Toyota has developed a silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductor for use in automotive power control vehicles that could increase the fuel efficiency in hybrid models by 10 percent.

This would mean vehicles like the Toyota Prius would seem more appealing. EPA estimates show that the 2014 Prius returns 51 mpg in city driving and 48 mpg on the highway.

The power control unit (PCU) is in charge of modulating the amount of current going to the motor in electric or hybrid vehicles. The throttle would basically be an on-and-off switch without it, according to a Toyota press release.

Pushing current through any electrical component results in heat, which then results in the loss of power. That loss can cause about 25 percent of the system's total electrical power loss, according to the release.

SiC has been synthetically produced for over a century, mainly for use as an abrasive.

SiC's can take higher voltage while suffering far less power loss at high temperatures compared to silicon.

The automaker believes the switch to SiC semiconductors will result in a PCU that flows current 10 percent more efficiently, according to the release.

The Toyota SiC semiconductors were developed with assistance from Denso Corporation.

Both companies started experimenting with SiCs in the 1980s. They've been working together on projects for the last 7 years.

Toyota has currently installed SiC PCUs in prototype hybrids and has been driving them on test courses to measure their gains in efficiency, according to the release.

Toyota will start test-driving vehicles with the new PCUs in Japan on public roads in Japan by 2015. The PCU is also important when it comes to charging the battery by sending it electricity generated during braking.

Toyota also confirmed that it has room at one of its plants to continue the development of SiC semiconductors and increase production of the latest generation of PCUs, according to the automaker.

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