Delta Shrinks Power Supply With Transphorm GaN FETs

Power supply maker Delta Electronics has announced that it is using Transphorm’s high-voltage (HV) GaN FETs in its latest 80Plus Platinum 800W PSU.

According to Delta, the use of GaN enabled it to reduce the power system size by ~25 percent, allowing for it to include a backup lithium-ion battery within a CRPS form factor. Should a data centre lose power, the PSU’s battery will keep connected servers running for one minute - long enough to allow for a proper power down sequence.

The design comes from Delta’s deepening experience working with GaN power semiconductors. The decision to use HV GaN devices depended partly on meeting new product reliability and power density objectives. Additionally, Delta sought to successfully repurpose its existing PSU design - a standard PFC continuous-conduction mode (CCM) boost converter.

GaN use within the server power supply market is ramping. Research firm Yole Développement projects the market’s growth to reach approximately $50 million by 2022. This would position server power supplies as the third largest segment within the total GaN power device market (~$450 million by 2022) behind broad industrial power supplies.