by Johan Strydom, Efficient Power Conversion, El Segundo, Calif., How2Power Today, Jun 29 2010
Focus:
In order to speed their adoption, EPC's enhancement-mode GaN (eGaN) on silicon transistors were designed with ease of use in mind. In other words, they were designed so they could replace silicon power MOSFETs without radically changing the design of the surrounding power stage circuitry. This article explains why eGaN devices are easy to use, describing how they operate and their similarities and differences versus silicon power MOSFETs. With that as background, the article explains the gate-drive requirements for eGaN transistors, and presents suitable discrete and IC-based gate-driver designs for use with eGaN devices. Although there are no eGaN specific gate driver ICs at the time of this writing, there are gate-driver ICs for silicon power MOSFETs that can be adapted for driving eGaN devices. Some of these ICs are listed in this article.
What you’ll learn:
Notes:
This is the first of three articles in How2Power Today addressing the application of EPC's enhancement-mode GaN on silicon transistors in power supply applications. For more, see http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/06/prweb4121934.htm.
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