What Is the Power Electronics Society Newsletter?

The Power Electronics Society Newsletter is a periodic publication of the IEEE Power Electronics Society (PELS) that communicates news, technical developments, and organizational information to society members and the broader power electronics community. Unlike the society's archival journals, which publish peer-reviewed research articles, the newsletter serves as a practitioner-oriented channel for industry trends, conference announcements, member profiles, committee updates, and shorter technical notes that do not require the full rigor of a journal submission. It functions as a connective tissue between the formal research record and the day-to-day professional activities of engineers working in power conversion, motor drives, renewable energy systems, and related fields.

PELS publishes and distributes the newsletter to reach members who may not follow every issue of the IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics but still want to stay current with developments in their field and within the society itself. The newsletter format allows PELS to respond quickly to emerging topics and to highlight work that is in progress or recently completed, before it reaches publication-ready form. It also provides a vehicle for society leadership to communicate governance decisions, strategic initiatives, and calls for volunteer participation to the membership.

Purpose and Content

The newsletter carries a mix of content that spans the technical and organizational activities of PELS. Technical columns cover recent advances in areas such as wide bandgap semiconductor devices, electric vehicle charging systems, and grid-tied inverter design, often written by practitioners with direct experience in the topic rather than by academic authors following the conventions of a journal article. News sections report on upcoming IEEE conferences including the Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition (APEC) and the Energy Conversion Congress and Exposition (ECCE), both primary venues for PELS-affiliated research. The IEEE Power Electronics Society's credentialing and continuing education programs are frequently announced and summarized through the newsletter, making it a resource for members seeking professional development opportunities.

Role in the Technical Community

For early-career engineers and graduate students entering the power electronics field, the newsletter offers accessible content that situates current research within broader industry context. For experienced practitioners, it provides a survey of topics they might not otherwise encounter outside their immediate specialization. Guest columns and interviews with industry leaders and academic researchers give the newsletter a perspective that differs from the strict technical argumentation of archival papers. The IEEE Power and Energy Education Committee, which maintains relationships between industry and engineering education, provides a complementary channel for related educational content, as noted on the PES Power and Energy Education Committee site. Coverage of workforce development trends in the power sector, a topic that IEEE Spectrum has examined with reference to the global shortfall in power engineering talent, also appears regularly in the newsletter.

Structure and Publication Cadence

The newsletter is published multiple times per year, typically on a quarterly or semi-annual schedule that aligns with major society events and conference cycles. Each issue is organized into recurring sections covering technical highlights, society news, conference reports, and member recognition, providing a consistent structure that readers can navigate efficiently. Digital distribution ensures that the newsletter reaches PELS members globally at the time of publication.

Applications

The Power Electronics Society Newsletter supports activities and audiences across a range of contexts, including:

• Professional development for early-career power electronics engineers
• Technology awareness updates for practitioners in motor drives, energy conversion, and grid integration
• Outreach to educators developing power electronics curricula and laboratory programs
• Society governance communication including elections, committee calls, and strategic updates
• Conference and workshop announcements for PELS-sponsored technical events