Husker engineer aims to make data centers more energy efficient

Researcher Jun Wang at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln is working on a new power module called LincolnPak that aims to make data centers more energy efficient. The technology would convert the high-voltage electricity supplied to data centers directly to 800-volt DC, reducing the number of conversion stages and improving efficiency. The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded Wang a $1.8 million grant through its Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy to further develop the LincolnPak. Wang says the system could reduce the footprint of the power conversion stage by at least 50%, cutting construction costs and cooling needs. The more efficient system would also lower the total cost of ownership for companies running large AI data centers. While the technology is still in development, Wang hopes to eventually commercialize it through a startup to help meet the growing energy demands of the digital economy.