News: Microelectronics
23 March 2022
GaN Systems exhibiting power supplies for data centers
At the 37th annual IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition (APEC 2022) in Houston, TX, USA (20-24 March), GaN Systems Inc of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (a fabless developer of gallium nitride-based power switching semiconductors for power conversion and control applications) has announced power supply unit (PSU) solutions that, it is claimed, enable data centers to enhance profitability, reduce operating costs, and reduce energy consumption. Solutions from SoluM, Compuware and GaN Systems are on display at the firm’s booth #1324.
GaN Systems says that power supplies based on its technology have 50% higher power density, enabling operators to fit more CPU power, more GPU power and more storage in existing racks, driving more profit, lower operating costs and more optimized capital plans. Furthermore, the firm’s power supplies deliver higher efficiency than silicon-based alternatives. Greater energy efficiency translates to lower energy bills and reduced CO2 emissions, reducing carbon footprint and helping customers to deliver on sustainability targets.
New to the lineup of GaN Systems’ data-center customers is SoluM, a supplier to Intel that has more than 90% of the server CPU market share and is steadily expanding its server system business using SoluM power supplies. Its newest product with GaN Systems is a high-reliability 2700W power supply at 240Vac with 12V output. The high-efficiency design meets 80 PLUS Titanium efficiency standards in a higher-density form factor at 82W/in3.
GaN Systems says that it can help customers get to market faster through the use of reference designs like its 3kW BTP-PFC and the newly released 3kW LLC converter evaluation board that exceeds 80 PLUS Titanium efficiency requirements. The design enables near 99% peak efficiency, achieves high power density above 80W/in3, and reduces system cost by 10-25%, it is claimed.
GaN Systems has also developed next-generation power-stage thermal management designs like the new CerStrate power stage (which features up to 200W/m.K thermal conductivity) and the IMS4 power stage (which features 7W/m.K thermal conductivity). Suitable for data-center power supply applications, these designs reduce thermal resistance by up to 90%, increasing system efficiency and performance.
“We are seeing more server companies and data-center operators worldwide recognizing the power of GaN to drive up profits, reduce operating expenses, and deliver on sustainability goals,” says CEO Jim Witham. “We saw the potential for GaN to disrupt the data-center power market early, which is why we have spent the last several years designing optimized products for this market,” he adds. “We are proud to see a broad range of customers adopting these solutions and designing them into data centers around the world.”
