Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) introduces the first of a new gallium nitride (GaN) integrated circuit (IC) product family offering higher performance and smaller solution size for time-of-flight (ToF) lidar applications including robotics, drones, 3D sensing, and autonomous cars.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.— February 2021 — EPC announces the introduction of a laser driver that integrates a 40 V, 10 A FET with integrated gate driver and 3.3 logic level input in a single chip for time-of-flight lidar systems used in robotics, surveillance systems, drones, autonomous cars, and vacuum cleaners.

EPC’s ePower™ Stage EPC2152 Integrated Circuit has been selected as a finalist in the Semiconductor Product of the Year – Analogue category, in this year’s Elektra Awards.  These prestigious annual awards have been running for over 19 years to reward and recognize companies and individuals for their excellent performance, innovation and contribution to the global electronics industry.

Companies are invited to enter individual categories and must demonstrate how innovative their product is, how it addresses its intended application better than incumbent products and what additional applications or markets could be opened-up.  Judging is carried out by an independently and unbiased, diverse, and knowledgeable panel of industry experts.  Due to the current COVID restrictions the Elektra Awards ceremony this year will be held virtually on 25th March and the winners announced during the event.

The combination of the Renesas dual synchronous GaN buck controller and ultra-efficient eGaN^® FETs from EPC (Efficient Power Conversion) enables high power density and efficiency with the same BOM size and cost as silicon.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.—  February, 2021 — EPC announces the availability of the EPC9157, a 300 W DC-DC demo board in the tiny 1/16^th brick size, measuring just 33 mm x 22.9 mm x 9mm (1.3 x 0.9 x 0.35 in). The EPC9157 demo board integrates the Renesas ISL81806 80 V dual synchronous buck controller with the latest-generation EPC2218 eGaN FETs from EPC to achieve greater than 95% efficiency for 48 V input to 12 V regulated output conversion at 25 A.  

Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) publishes Phase-12 Reliability Report adding to the extensive knowledge found in their first eleven reports. With this report, EPC demonstrates field experience of 226 billion eGaN ^® device hours and a robustness capability unmatched by silicon power devices.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.— January 2021 — EPC announces its Phase-12 Reliability Report, documenting the strategy used to achieve a remarkable field reliability record. eGaN devices have been in volume production for more than eleven years and have demonstrated very high reliability in over 226 billion hours of operation, most of which are in vehicles, LTE base stations, and satellites, to name just a few applications with rigorous operating conditions.

The combination of MPS (Monolithic Power Systems) controllers with ultra-efficient eGaN^® FETs from EPC (Efficient Power Conversion) enable best-in-class power density of 1700 W/in³ in high efficiency, low cost LLC DC-DC Conversion

Join gallium nitride (GaN) technology experts in the EPC virtual booth at CES to explore how GaN enables enhanced features and performance in consumer electronics by providing higher efficiency, smaller size, and lower cost semiconductor FET and IC solutions.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — January 2021 — Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) announced that it will demonstrate the power of eGaN^® technology to boost performance in game-changing consumer applications including self-driving cars, emobility, drones, robots, and 48-volt power conversion at the All-Digital Consumer Electronics Show (CES) January 11^th through the 14^th.

EPC introduces the 40 V, 3 milliohm EPC2055 eGaN^® FET, offering designers a device that is smaller, more efficient, and more reliable than currently available devices for high performance, space-constrained applications.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — December 2020 — Efficient Power Conversion Corporation, the world’s leader in enhancement-mode gallium nitride on silicon (eGaN) power FETs and ICs, advances the performance capability of low voltage, off-the-shelf gallium nitride transistors with the introduction of the EPC2055 (3 mΩ, 40 V) eGaN FET. 

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — December 2020 — BrightLoop Converters has greatly reduced the size, cost and improved reliability of its latest BB SP DC-DC buck converters thanks to Efficient Power Conversion Corporation’s (EPC) EPC2029 enhancement-mode gallium nitride (eGaN^®) FET transistors. By switching from silicon (Si) transistors to gallium nitride (GaN), BrightLoop was able to increase the switching frequency of their design from 200 kHz to 600 kHz, while keeping the same efficiency. This design change increased the power density of the solution by a factor of approximately two and this resulted in lower cost by enabling the implementation of a smaller enclosure.

EPC’s EPC2029 is an 80 V, 48 A eGaN^® FET featuring a 1 mm ball pitch. The wider pitch allows for placement of additional and larger vias under the device to enable high current carrying capability despite the extremely small 2.6 mm x 4.6 mm footprint.

The EPC2152 ePower™ Stage enables higher performance and smaller solution size for high power density, low-cost DC-DC conversion demonstrated in the EPC9151 power module.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.— December, 2020 — EPC announces the availability of the EPC9151, a 300 W bidirectional DC-DC voltage regulator in the in the very small 16^th brick format which is just 33 mm x 22.9 mm (1.3 x 0.9 in). The EPC9151 power module features Microchip’s dsPIC33CK digital signal controller (DSC) with the EPC2152 ePower™ Stage integrated circuit from EPC to achieve greater than 95% efficiency in a 300 W 48 V to/from 12 V converter design.  Additional phases can be added to this scalable 2-phase design to further increase power.

Efficient Power Conversion Corporation (EPC), the world’s leader in enhancement-mode gallium nitride on silicon (eGaN^®) power FETs and ICs, has won the Contributor of the Year award of the prestigious World Electronics Achievement Awards (WEAA) 2020 for Dr. Alex Lidow, CEO and co-founder of Efficient Power Conversion.

The WEAA scheme honors products, companies and individuals that have made outstanding contributions to the innovation and development of the electronics industry worldwide. A committee comprising of ASPENCORE global senior industry analysts and online users from Asia, the US and Europe select the winners. ASPENCORE is the largest electronics industry media and SaaS group in the world featuring media titles including EE Times and EDN.

EPC introduces 170 V, 6.8 milliohm EPC2059 eGaN^® FET, offering designers a device that is smaller, more efficient, more reliable, and lower cost than currently available devices for high performance 48 V synchronous rectification.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — November 2019 — Efficient Power Conversion Corporation, the world’s leader in enhancement-mode gallium nitride on silicon (eGaN) power FETs and ICs, advances the performance capability while lowering the cost of off-the-shelf gallium nitride transistors with the introduction of the EPC2059 (6.8 mΩ, 170 V) eGaN FET.  This device is the latest in a family of 100 V – 200 V solutions suitable for a wide-range of power levels and price points. They are designed to meet the increasing demands of 48 V – 56 V server and data center products as well as an array of consumer power supply applications for high end computing, including gaming PCs, LCD/LED TVs, and LED lighting.

Stefan Werkstetter appointed as New Director of Sales for EMEA to focus on assisting customers in the adoption of eGaN^® FETs and Integrated Circuits for applications including DC-DC, lidar, motor control, and other leading-edge power conversion systems

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — November 2020 — To support the continued adoption of gallium nitride (GaN) FETs and Integrated Circuits in the European market, Efficient Power Conversion Corporation (EPC) is pleased to announce the appointment of Stefan Werkstetter as Director, Sales EMEA.

THIEF RIVER FALLS, Minnesota, USA – Digi-Key Electronics, the leading global electronic components distributor, announced that it has partnered with Efficient Power Conversion Corporation (EPC) to host a webinar on how to harness the power of eGaN FETS and ICs for motor drives. The webinar will take place on October 28 at 8 a.m. PST.

Register for the Harness the Power of GaN for Smaller, Lighter, More Precise Motor Drives webinar at EPC’s webinar page

Two solutions for high power density DC-DC conversion using ultra-efficient eGaN^® FETs from EPC (Efficient Power Conversion) enable highly efficient solutions for ultra-thin laptops, displays, high-end gaming systems and other physically thin consumer electronics.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.— October, 2020 — EPC announces the availability of the EPC9148 and EPC9153 demonstration boards for 48 V DC-DC conversion.  The EPC9153 is a 250 W, extremely thin, power module using a simple, low-cost synchronous buck configuration delivering a 98.2% peak efficiency with a maximum component height of 6.5 mm.  The EPC9148 utilizes a multilevel topology enabling a maximum component height less than 4 mm, while maintaining a 98% peak efficiency.

These new generation 100 V eGaN^® FETs are ideal for 48-V_OUT synchronous rectification, class-D audio, infotainment, and lidar.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.— September, 2020 — EPC, the world’s leader in enhancement-mode gallium nitride on silicon (eGaN) power FETs and ICs, advances the performance capability while lowering the cost of off-the-shelf gallium nitride transistors with the introduction of EPC2218 and EPC2204 100 V eGaN FETs.  The applications for these leading-edge devices include synchronous rectification, class-D audio, infotainment systems, DC-DC converters (hard-switched and resonant), and lidar for autonomous cars, robotics, and drones.

These new generation 200 V eGaN^® FETs are ideal for 48 V_OUT synchronous rectification, class-D audio, solar microinverters and optimizers, and multilevel, high-voltage AC/DC converters

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.— August, 2020 — EPC, the world’s leader in enhancement-mode gallium nitride on silicon (eGaN) power FETs and ICs, advances the performance capability while lowering the cost of off-the-shelf gallium nitride transistors with the introduction of the EPC2215 and EPC2207 200 V eGaN FETs.  The applications for these leading-edge devices include class D audio, synchronous rectification, solar MPPTs (maximum power point tracker), DC-DC converters (hard-switched and resonant), and multilevel high voltage converters.

The combination of Microchip Technology’s digital signal controllers with ultra-efficient eGaN^® FETs from EPC (Efficient Power Conversion) enable best-in-class power density of 730 W/in³ for high efficiency, low cost DC-DC Conversion.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.— July, 2020 — EPC announces the availability of the EPC9143, a 300 W DC-DC voltage regulator in 16^th brick size. The EPC9143 power module integrates Microchip’s dsPIC33CK digital signal controller (DSC) with the latest generation EPC2053 eGaN FETs from EPC to achieve 96% efficiency in a 48 V input to 12 V output conversion at 25 A.  The switching frequency of 500 kHz enables the 300 W in the very small 16^th brick format which is just 33 mm x 22.9 mm (1.3 x 0.9 in). Additional phases can be added to this scalable 2-phase design to further increase power. The flexibility of the Microchip digital controllers allows the input voltage to be adjusted from 8 V – 72 V and the output voltage from 3.3 V – 25 V.

Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) will showcase the company’s latest ePower™ Stage IC family of products showing how GaN technology’s superior performance is transforming power delivery for computing, communications, robotics, and transportation at the PCIM Europe 2020 Digital Days.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.— June 2020 — The EPC team will be delivering three technical presentations and participating in two panel discussions on gallium nitride (GaN) technology and applications at the upcoming PCIM Europe 2020 Digital Days, July 7 – 8. In addition, the company will participate in the event’s virtual exhibit, showing its latest eGaN FETs and ICs in customers’ end products that are rapidly adopting eGaN technology.

EPC Space, a joint venture company, will provide advanced, high-reliability, gallium nitride (GaN) power conversion solutions for critical spaceborne and other high reliability environments.

EL SEGUNDO, CA and BLACKSBURG, VA – June 2020 – Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) Corporation and VPT, Inc., A HEICO company (NYSE:HEI.A) (NYSE:HEI)  announce the establishment of EPC Space LLC, a joint venture focused on designing and manufacturing radiation hardened (Rad Hard) GaN-on-silicon transistors and ICs packaged, tested, and qualified for satellite and high-reliability applications.

EPC has posted additional modules to the educational video podcast series focusing on reliability and leading-edge applications including high-density computing for Artificial Intelligence (AI), lidar for robots, drones, and cars, and Class-D audio using gallium nitride FETs and ICs.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. – April 2020 – Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) Corporation has posted an update to its popular “How to GaN” video podcast series. The six videos included in the current release of the series provide practical examples to help designers employ GaN technology to create state-of-the-art DC-DC converters for AI servers and ultra-thin laptops, lidar for robots, drones, and autonomous cars, and audio systems with the highest quality acoustics possible.