EPC announces automotive qualified GaN FETs
80V GaN FETs target 48 V- 12 V DC-DC conversion, infotainment, and lidar for autonomous driving
Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) has expanded the selection of its automotive, off-the-shelf GaN transistors for automotive DC-DC for 48V-12V conversion, infotainment, and lidar for autonomous driving.
The 80 V, 6 mΩ EPC2204A delivers 125 A pulsed current in a 2.5 mm x 1.5 mm footprint and the 80 V, 3.2 mΩ EPC2218A delivers 231 A pulsed current is a 3.5 mm x 1.95 mm footprint, offering designers smaller and more efficient devices than silicon MOSFETs.
The EPC2204A and EPC2218A are suitable for applications with demanding requirements for high power density including 48 V – 12 V bidirectional converters for mild hybrid cars, 24 V – 48 V DC-DC in cars and trucks, and for infotainment, lighting, and ADAS applications.
Lower gate charges (QGD), and zero reverse recovery losses allow high-frequency operation of 1 MHz and beyond. Combined with high efficiency in a super tiny footprint, these factors enable state-of-the-art power density.
As an example, for 2 kW – 4 kW 48 V-12 V converters, GaN devices allow five times the frequency of silicon MOSFET solutions. Also, with a quarter of the inductance, inductor size and losses are reduced allowing 40 percent higher current per phase and up to half of the phases for lower system cost and half of the size. Despite the smaller size, efficiency increases up to 98 percent, greater than 2 percent higher than MOSFET solutions.
For lower power DC-DC, such as those used for infotainment applications in the vehicle, GaN allows for operations at 2 MHz and above to avoid interference and enable the smallest solution size.
The fast-switching speed of GaN, with sub nanosecond transitions and the capability to generate high current pulses in less than 3 ns, allows for longer range and higher resolution in lidar for autonomous driving, parking, and collision avoidance.
“The EPC2204A and EPC2218A make the ideal switches for automotive lidar and 48 V DC-DC. These 80 V devices improve performance and cost for highly efficiency vehicle electrification and advanced autonomy applications”, according to Alex Lidow, EPC’s co-founder and CEO. “EPC is committed to the automotive market with devices ranging from 15 V – 100 V shipping in volume, and many more are planned for release.”
The EPC2204A is priced at $1.55/ea at 1Ku and the EPC2218A is priced at $3.01/ea at 1Ku
Designers interested in replacing their silicon MOSFETs with a GaN solution can use the EPC GaN Power Bench’s cross-reference tool to find a suggested replacement based on their unique operating conditions.
