Power Integrations’ gallium nitride (GaN) story
Gallium nitride (GaN) power semiconductors continue to push the boundaries of high-voltage electronics, as evident at this year’s Applied Power Electronics Conference (APEC) in Long Beach, California. GaN devices are moving beyond fast chargers for cell phones, tablets, and game machines into the realm of automotive, renewable energy, and industrial applications.
At APEC 2024, during his plenary presentation titled “Innovating for Sustainability and Profitability,” Power Integrations CEO Balu Balakrishnan revealed that his company had been shipping GaN switches for two to three years in high volume before anybody knew it. “We never advertised our GaN technology because we saw it as a means to an end to deliver high efficiency and performance.”
Figure 1 Balakrishnan talked about his company’s GaN history and future roadmap at APEC 2024. Source: Power Integrations
That was quite a revelation because, according to Omdia, Power Integrations was the number one supplier of GaN power semiconductors in 2022, with nearly 17% market share. Moreover, in October 2023, Power Integrations unveiled a 1,250 V GaN IC; it claims power conversion efficiency as high as 93% while enabling highly compact flyback power supplies that can deliver up to 85 W without a heatsink.
Earlier, in March 2023, the Silicon Valley-based power semiconductor supplier released a 900-V GaN IC as part of its InnoSwitch3 family of flyback switcher ICs. It delivers up to 100 W with better than 93% efficiency and eliminates the need for heat sinks.
Figure 2 The 1,250-V GaN power supply IC is part of the company’s InnoSwitch flyback switcher ICs. Source: Power Integrations
Power Integrations claims to be the first to market with high-volume shipments of GaN-based power-supply ICs in 2019. A GaN switch, integrated with a controller and everything else in a single package, was first used in a notebook adapter design. “Two customers were very suspicious, saying there is no way you can have that level of efficiency with silicon,” Balakrishnan told the APEC audience. “So, we had to tell them under a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).”
“Efficiency is going to be the mantra in power electronics for a long time,” he added. Balakrishnan also said that GaN will eventually be less expensive than silicon for high-voltage switches. “There is no fundamental reason why it won’t be cost-effective in the long run.”
However, he clarified that GaN will replace silicon in certain areas. “Everybody thinks it will replace silicon, but GaN won’t replace silicon in controllers and digital circuitry,” he added. Balakrishnan and his engineers at Power Integrations also believe that GaN will get to the point where it’ll be very competitive with SiC while being less expensive to build.
As Balakrishnan noted, GaN has been talked about for a long time, but the challenge was operating reliably on high voltage. It’s ascent to voltages as high as 900 V, 1,250 V, and potentially even higher voltages shows that GaN is ready for commercial limelight.
Consequently, stakes for GaN semiconductor players, including Power Integrations, are getting higher as well.
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