TECHNOLOGY BRIEF: TB001 eGaN® TECHNOLOGY
EPC POWER CONVERSION TECHNOLOGY LEADER | EPC-CO.COM | ©2022 | | 2
Enhancement-Mode Gallium Nitride (eGaN®) Transistors and Integrated Circuits
A GaN transistor is a wide bandgap device with superior conductivity
compared to traditional silicon transistors resulting in smaller devices
and lower capacitance for the same R
DS(on)
.
Enhancement-mode (normally-o) operation allows power designers
to take advantage of the performance benets of gallium nitride in a
switching application.
Capacitance and inductance impede switching speed. eGaN FETs’
small size and lateral structure give ultra low capacitance while the
chip-scale packaging gives low inductance enabling unprecedented
switching performance in terms of speed, voltage overshoot and
ringing. Zero Q
RR
also reduces losses at high frequency.
The switching performance of eGaN FETs and ICs enables higher power
density, higher frequency, higher switching precision, higher bus
voltage, and less voltage overhead. The technology can be scaled over
many power and voltage levels.
eGaN transistors and ICs are faster
eGaN transistors and ICs are more ecient
eGaN transistors and ICs are more thermally ecient for unmatched power density
Smaller, more ecient, and lower cost.
Increased eciency AND power.
eGaN FET design delivers 60% more output power in less than half the board area.
I
OUT
= 22 A
100
º
C
25
º
C
Q1 = 98
º
C
Q2 = 84
º
C
I
OUT
= 14 A
Q1 =
Q2 =
100
º
C
80
º
C
Fan speed = 200 LFM, V
= 48 V, V
= 12 V, f
= 300 kHz, L = 4.7 µH
Faster transistors ... smaller systems
1 kW LLC – Circa 2022
5000 W/in
3
1 kW LLC – Circa 2021
1266 W/in
3
Si
S D
GaN
AlGaN
Protection dielectric
Aluminum nitride
isolation layer
Two Dimensional
Electron Gas (2DEG)
Field plate
G
eGaN FET Silicon MOSFET
0
98
97
96
95
94
93
92
91
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 800 850 900 950 972
P
OUT
(W)
Eciency (%)
Loss (W)
97.5% peak eciency at 400 W
96.7% eciency at 1 kW
48 V input to 12 V output