News: Microelectronics
12 July 2022
Navitas acquires VDD Tech to expand high-power, next-gen semiconductor capabilities
Gallium nitride (GaN) power integrated circuit firm Navitas Semiconductor of El Segundo, CA, USA and Dublin, Ireland has acquired VDD Tech of Mont-Saint-Guibert, Belgium, a creator of digital-isolators for next-generation power conversion.
Advanced digital-isolation techniques are essential to deliver size, weight and system-cost improvements in high-power markets such as consumer, motor drive, solar, data center and electric vehicles (EVs). VDD Tech’s proprietary modulation-technique is said to enable stable, reliable, efficient power conversion at MHz+ switching speeds.
Proprietary dV/dt sensing, blanking and refresh technologies enable a combination of very-high-voltage isolation capability with the highest frequency of operation requiring 5-10x higher dV/dt immunity than legacy silicon. Low isolation-capacitance (<0.5pF) and innovative, robust modulation deliver low-jitter digital-communication for isolated-driver control and analog-sensing feedback. A minimum 200V/ns common-mode transient immunity (CMTI) is uniquely guaranteed across all temperature and operating conditions.
VDD Tech was founded by Vincent Dessard, quickly joined by Aimad Saib, each of them holding a doctorate and 15+ years’ experience in analog/mixed-mode IC research and development. Dessard and Saib have taken leading roles in Navitas’ advanced R&D teams.
“It’s exciting to see two breakthrough technologies – optimized digital-isolators and GaN power ICs – combine to deliver such leading-edge, high-power solutions,” says Dessard. “High-speed and high-reliability are the critical factors to accelerate wide-bandgap semiconductor adoption over legacy silicon chips, and we’re very excited to be a catalyst in this once-in-a-generation revolution, with new, high-power products launching in 2023,” he adds.
“VDD Tech’s isolation technology is a key part of our growing power-and-control integration strategy, creating an additional $1bn/year market opportunity,” notes Navitas’ CEO & co-founder Gene Sheridan. “We continue to research and review new technologies that we could add to Navitas’ core strengths, and deliver significant CO2 emission-reduction benefits.”
