In Austin, Texas, four students from the University of Kassel and two pupils from the Max-Eyth-Schule Kassel presented an audio amplifier as part of a competition. The task was to build a Class D amplifier with 3x 135W and 48V input voltage against 6 other international student teams and to optimize it in terms of audio quality and efficiency.

In extensive electrical tests, the THD+N (useful signal in relation to distortion and noise), background noise and signal processing properties were examined. The audio quality was also evaluated in listening tests. Unfortunately, the team from the University of Kassel could not keep up with the excellent setups of the other teams and only achieved 6th place out of seven. Nevertheless, participation in this year's competition was worthwhile and the students were able to learn many things in the field of signal processing and hardware construction.

We would like to thank our sponsor SMA Solar Technology AG, who supported two trips to the USA with a total of €5,000. The University of Kassel also supported the team's participation with €3,000. In addition to the pure travel costs, expenses for the development of the prototype and the later demonstrator amounted to several thousand euros, most of which were borne by the Department of Power Electronics itself.

Contact: Lennart Hoffmann / Dr.-Ing. Christian Nöding