News

GaN Systems and On Semi Collaborate on Half-Bridge Gallium-Nitride Eval Board

November 04, 2019 by Paul Shepard

GaN Systems and ON Semiconductor announced the availability of a high-speed, half-bridge GaN daughter board using GaN Systems' 650V, 30A GaN E-HEMTs and ON Semiconductor's NCP51820 high speed gate driver evaluation board.

This evaluation board is developed for existing and new PCB designs and allows designers to easily evaluate GaN in existing half−bridge or full−bridge power supplies. The kit has a reduced component count in an ultra-small 25mm x 25mm layout, minimizing PCB board space. Features, which include 1+ MHz operation and a 200V/ns CMTI rating, provide increased power density and improved performance with fast-switching GaN power transistors.

The half bridge evaluation kit from GaN Systems and On Semiconductor lets designers easily evaluate GaN in an ultra-small layout for a highly cost-effective solution. Benefits include significant reductions in power losses, weight, size (up to 80% in layout size), and system costs (up to 60% BOM cost savings).

It is suited for use in applications such as ac-dc adapters, data center power supplies, PV inverters, energy storage systems, and bridgeless totem pole topologies. This solution is one of many upcoming GaN-based power system solutions both companies are developing.

"The expansion of the GaN components ecosystem including driver ICs such as our NCP51820 remove design barriers and take advantage of the numerous benefits that GaN E-HEMTs provide," stated Ryan Zahn, Director of Marketing at ON Semiconductor. "With rising interest and adoption of GaN, we look forward to continued collaboration with GaN Systems in supporting and meeting the new power requirements taking place across many industries."

"The new evaluation board developed in collaboration with ON Semiconductor makes it easier and more cost effective to design with GaN - opening the door for smaller, lighter, and more efficient power converters," said Charles Bailley, Senior Director, Worldwide Business Development at GaN Systems. "This collaboration signals the innovation not only happening with end products designed with GaN but in components, design tools, and reference designs that optimize the use of GaN."