GaN Switching Frequency and Power Efficiency Outperforms Silicon to Produce a Conduction Cooled Design
(December 18, 2018) Transphorm Inc.—the leader in the design and manufacturing of the highest reliability and first JEDEC- and AEC-Q101 qualified gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors—today announced with Marotta Controls that the Aerospace and Defense supplier’s upcoming power supply unit (PSU) replaces incumbent Silicon (Si) MOSFETs with high voltage GaN PQFN devices to offer advanced benefits.
Marotta’s latest design operates at high frequency in a conduction-cooled mechanically constrained envelope. The supply’s topology features hard switching and an automatic transformer RESET capability where transistor voltage stresses are clamped to the input voltage. The GaN devices increase the PSU’s efficiency dramatically and alleviate a complex thermal design in the small form factor package.
“The demand on our power supplies and expectation of performance is high,” explained Mike Scruggs, Principal Engineer, Marotta Controls. “This particular complex PSU needed to reliably convert and distribute power in a small envelope. The system design had to work considerably higher than 100 KHz to reduce the power components size, but our engineering team met challenges with heat dissipation and component temperatures under peak load conditions. In our search beyond standard transistor solutions we were led to find Transphorm’s high voltage GaN technology.”
| After testing Si-based prototypes, Marotta vetted Transphorm’s TPH3208LD PQFN package. The TPH3208LD reached the desired switching speeds with significantly reduced losses.The GaN devices’ dissipation significantly decreased compared to that of the Si MOSFETs, resulting in lower board component temperatures. This, in turn, yielded a simpler viable thermal design and packaging concept for the overall system. |  |
After testing Si-based prototypes, Marotta vetted Transphorm’s TPH3208LD PQFN package. The TPH3208LD reached the desired switching speeds with significantly reduced losses.The GaN devices’ dissipation significantly decreased compared to that of the Si MOSFETs, resulting in lower board component temperatures. This, in turn, yielded a simpler viable thermal design and packaging concept for the overall system.
“We initially selected Transphorm’s transistors for the reputable reliability and our experience has since exceeded our expectations,” stated Steve Fox, Vice President of Engineering and Program Management and CTO, Marotta Controls. “Transphorm’s GaN enabled us to not only gain high power efficiency and thermal performance, but also generated power savings in the drive and control circuitry—additional benefits that will provide opportunities in future designs. Transphorm’s ability to align with our vision of providing advanced, next-generation technologies combined with their exceptional level of technical support and dependability are the exact characteristics we look for in our growing supplier base.”
“Notably, Marotta’s design success is important for several reasons,” said Philip Zuk, Vice President of Worldwide Technical Marketing, Transphorm. “First, it indicates yet another hard-switched topology type that can effectively leverage high voltage GaN. Second, Marotta completed its design with minimal assistance from Transphorm’s application support team—indicating that the market’s initial concern that design challenges would slow GaN adoption can be addressed through the use of Transphorm’s GaN FETs.”
Release of Marotta’s high frequency PSU is slated for January 2019. The product will mark the Aerospace and Defense industry’s first publicly recognized high-voltage-GaN-based power supply.
About Marotta Controls
Founded in 1943, Marotta Controls is a fully integrated solutions provider which designs, develops, qualifies and manufactures innovative systems and sub-systems for the aerospace and defense sectors. Our portfolio includes pressure, power, motion, fluid, and electronic controls for weapon systems, shipboard and sub-sea applications, satellites, launch vehicles, and aircraft systems. With over 200 patents, Marotta Controls continues to build on its legacy as a highly respected, family-owned small business based in the state of New Jersey. Twitter: @marottacontrols LinkedIn: Marotta Controls, Inc.
About Transphorm
Transphorm moves power electronics beyond Silicon limits. The company designs, manufactures, and sells the highest performance, highest reliability GaN semiconductors for high-voltage power conversion applications. Holding one of the largest Power GaN IP portfolios (1000+ issued and pending patents worldwide), Transphorm produces the industry’s only JEDEC and AEC-Q101 qualified GaN FETs. This is due to a vertically-integrated business approach, which allows for innovation at every stage: materials and device design and manufacture, fabrication, packaging, reference circuit designs, and application support. Website: transphormusa.com Twitter: @transphormusa
Press Contacts:
Katee Glass
Marotta Controls
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Heather Ailara
211 Communications
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P: +1.617.283.9222
