Power Integrations has introduced a 1700 V gallium nitride (GaN) switch, the 1700 V InnoMux-2. marking a new technical milestone in high-voltage power semiconductors. The technology is implemented in the company’s InnoMux-2 family of power supply ICs, designed for multi-output power supplies operating from high-voltage DC sources.
“The new device is fabricated using our PowiGaN™ technology. It’s a proprietary process from PI that allows us to do very efficient power conversion,” explained Andy Smith, Director of Training at Power Integrations. “We’re marrying it with our InnoMux-2 technology, which is the ability to deliver multiple outputs with a single-stage converter both efficiently and accurately.”
The technology incorporates the 1700 V GaN switch with multi-output regulation, the company’s FluxLink digital isolation technology, and secondary-side zero voltage switching.
A key technical feature is the switch’s efficiency levels at higher voltages. Testing demonstrated consistent performance across voltage ranges. “We took one board and swapped the power IC between them… and look at that, the efficiency is pretty close to identical, which is astounding,” said Smith.
The 1700 V InnoMux-2 IC easily supports 1000 VDC nominal input voltage in a flyback configuration and achieves over 90 percent efficiency in applications requiring one, two, or three supply voltages. Each output is regulated within one percent accuracy, eliminating post regulators and improving system efficiency further by approximately ten percent. The new device replaces expensive silicon carbide (SiC) transistors in power supply applications such as automotive chargers, solar inverters, three-phase meters, and a wide variety of industrial power systems.
Smith continues, “We are able to build a 1700 V GaN transistor. Nobody else is, and the reason for that is the proprietary technology we use for our GaN.” The economics are also notable, with Smith adding that “GaN transistors are somewhere approaching the cost of silicon to manufacture. In fact, in the long term, GaN and silicon prices will probably converge.”
The market timing appears favorable. According to Ezgi Dogmus, Activity Manager at Yole Group, the power GaN device market is poised to reach $2 billion by the decade’s end.
The metering market presents an early opportunity. “Metering hits at that high voltage all day long. They have shorter design cycles than typically would be the case for an industrial application,” Smith explained, noting that “when they roll out energy meters, they tend to roll them out in large quantities, 20, 100,000 at a time.”
Radu Barsan, vice president of technology at Power Integrations, said, “Our rapid pace of GaN development has delivered three world-first voltage ratings in a span of less than two years: 900 V, 1250 V and now 1700 V. Our new InnoMux-2 ICs combine 1700 V GaN and three other recent innovations: independent, accurate, multi-output regulation; FluxLink™, our secondary-side regulation (SSR) digital isolation communications technology; and zero voltage switching (ZVS) without an active-clamp, which all but eliminates switching losses.”
The InnoMux-2 with 1700V GaN technology is now available at $4.90 in 10,000-unit quantities. Power Integrations offers a reference design (RDR-1053) for a 60 W dual-output power supply to demonstrate the technology’s capabilities.
This development in power conversion technology could enable new options for high-voltage applications while balancing efficiency and cost considerations. As energy efficiency requirements evolve, technologies like this may contribute to meeting future power conversion needs.
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