GaN Talk Blog

When wide-bandgap semiconductors entered the market, the areas in which they operated were pretty well defined. SiC would challenge silicon at voltages above 600V, and GaN would compete with silicon in applications from around 100V to 600V.

Power Systems Design
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A motor drive inverter reference design featuring a wide input range from 30 V to 140 V is suitable for battery systems of 80 V, 110 V, and more. Examples of applications include industrial automation systems, agricultural machinery, and material handling equipment such as forklifts. This blog post discusses the design of an off-the-shelf reference design for these systems, with a focus on the PCB layout developed to optimize the performance of the GaN FETs used.

As global demand for photovoltaic (PV) systems grows, manufacturers face mounting pressure to reduce costs without compromising reliability. Innovative technologies are critical to achieving these objectives, especially for commercial and residential PV systems. These systems generally fall into two main configurations: micro-inverters and string inverters.

Learn about what key factors you should consider when selecting a GaN gate driver. Make the best choice for your power electronics design here.

The medical technology industry includes medical devices which simplify the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases and chronic illnesses. According to Fortune Business Insights,  The global medical devices market is projected to grow from $495.46 billion in 2022 to $718.92 billion by 2029 at a CAGR of 5.5%.

Learn how EPC’s new demo board, the EPC9176 with its six QFN-packaged GaN ICs allows for more efficient, high-performance vacuum cleaner motors.

Gallium nitride (GaN) is a very hard, mechanically stable wide bandgap semiconductor that is used in the production of power devices as well as RF components and light-emitting diodes (LEDs). GaN switching frequency is substantially higher than silicon, enabling power electronics designers to create smaller, more efficient, and higher-performing systems that were previously challenging to achieve with silicon technologies. 

GaN is a game changer for motor drive applications. For designers to take advantage of this technology, fast and reliable time-to-market is critical. Easy-to-use reference designs using state-of-the-art electronics and techniques provide a valuable tool to speed time to market. The EPC9173 tool allows designers of eBikes and drones to enhance motor system size, performance, range, precision, and torque, all while simplifying design for faster time-to-market.  

The EPC9173 integrates all the necessary circuits to operate a 3-phase BLDC motor with high performance, 48 V input, 1.5kW output, and three-phase inverter using six EPC23101  GaN ICs. Thanks to the high-power density and the high electrical conductivity of GaN ICs, the EPC9173 delivers up to 25 A_RMS on each leg and supports PWM switching frequencies up to 250 kHz under a natural convection passive heatsink. The resultant quality of the current output waveforms, lesser torque oscillations, and total system efficiency increase the performance of the motor-drive system. Further, the extremely small size of this inverter allows integration into the motor housing resulting in the lowest EMI, highest density, and lowest weight.

Gallium nitride (GaN) has emerged as the technology to offer greater efficiency, significantly reduce system size and weight, and enable entirely new applications not achievable with silicon. So, why do so many myths still prevail about GaN and what are the facts?

One of the reasons so much misinformation persists about GaN is that suppliers of the incumbent silicon technology use scare tactics including rumors of reliability problems, design challenges, high prices, and unreliable supply chains to dissuade potential GaN users.

Despite these attacks, GaN continues to gain acceptance not only in enabling applications such as lidar, but into traditional applications where the silicon MOSFET previously held the dominant position, like data centers and vehicle electronics. This article will debunk the most common myths about GaN and show how GaN FETs and GaN ICs are creating a displacement cycle in power conversion.

Environmental pressures are creating pressure to quickly adopt newer, cleaner, and more efficient transportation options.  In 2025, 1 in 10 vehicles sold are expected to be a more fuel efficient 48 V mild hybrid.  These systems will require a 48V – 12V bidirectional converter, with power ranging from 1.5 kW to 6 kW. The design priorities for these systems are size, cost, and high reliability. GaN power conversion solutions are perfect to support a 48 V to 12 V bidirectional converter used in these newer models.

A new reference design demo board, the EPC9165, is available to help jump start the design of a 2 kW bi-directional converter.  The EPC9165 is a synchronous buck/boost converter with other supporting circuitry including current sensors and temperature sensor.  The EPC9528 controller board ships with the EPC9165 to incorporate digital control and housekeeping power supply; this board uses the dsPIC33CK256MP503 digital controller from Microchip.