Monolithic HV GaN Power ICs: Performance and application

The 2016 IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference featured more than 100 papers [1] based on gallium nitride (GaN) power components up to 650 V, yet market adoption of GaN in off-line alternating current (ac) or 400 V direct current (dc) input converters has been slow. This article explores the physical material advantages of GaN versus silicon (Si) and compares early cascode GaN approaches in terms of device, package, and application design. A new approach is introduced where drive, logic, and field-effect transistor (FET) are monolithically integrated to create a GaN power integrated circuit (IC). Comparative data is provided for the device and circuit performance, including the size and cost versus the frequency, with a focus on a 150-W ac-dc converter, using boost power factor correction (PFC) and LLC topologies.