News: Microelectronics
9 November 2020
TI launches first automotive GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and active power management
Dallas-based Texas Instruments Inc (TI) has expanded its high-voltage power management portfolio with the next generation of 650V and 600V gallium nitride (GaN) field-effect transistors (FETs) for automotive and industrial applications. With a fast-switching, 2.2MHz integrated gate driver, the new families of GaN FETs are said to help engineers to deliver twice the power density, achieve 99% efficiency and reduce the size of power magnetics by 59% compared with existing solutions.
TI developed the new FETs using its proprietary GaN materials and processing capabilities on a GaN-on-silicon substrate, providing a cost and supply-chain advantage over comparable substrate materials such as silicon carbide (SiC).
Vehicle electrification is transforming the automotive industry, and consumers are increasingly demanding vehicles that can charge faster and drive further. Engineers are hence being challenged to design compact, lightweight automotive systems without compromising vehicle performance. TI says that using its new automotive GaN FETs can help to reduce the size of electric vehicle (EV) onboard chargers and DC/DC converters by as much as 50% compared with existing silicon or SiC solutions, enabling engineers to achieve extended battery range, increased system reliability and lower design cost. In industrial designs, the new devices enable high efficiency and power density in AC/DC power-delivery applications where low losses and reduced board space are important, such as hyperscale and enterprise computing platforms as well as 5G telecom rectifiers.
“Wide-bandgap semiconductor technologies like GaN inherently bring firmly established capabilities to power electronics, especially for high-voltage systems,” comments Asif Anwar, director of the Powertrain, Body, Chassis & Safety Service at market research firm Strategy Analytics. “Texas Instruments leverages over a decade of investment and development to deliver a uniquely holistic approach – combining internal GaN-on-Si device production and packaging with optimized silicon driver technology to successfully implement GaN in new applications,” he adds.
“Industrial and automotive applications increasingly demand more power in less space, and designers must deliver proven power management systems that operate reliably over the long lifetime of the end equipment,” says Steve Lambouses, TI’s VP for High Voltage Power. “Backed by more than 40 million device reliability hours and more than 5GWh of power conversion application testing, TI’s GaN technology provides the lifetime reliability engineers require in any market.”
Double power density with fewer devices
In high-voltage, high-density applications, minimizing board space is an important design consideration. As electronic systems are getting smaller, the components inside them must also get smaller and sit closer together. TI’s new GaN FETs integrate a fast-switching driver, plus internal protection and temperature sensing, enabling engineers to achieve high performance while reducing board space for their power management designs. This integration, plus the high power density of TI’s GaN technology, enables engineers to eliminate more than 10 components typically required for discrete solutions, the firm reckons. Additionally, each of the new 30mΩ FETs can support up to 4kW of power conversion when applied in a half-bridge configuration.
Highest efficiency in PFC
GaN offers the advantage of fast switching, which enables smaller, lighter and more efficient power systems. Historically, the trade-off with gaining fast switching capability is higher power losses. To avoid this trade-off, the new GaN FETs feature TI’s ideal diode mode to reduce power losses, the firm says. For example, in power factor correction (PFC), ideal diode mode reduces third-quadrant losses by up to 66% compared with discrete GaN and SiC metal-oxide-semiconductor FETs (MOSFETs). Ideal diode mode also eliminates the need for adaptive dead-time control, reducing firmware complexity and development time. For more information, see the application note ‘Maximizing the Performance of GaN with Ideal Diode Mode’ at www.ti.com/lit/an/snoa932/snoa932.pdf.
Maximize thermal performance
Offering what is claimed to be 23% lower thermal impedance than the nearest competing packaging, the TI GaN FET packaging allows engineers to use smaller heat-sinks while simplifying thermal designs. The new devices provide maximum thermal design flexibility, no matter the application, with the ability to choose from either a bottom- or top-side-cooled package. In addition, the FETs’ integrated digital temperature reporting enables active power management, allowing engineers to optimize system thermal performance under varying loads and operating conditions.
Package, availability and pricing
Pre-production versions of the four new industrial-grade, 600V GaN FETs are available now, only on TI.com, in a 12mm-by-12mm, quad flat no-lead (QFN) package. TI expects the industrial devices to ship in volume production in first-quarter 2021. Evaluation modules are available for purchase on TI.com starting at $199. Multiple payment, line-of-credit and fast, reliable shipping options are available on TI.com.
Pre-production versions of the new LMG3522R030-Q1 and LMG3525R030-Q1 650-V automotive GaN FETs and evaluation modules are expected to be available for purchase on TI.com in first-quarter 2021. Engineering samples are available upon request at www.ti.com/autogan.
TI launches ready-to-use 600V GaN FET power stages supports applications up to 10kW
TI expands GaN power portfolio with smallest and fastest GaN FET drivers
TI launches 600V driver-integrated GaN 70mΩ FET power stage for power conversion
www.ti.com/power-management/gan/overview.html
