What's Happening Inside the Electronics with Greg Smith

What's Happening Inside the Electronics with Greg Smith

From Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast by whitehousesolar

April 15, 2026 · 20 min · Episode 343

About this episode

This episode explores the inner workings of solar optimizers and inverters, featuring insights from Greg Smith.

Ever wonder what's actually inside a DC-to-DC converter (optimizer) or inverter? Recorded live at InterSolar San Diego, this episode breaks down the inner workings of solar optimizers, from maximum power point tracking and energy recovery to the software that makes them last 20 years. The conversation also dives into how inverter IGBTs turn DC into clean AC power, how Tigo's approach differs from competitors like SolarEdge, and whether Tesla or Edison deserves the bigger crown. Topics Covered: DC to DC Converter The Flinstones Optimizers MPPT = Maximum Power Point Tracker PV Watts IV Curve MLPE Tigo SMA Solar Edge TS4 IGBT = Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor Tesla Edison Reach out to Greg Smith here: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/gregsmith007/ Learn more at www.solarSEAN.com and be sure to get NABCEP certified by taking Sean’s classes at www.heatspring.com/sean www.solarsean.com/pvisexam

People in this episode

Host: Sean White

Guest: Greg Smith

Topics covered

  • solar optimizers
  • DC to DC converter
  • inverters
  • maximum power point tracking
  • energy recovery
  • Tigo vs SolarEdge
  • Tesla vs Edison

Keywords

  • solar energy
  • DC to DC converter
  • inverter
  • maximum power point tracking
  • Tigo
  • SolarEdge
  • Tesla
  • Edison
  • IGBT
  • InterSolar

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Tigo, SolarEdge, Tesla, Edison

Products: DC-to-DC converter, inverter, maximum power point tracker, IGBT

More episodes of Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast podcast page.