When it comes to power, everybody wants more

However, squeezing more of anything out of traditional silicon-based component technology is proving to be problematical. That’s why engineers are increasingly turning to Gallium Nitride (GaN), or Silicon Carbide (SiC) for more high-power designs. These and another Wide BandGap (WBG) materials offer a range of design advantages that stem from their high carrier mobility and high breakdown voltage, due to the large critical electric field. These advantages include higher device switching frequencies, and higher operating temperatures.

Consider one such device widely used in next generation, high power systems, the GaN Field Effect Transistor (FET). GaN FETs can realise high power density operation with low power loss because of the properties of the semiconductor material.

One device, TI’s LMG5200, is an 80V GaN FET power stage component that has been optimised for applications requiring high efficiency and a small physical form factor. Here, engineers will find that advanced packaging design greatly simplifies board layout and board manufacturability - all the while reducing overall component costs.

The LMG5200 power GaN FETs has the advantage of improving performance across a range of applications while reducing adoption risk in applications such as multi-MHz synchronous buck converters, Class D amplifiers for audio and 48V to POL converters for data communications and telecommunications servers. GaN FET power stage devices also provide significant efficiency benefits across a wide load range while improving switching frequency and power density.

Click here to read more about how GaN improves energy efficiency and power density in next gen DC/DC converters.