In the final installment of this series, how GaN has met the requirements to displace silicon is explored. As the adoption rate of GaN explodes, it is important to remember that, while GaN has made many advancements in just a few short years, it is still far from its theoretical performance limitations and thus there are profound improvements that can continue to be achieved. In time, the performance and cost advantages of GaN-on-silicon will result in a majority of applications currently using silicon-based devices converting to the smaller, faster, cheaper, and more reliable GaN technology.

Power Systems Design
February, 2019
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As an example of the contribution to performance GaN devices can make to one of these mainstream applications, a traditional silicon application, the 12 V – 1 V point-of-load (POL) DC/DC converter will be examined. An eGaN IC based 12 V to 1 V, 12 A load converter yielding a peak efficiency of 78% at 5 MHz with a power density of at least 1000 W/in³, all with a cost below $0.20 per watt will be shown

Power Systems Design
January, 2019
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In this series, how the superior switching speed of gallium nitride (GaN)-on-silicon low voltage power devices have enabled many new applications is being discussed. These applications are transforming industries such as light detection and ranging (LiDAR) for autonomous vehicles, envelope tracking for 5G communications and large surface area wireless power for the home and office. In this article, how GaN power devices are transforming medicine by bringing precision control to surgical robots is examined.

Power Systems Design
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In the first article in this series, how gallium nitride (GaN)-on-silicon low voltage power devices have enabled many new applications, such as light detection and ranging (LiDAR), envelope tracking, and wireless power was discussed. In this article, more detail on one of these leading applications, LiDAR, will be explored. How GaN is being used to make LiDAR systems that see farther, with higher resolution, and at lower cost will be shown.

Power Systems Design
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Gallium nitride(GaN)-on-silicon low voltage power devices have enabled many new applications since commercial availability began in 2010. New markets, such as light detection and ranging (LiDAR), envelope tracking, and wireless power, emerged due to the superior switching speed of GaN. These new applications have helped develop a strong supply chain, low production costs, and an enviable reliability record. All of this provides adequate incentive for the more conservative design engineers in applications, such as dc–dc converters, ac–dc converters, and automotive to start their evaluation process. In this series, a few of the many, high volume applications taking advantage of GaN to achieve new levels of end-product differentiation will be discussed. First, it is useful to explore the factors attributing to the rapid acceleration of the adoption rate.

Power Systems Design
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