650V and 600V Gallium Nitride (GaN) FETs to Deliver High Power Density and Efficiency in Automotive and Industrial Applications

The new automotive GaN FETs from Texas Instruments are 650-V and 600-V gallium nitride (GaN) field-effect transistors (FETs) released for automotive and industrial applications. With a fast-switching, 2.2-MHz integrated gate driver, the new families of GaN FETs namely LMG3522R030-Q1 and LMG3525R030-Q1 promise to help engineers deliver twice the power density, achieve 99% efficiency and reduce the size of power magnetics by 59% compared to existing solutions.

Developed using Ti’s proprietary GaN materials and processing capabilities on a GaN-on-silicon (Si) substrate, the new FETs provide a cost and supply-chain advantage over comparable substrate materials such as silicon carbide (SiC).  

These automotive GaN FETs ensure to reduce the size of electric vehicle (EV) onboard chargers and DC/DC converters by as much as 50% compared to the existing Si or SiC solutions. This way, engineers can achieve extended battery range, increased system reliability, and lower design cost.

Additionally, these devices enable high efficiency and power density in AC/DC power-delivery applications (like hyper-scale and enterprise computing platforms and 5G telecom rectifiers) where low losses and reduced board space play a vital role. 

These new 30-mΩ GaN FETs can support up to 4 kW of power conversion when applied in a half-bridge configuration. Besides, they integrate fast-switching and internal protection and temperature sensing, thereby, enhancing performance and reducing board space for power management designs. This integration helps engineers to eliminate more than 10 components required for discrete solutions.

The FETs offer a 23% lower thermal impedance than the competitive packaging. This allows engineers to use small heat sinks while simplifying thermal designs. With the ability to choose from either a bottom- or top-side-cooled package, these new devices can provide maximum thermal design flexibility. The active power management features of the FETs enable engineers to optimize system thermal performance under varying loads and operating conditions.

Features of LMG3522R030-Q1 and LMG3525R030-Q1 GaN FETs

• 650-V and 600-V gallium nitride (GaN) field-effect transistors (FETs)
• Fast switching, 2.2-MHz integrated gate driver
• Twice the power density to achieve 99% efficiency
• 59% reduction in the size of power magnetics compared to existing solutions

Pre-production versions of the new LMG3522R030-Q1 and LMG3525R030-Q1 650-V automotive GaN FETs and evaluation modules will be available for purchase in the first quarter of 2021 from the company website.

Note: More technical information can be found in the LMG3522R030-Q1 and LMG3525R030-Q1 GaN FETs Datasheet linked at the bottom of this page and on the LMG3522R030-Q1 and LMG3525R030-Q1 GaN FETs product page.