News: Microelectronics
11 February 2021
Navitas launches high-power 650V/800V-rated GaNFast power IC
Navitas Semiconductor Inc of El Segundo, CA, USA has launched the NV6128, a high-power 650V/800V-rated GaNFast power IC to address the high-power mobile and consumer power electronics market. The 70mΩ NV6128 represents a 66% increase in current capability, in a small (6mm x 8mm) PQFN package with a proprietary, integrated cooling pad for high-efficiency, high-density power systems.
Gallium nitride (GaN) is reckoned to run up to 20x faster than silicon (Si), and enables up to 3x more power or 3x faster charging in half the size and weight. Founded in 2014, Navitas introduced what it claimed to be the first commercial GaN power ICs, which monolithically integrate GaN power field-effect transistors (FETs) and drive plus control and protection circuits, enabling faster charging, higher power density and greater energy savings.
“GaNFast power ICs have been broadly adopted by tier-1 names like Lenovo, Dell, OPPO and Xiaomi for fast-charging mobile adapters up to 200W, with over 13 million shipped and zero failures,” notes CEO & co-founder Gene Sheridan. “With the higher-power NV6128, we extended the effective power range to 500W for the consumer market and look beyond that to multi-kW data-center, eMobility and new energy applications.”
Unlike competing solutions, it is claimed, the NV6128 is rated at 650V for nominal operation plus a high 800V peak capability for robust operation during transient events. As a true power IC, the GaN gate is fully protected and the whole device is rated at what is claimed to be an industry-leading electrostatic discharge (ESD) specification of 2kV.
“Compared to current tier-1 OEM laptop adapters using old silicon in traditional diode rectification and boost PFC topologies at 50-70kHz, the GaNFast NV6128 enables a modern high-speed totem-pole architecture and complete 300W solutions at over 1.1W/cc,” says chief operating officer/chief technology officer & co-founder Dan Kinzer. “That’s up to 3x smaller and lighter with existing 200kHz control,” he adds. “When you crank up the speed to MHz+, you get another major step-increase in power density.”
For power electronics designers, the NV6128 and all the GaNFast power IC family offer easy-to-use, high-speed, high-efficiency solutions for 200-500W applications such as all-in-one PCs, TVs, game consoles, eMobility chargers (eScooters, eBikes) and gaming laptops, the firm says.
Design-support includes detailed datasheets, electrical models (SPICE), and mechanical models (.stp). The NV6128 is in high-volume mass production and immediately available from distribution partners, at a price of $7.85 in 1000-unit quantities.
Navitas ships 13 millionth GaNFast Power ICs with zero failures
