Research and production at one location

Fraunhofer ISIT in Itzehoe is one of Europe's most modern research facilities for microelectronics and microsystems technology. At the heart of the institute are the clean room facilities, large enough not only to conduct research but also to manufacture the developed microchips on an industrial scale.

In close cooperation with partners from industry, 180 scientists at ISIT develop power electronics components and microsystems with fine moving structures for sensor technology (pressure, motion, biochemical analytics, etc.) and actuator technology (valves, scanners, mirror arrays, etc.), including the necessary packaging technology. These miniaturized components are used in medicine, environmental and traffic engineering, communication technology, the automotive industry and mechanical engineering.

Our Vision

ISIT is the excellent, globally sought-after address for creating new and useful solutions of social relevance and bringing them into people's everyday lives.

Our Mission

High-tech taken further - we at ISIT make energy use efficient and high-tech solutions widely available through miniaturization.

Prof. Dr. Holger Kapels

Prof. Dr. Holger Kapels studied electrical engineering at the University of Bremen and received his PhD in 2002 at the Institute for Electrical Drives, Power Electronics and Devices. After many years of experience in industry in technology and product development of high-voltage MOS transistors and SiC devices, most recently as head of development, he took up a professorship at the University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg in 2010. As part of this role, he designed and led the Fraunhofer Application Center "Power Electronics for Renewable Energy Systems" since 2015. In 2016, Prof. Dr. Kapels joined Fraunhofer ISIT, where he heads the Power Electronics Business Unit. Here he was appointed deputy institute director in December 2020 and acting institute director of Fraunhofer ISIT in July 2022. He will continue to head the power electronics business area in this role. In addition, Prof. Dr. Kapels has been Professor of Semiconductor Devices in Power Electronics at Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel since 2016.

He is author and co-author of numerous national and international publications and patents.

Prof. Dr. Marco Liserre

Marco Liserre studied electrical engineering and received his doctorate from the Technical University of Bari in 2002. He was Associate Professor at the Technical University of Bari and from 2012 Professor of Reliable Power Electronics at Aalborg University (Denmark). Since 2013, he has been a full professor and holder of the Chair of Power Electronics at Kiel University. He has received and declined offers of professorships at various universities. He has been involved in the establishment of industry-funded research centres in Denmark and Italy. He is co-author of a book and of numerous international publications and patents, which are among the most cited in power electronics (ISI Thomson Highly Cited 2014-2021). He has held several leading positions in IEEE, including Vice-President of IEEE-IES, and Chairman of large international conferences for IEEE-IES, IEEE-PELS and IEEE-PES. He received several awards, in the following they are listed the most important. For his contribution in "Modelling and control of power converters in reliability and stability studies", he was awarded the IEEE-PELS R. David Middlebrook Achievement Award 2023, the highest award of IEEE-PELS, presented at ECCE-USA 2023 in Nashville, USA. For his contribution in "Development of power electronic systems for distributed generation and power quality improvement" he received the IEEE-IES Mittelmann Achievement Award 2018, the highest honour of the IEEE-IES, which was awarded at IECON 2018 in Washington, USA. For his contributions to "grid connection of renewable energy systems and industrial drives", he was named an IEEE Fellow in 2013.

In 2023, he joined Fraunhofer ISIT as Deputy Director, Head of the Kiel branch and Head of the "Electronic Energy Systems" group.

The Fraunhofer Institute for Silicon Technology ISIT develops and manufactures customer-specific components for power electronics and microsystems technology. Important fields of application are energy technology, automotive and traffic engineering, consumer goods industry, medical technology, communication and automation technology. The state-of-the-art technological equipment based on a 200 mm silicon wafer technology and the know-how built up over decades ensure ISIT and its customers a worldwide leading position in the field.

ISIT supports its customers from design and system simulation to prototype production, sampling and series preparation. About 180 employees with engineering and scientific education profiles work at the institute.

Important aspects of the institute include: System integration, assembly and interconnection technology (packaging) and reliability and quality of components, modules and systems. Application specific circuits (ASICs) for sensors and actuators are also provided. Developments in the field of electrical energy storage with a focus on Li-polymer accumulators continue to be part of ISIT's service portfolio.

A unique selling point of the institute is the rapid transfer of innovative developments into industrial application and production. For this purpose, ISIT cooperates in its clean rooms with the ongoing wafer production of the companies Vishay Siliconix Itzehoe GmbH and X-FAB MEMS Foundry Itzehoe GmbH. There are long-standing cooperations with various manufacturing companies in the vicinity of the institute. The quality management system at Fraunhofer ISIT is qualified according to ISO 9001:2015.

ISIT operates a working group at the Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel.

Fraunhofer ISIT is headed by Prof. Dr. Holger Kapels.

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