead-time insertion, anti-islanding detection (passive and active methods), and reactive power control for grid support functions. Our control platforms are built around DSPs or FPGA-based signal processors capable of executing control loops at switching frequencies of 20 kHz and above, with total harmonic distortion (THD) well below 5%.
Solar & Wind Monitoring Systems
Renewable energy installations require continuous monitoring to detect faults, track performance, and optimise maintenance schedules. We design data acquisition boards that interface with irradiance sensors (pyranometers), anemometers, wind vanes, temperature probes, energy meters, and string-level current sensors. Our monitoring electronics aggregate this data locally, perform calculations such as performance ratio and specific yield, and transmit results via Ethernet, Wi-Fi, cellular (4G/LTE), or LoRaWAN to cloud-based SCADA platforms. We also design string-level monitoring units that detect underperforming panels, shading issues, and potential-induced degradation (PID) early.
Energy Storage Electronics
Beyond battery management, energy storage systems require power conversion stages for charging and discharging, system-level controllers that respond to dispatch commands, and safety electronics that manage thermal runaway detection, fire suppression triggers, and emergency disconnects. We design the full electronics stack for residential, commercial, and utility-scale energy storage: bidirectional DC-DC converters, hybrid inverter control boards, stack-level battery aggregation controllers, and enclosure environment monitoring systems that track temperature, humidity, and gas concentrations (hydrogen, volatile organic compounds) within battery cabinets.
Why Renewable Energy Electronics Require Specialised Design
Renewable energy electronics face a unique set of challenges. Power conversion stages handle hundreds of volts and tens of amps, demanding careful creepage and clearance management on PCB layouts. Systems are installed outdoors and must survive UV exposure, wide temperature swings, humidity, and in coastal locations, salt spray. Product lifetimes are expected to reach 20 to 25 years, far exceeding typical consumer electronics, which means component selection, solder joint reliability, and electrolytic capacitor lifetime calculations are critical. Grid interconnection standards are complex and vary by jurisdiction, requiring flexible firmware that can be configured for different markets.
Specto Silicon brings together power electronics expertise, embedded systems proficiency, and regulatory knowledge to deliver designs that meet these demands from day one. We help renewable energy companies move from prototype to certified, production-ready hardware efficiently and with confidence.