Infineon and Enphase announce 900V GaN BDS devices
Infineon has announced that it will supply the world’s first 900V GaN monolithic bidirectional switches (BDS) to Enphase Energy for use in its solid-state transformer (SST) power modules.
SSTs are emerging as a key building block for next-generation power distribution architectures. While SiC is widely used in high-voltage power conversion systems, Infineon says that the new CoolGaN 900V monolithic BDS expands the range of available solutions for SST architectures that benefit from high-frequency operation and integrated bidirectional switching functionality.
By extending the operating voltage range of GaN technology to 900V while maintaining its high-frequency switching characteristics, the devices enable highly efficient, compact power conversion architectures for emerging applications including AI data centres.
Within the collaboration, Enphase led the development and system-level demonstration, building on more than ten years of in-house research into GaN-based power conversion, with device technology and engineering support from Infineon.
The two companies have already partnered on 650V GaN BDS technology for the Enphase IQ9 Microinverters. The new 900V GaN BDS devices have been successfully tested and are now being integrated into Enphase’s IQ SST product development, with production qualification expected to follow.
"The future of power conversion will be enabled by a broad portfolio of semiconductor technologies," said Adam White, division president power systems at Infineon. "With our new 900V CoolGaN BDS, we are extending the range of applications where customers can benefit from the efficiency and power density advantages of GaN and bringing the technology into a voltage class that opens new possibilities for high-performance power conversion systems."
The collaboration directly benefits Enphase’s IQ Solid-State Transformer, the company's SST product for AI data centres, where power density, efficiency and uptime directly influence the economics of every megawatt deployed.
The same device technology is also expected to benefit commercial solar inverters by enabling three-phase, line-to-line designs for 480 V applications in the US and 400 V applications in other regions, with fewer switches, lower losses and reduced system cost.
