New Automotive Qualified GaN FETs for Vehicle Electronics and Advanced Autonomy from EPC

– EPC has introduced two new 80 V AEC-Q101 qualified GaN FETs, designed to provide smaller and more efficient solutions for automotive 48 V-12 V DC-DC conversion, infotainment, and lidar for autonomous driving.– The new GaN devices allow higher frequency operation, improved power density, and efficiency increases up to 98%, offering significant advantages over silicon MOSFET solutions.

Efficient Power Conversion Corporation (EPC) has launched two new 80 V AEC-Q101 qualified gallium nitride (GaN) FETs. These devices, EPC2204A and EPC2218A, are designed to offer significantly smaller and more efficient solutions than silicon MOSFETs for automotive 48 V- 12 V DC-DC conversion, infotainment, and lidar for autonomous driving.

EPC2204A delivers 125 A pulsed current in a 2.5 mm x 1.5 mm footprint and EPC2218A delivers 231 A pulsed current in a 3.5 mm x 1.95 mm footprint. These devices are ideal for applications requiring high power density, including 48 V – 12 V bidirectional converters for mild hybrid cars, 24 V – 48 V DC-DC in cars and trucks, infotainment, lighting, and ADAS applications.

These GaN devices can operate at high frequencies of 1 MHz and beyond due to lower gate charges (QGD) and zero reverse recovery losses. This high efficiency and small footprint enable state-of-the-art power density. For example, in 2 kW – 4 kW 48 V-12 V converters, GaN devices can operate at five times the frequency of silicon MOSFET solutions.

Furthermore, GaN allows for operations at 2 MHz and above in lower power DC-DC applications such as those used for infotainment applications in the vehicle. The fast-switching speed of GaN, with sub-nanosecond transitions, allows for longer range and higher resolution in lidar for autonomous driving, parking, and collision avoidance.

EPC’s co-founder and CEO, Alex Lidow, stated, “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.”

The introduction of these new GaN FETs by EPC will provide electric vehicle engineers with more efficient and compact solutions for vehicle electronics, potentially leading to advancements in electric vehicle technology and autonomous driving.

  Source 

The post New Automotive Qualified GaN FETs for Vehicle Electronics and Advanced Autonomy from EPC first appeared on EV Tech Insider.