New Industry Products

2MHz Monolithic GaN Half Bridge targets Class-D Audio

August 03, 2015 by Jeff Shepard

Efficient Power Conversion Corp. (EPC) announces the EPC2106, an enhancement-mode monolithic GaN transistor half bridge. By integrating two eGaN® power FETs into a single device, interconnect inductances and the interstitial space needed on the PCB are eliminated. This increases both efficiency (especially at higher frequencies) and power density, while reducing assembly costs to the end user's power conversion system.

The EPC2106 half-bridge component has a voltage rating of 100V with a typical RDS(on) of 55mΩ, output capacitance less than 600pF, zero reverse recovery (QRR), and a maximum pulsed drain current of 18A. The low on-resistance and capacitance of GaN enables high efficiency and significantly reduces distortion in Class-D systems. The EPC2106 comes in a small 1.35 mm x 1.35 mm chip-scale package for improved switching speed and thermal performance for increased power density.

The low on-resistance and capacitance of GaN enables high efficiency and significantly reduces distortion in Class-D systems. To demonstrate, the EPC9106 Class-D audio amplifier reference design uses high frequency switching GaN power transistors in the power stage providing precise high-power reproduction of the Class-D audio signal. The system demonstrates high efficiency, size reduction and eliminates the need for a heat sink while delivering prosumer quality sound. You can listen to a demonstration of a GaN-based Class-D audio system here.

The EPC9055 is 2” x 1.5” and contains one EPC2106 integrated half-bridge component using the Texas Instruments LM5113 gate driver, supply and bypass capacitors. The board contains all critical components and has been laid out for optimal switching performance allowing designers to quickly evaluate the advantages that GaN can bring to their systems.

The EPC2106 monolithic half-bridge price for 1K units is $0.81 each. The EPC9055 development boards are priced at $137.75 each. Products are available for immediate delivery from Digi-Key.