GaN: Pushing the limits of power density & efficiency
Design faster, cooler systems with less energy and a smaller footprint
What is gallium nitride (GaN)?
Gallium nitride (GaN) is a wide bandgap semiconductor that enables higher power density and more efficiency than traditional silicon metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) and insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs). GaN processes power more efficiently than silicon-only solutions, reducing power loss by 80% in power converters and minimizing the need for added cooling components. By packing more power into smaller spaces, GaN lets you design smaller, lighter systems.

GaN vs SiC
While there is some overlap in the power levels that GaN and silicon carbide (SiC) serve, GaN has fundamental characteristics that make it a better fit for applications where high power density is critical, such as server and telecom; <22-kW onboard chargers (OBCs) in electric vehicles (EVs); and <100-W consumer power adapters.
In these applications, GaN devices can achieve switching frequencies of >150 kHz in power factor correction (PFC) topologies and >1 MHz in DC/DC power converters, enabling a significant reduction in the size of magnetics in the system. By enabling higher switching speeds than SiC, GaN technologies help you achieve higher power density at a lower cost.
Advantages of TI GaN technology
Faster switching speed than discrete GaN FETs
Our GaN FETs with integrated drivers can reach switching speeds of 150 V/ns. These switching speeds, combined with a low-inductance package, reduce losses, enable clean switching and minimize ringing.
Smaller magnetics, higher power density
Enabled by faster switching speeds, our GaN devices can help you achieve switching frequencies over 500 kHz, which results in up to 60% smaller magnetics, enhanced performance and lower system cost.
Built for reliability
Our GaN devices are designed to keep high-voltage systems safe, thanks to a proprietary GaN-on-Si process, more than 40 million hours of reliability testing and protection features.
Discover featured applications
Reach 80 Plus® Titanium standards with 96.5% total energy efficiency and over 100-W/in^3 power density with TI GaN technology
Design telecom and server systems that support storage, cloud-based applications, central computing power and more using our GaN devices. To help meet your design requirements for energy efficiency, our designs can reach 80® Plus Titanium standards and enable power-factor correction (PFC) efficiencies over 99%.
Benefits
- >99% efficiency enabled by GaN in a totem-pole bridgeless PFC topology
- Switching frequencies >500 kHz in isolated DC/DC converters, resulting in decreased magnetics
- Integrated gate drivers reduce parasitic losses and make system-level design easier
Featured resources
- LMG3422R030 – 600-V 30-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
- LMG3422R050 – 600-V 50-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
- LMG3411R150 – 600-V 150-mΩ GaN with integrated driver and cycle-by-cycle overcurrent protection
Achieve beyond 1.2-kW/L power density in bidirectional AC/DC power conversion systems with TI GaN technology
Develop systems powered by solar and wind energy with our GaN devices, which help you design smaller, more efficient AC/DC inverters and rectifiers and DC/DC inverters. With GaN-enabled bidirectional DC/DC conversion, you can integrate energy storage systems into solar inverters, reducing energy dependency on the grid.
Benefits
- 3x higher power density (>1.2 kW/L) and lower weight than existing AC/DC and DC/DC converters.
- The fast-switching properties of GaN at 140 kHz increase 20% higher power density over SiC FETs
- System cost parity because of lower-cost magnetics versus 2-level SiC topology
Featured resources
- LMG3422R030 – 600-V 30-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
- LMG3522R030-Q1 – Automotive 650-V 30-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
- LMG3422R050 – 600-V 50-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
Enable higher channel density and reduced AC/DC converter size in battery tester systems with TI GaN technology
Decrease the size of AC/DC power supplies with our GaN FETs with integrated gate drivers. Our GaN devices switch at a higher frequency than MOSFETS and SiC FETs, drastically improving the tester channel density of the test equipment and enabling faster power-supply transient response time.
Benefits
- >99% efficiency enabled by GaN in a totem-pole bridgeless PFC topology
- >200-kHz switching frequency in the DC/DC stage, enabling faster charge-to-discharge transition within 1 ms
- Integrated drivers reduce parasitic losses, enabling easier system-level design
Featured resources
- LMG3422R050 – 600-V 50-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
- LMG3410R070 – 600-V 70mΩ GaN with integrated driver and protection
Enable high power density in electric vehicles with TI GaN technology
The next generation of on-board chargers (OBCs) and high-to-low-voltage DC/DC converters in hybrid-electric (HEV) and electric vehicles (EV) are using GaN power devices to switch at higher frequencies and reduce the size of magnetics. This higher switching frequency and reduced size translates to higher power density compared to silicon and SiC-based OBCs.
Benefits
- 3.8-kW/L power density, which means more power than SiC at the same volume
- >500-kHz switching frequency for CLLLC and 120-kHz for PFC
- 96.5% combined system-level efficiency
- Integrated gate driver simplifies system-level design
Featured resources
- LMG3522R030-Q1 – Automotive 650-V 30-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
- GaN-Based, 6.6-kW, Bidirectional, Onboard Charger Reference Design – Test report
- Thermal Design and Performance of Top-Side Cooled QFN 12x12 Package – Application note
Realize higher power efficiency and a smaller form factor in PFC power stages for heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) and appliances with TI GaN devices
Power-factor correction (PFC) power stages are necessary for heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to meet new energy standards, like EN6055. GaN power stages, when compared with insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs), have higher efficiency, which reduces magnetics, heat-sink size and total system cost.
Benefits
- High switching frequency up to 60 kHz reduces the size of magnetics
- Reduced switching losses result in power stages with efficiency >99%
- Small size and the ability to be cooled naturally reduce design size and cost
Featured resources
- LMG3422R030 – 600-V 30-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
- LMG3422R050 – 600-V 50-mΩ GaN FET with integrated driver, protection and temperature reporting
Advancing GaN reliability
At TI, our goal is to help engineers everywhere validate the reliability of their GaN device. That’s why we’ve partnered with the JC-70 Wide Bandgap Power Electronic Conversion Semiconductors main committee of the Joint Electron Device Engineering Council to help develop industry standards for reliability and qualification, data-sheet parameters, and testing methodologies that further the adoption of GaN technology.
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Design with GaN devices
Our portfolio of GaN FETs with integrated driver and protection can help you achieve high power density with lifetime reliability and lower system cost than competing solutions.
Complete your TI GaN design
Whether you want to boost efficiency, improve reliability or lower electromagnetic interference, our portfolio of companion devices are designed to maximize the performance of your GaN system.