Industrial GaN Solar Applications: GaN Devices for Reliable Solar Power

GaN Increases Efficiency, Reduces Size and Weight, and Supports Long Lifetime

Solar power provides a renewable, clean source of electricity that’s scalable enough to power a single household or be deployed on an industrial scale.

With that scalability comes specific challenges. Solar applications need to guarantee:

  • Long lifetime (greater than 20 years)
  • Excellent thermal behavior
  • High power density to increase power in the same form factor or for integration with the panel

The trend for higher power density results in very expensive cooling systems and silicon MOSFET solutions can no longer meet the power density required. That’s why leading solar companies are adopting GaN.

GaN devices are ideal for the primary stage of microinverters or separate MPPT/optimizers. They can also be used in multilevel topologies for battery energy storage systems or string inverters.

Solar Optimizer

A solar panel optimizer enhances the power from each solar panel, no matter how the other panels are performing. It allows the system more output power from a solar panel, which means more energy and a more efficient solar system.

Typically, for a single panel, VIN varies between 12.5 V and 60 V and VOUT between 30 V and 60 V and the maximum current is ~ 20 A. A dual-panel optimizer requires double the voltage. In this hard switching topology, GaN offers the best figure of merit and lower power losses, resulting in the highest efficiency.

Microinverters

For microinverters, GaN offers higher power density, excellent thermal performance for easier cooling or increased power, excellent reliability, and proven lifetime. Users can also take advantage of the GaN performance benefits to increase the frequency up to 1 MHz for the highest density.

Energy Storage System

GaN allows for the use of smaller voltage devices with smaller form factor. This reduces dV/dt and increases equivalent output frequency, resulting in higher efficiency and density, simplifying cooling and limiting stress in the components for longer lifetime.

GaN Industrial Solar

Reference Designs

Industrial Solar Reference Designs

Coming Soon!

• Microinverter reference design
• Optimizer reference design

EPC’s application team is constantly working on new reference designs. If there is a requirement not met by the listed boards, please contact us via Ask a GaN Expert to discuss your application further.

Half-bridge development boards are available for quick evaluation of most eGaN FETs and ICs.

Products

Recommended GaN Devices for Industrial Solar

Part Number Status Configuration VDS
max
VGS
max
max
RDS(on)
(mΩ)
@5VGS
QG
typ
(nC)
QGS
typ
(nC)
QGD
typ
(nC)
QOSS
typ
(nC)
ID (A) Pulsed ID
(A)
Package
(mm)
EPC2218A Preferred Single AEC 80 6 3.2 10.5 3.2 1.5 46 60 231 LGA 3.5 x 1.95 Buy Now
uP1966E Preferred Half Bridge Driver IC 85 BGA 1.6 x 1.6 Buy Now
EPC2044 Preferred Single 100 6 10.5 4.3 1.3 0.5 15 9.4 89 BGA 2.15 x 1.25 Buy Now
EPC23102 Engr Half Bridge ePower™ Stage 100 6.6 28 35 QFN 3.5 x 5 Buy Now
EPC23102 Engr Half Bridge ePower™ Stage 100 6.6 28 35 QFN 3.5 x 5 Buy Now
EPC2204 Preferred Single 100 6 6 5.7 1.8 0.8 25 29 125 LGA 2.5 x 1.5 Buy Now
EPC2619 Preferred Single 100 6 4.2 8.5 2.2 1 27 29 164 LGA 2.5 x 1.5 Buy Now
EPC2306 Engr Single 100 6 3.8 11 4.1 1.1 41 48 197 QFN 3 x 5 Buy Now
EPC23101 Engr Half Bridge ePower™ Chipset 100 6 3.3 50 65 240 QFN 3.5 x 5 Buy Now
EPC2088 Preferred Single 100 6 3.2 12.5 4.4 1.4 47 60 231 LGA 3.5 x 1.95 Buy Now
EPC2071 Preferred Single 100 6 2.2 18 6 1.8 71 64 350 LGA 4.45 x 2.3 Buy Now
EPC2302 Preferred Single 100 6 1.8 23 8.9 2.3 85 101 408 QFN 3 x 5 Buy Now
EPC2308 Engr Single 150 6 6 10.6 3.8 1.4 50 48 157 QFN 3 x 5 Buy Now
EPC2305 Engr Single 150 6 3 21 6.3 2.6 105 102 329 QFN 3 x 5 Buy Now
EPC2059 Preferred Single 170 6 9 5.7 1.3 0.9 35 24 102 LGA 2.8 x 1.4 Buy Now
EPC2207 Preferred Single 200 6 22 4.5 1.3 0.7 23 14 54 LGA 2.8 x 0.925 Buy Now
EPC2215 Preferred Single 200 6 8 13.6 3.3 2.1 69 32 162 LGA 4.6 x 1.6 Buy Now
EPC2050 Preferred Single 350 6 80 2.9 1.3 0.3 35 6.3 26 BGA 1.95 x 1.95 Buy Now

Request a maximum of five (5) free samples of a device from the above table to get your design started!

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