■ GaN , Leading Wide Bandgap Innovation

Gallium nitride (GaN) technology is playing a leading role in the wide-bandgap revolution that is taking the semiconductor industry by storm, and several companies are competing for a share of this market.

The benefits of using GaN devices in power electronics applications are well known, but the quality of GaN devices from different companies isThis is not to say that there may be subtle but important differences between products.

This article explains the technical and logistical advantages of choosing Infineon CoolGaN™ GIT devices over alternatives.

■ Robust and reliable gate structure

Figure 1 shows a cross-section of an Infineon CoolGaN™ gate injection transistor (GIT) HEMT device .

The diode used in the gate structure uses a combination of titanium gate metal and p-GaN, and forms an ohmic connection with the GaN diode between the gate and the source.

This diode has a forward voltage of about 3.5 V. Additionally, this GaN transistor protects the gate from electrostatic discharge (ESD) by including three series-connected GaN protection devices in a monolithic manner.

These ESD diodes are designed to perform a clamping function when the gate-source voltage (VGS) exceeds -10 V in the reverse direction.

Effective clamping is achieved within the CoolGaN™ GIT device itself by using diodes embedded in both forward and reverse directions.

Therefore, it is extremely robust against damage due to overvoltage spikes.

■ Excellent RDS(on) and operating current

Figure 1 also shows the p-GaN ‘hybrid drain’ structure adjacent to the drain metal of a CoolGaN™ GIT device.

This structure mitigates the dynamic changes in RDS(on) by effectively releasing trapped charges.

allThis unwanted phenomenon is commonly seen in many GaN transistor designs from other companies.

Another technological advantage of CoolGaN™ GIT devices is their higher saturation current capability, especially at the maximum operating temperature (150°C).

Figure 2 compares the performance of the 70 MΩ rated CoolGaN™ GIT HEMT 600 V with a competitive 650 V 50 MΩ rated device.

Competing GaN has a maximum current of only 25 A even when driven with the maximum recommended gate voltage of 6 V.

In comparison, CoolGaN™ devices can deliver a maximum drain current of 35 A and have lower RDS(on) across the entire current range.

This peak current handling capability is important because many applications must withstand transient high current conditions (start-up, line cycle dropouts, lightning strikes, etc.).

Combining this robust gate structure with high peak current handling capability makes Infineon’s CoolGaN™ the most robust and reliable GaN power transistor available on the market today.

■ System-level solutions

In addition to GaN-on-Si, Infineon offers silicon and silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET products .

This comprehensive approach to power semiconductor manufacturing is based on a deep understanding of how each technology can be used to achieve optimal performance.

The CoolGaN™ family of discrete and integrated power stage (IPS) products feature enhancement mode (normally-off) GIT HEMT devices to improve efficiency in power conversion applications.

These devices can switch at much higher frequencies, which brings many operational advantages.

However, existing package leads can reduce these advantages due to parasitic impedance.

To avoid this, Infineon uses SMD (surface mount device) technology instead of through-hole packaging for its CoolGaN™ GIT devices to maximize the switching speed benefits.

Here at WBG Semiconductor You can find more detailed information about the package and its benefits here.

To support the CoolGaN™ GIT device series, Infineon offers a series of EiceDRIVER™ gate driver ICs, including isolated and non-isolated single- and dual-channel products.

The EiceDRIVER™ 1EDi and 2EDi families provide isolation between input and output channels, enabling faster switching and more accurate timing.

■ DVice quality and reliability

To ensure reliable operation in the field, Infineon applies rigorous qualification and reliability testing procedures for its CoolGaN™ GIT devices that exceed the requirements defined in the JEDEC standard.

GaN devices have only recently become available for mass production, so it is necessary to develop industry-standard methodologies for device verification.

If this could lead to a unified approach to quality assurance, customers would no longer need to check with individual vendors about their procedures.

It is in this effort that Infineon has initiated and is contributing to the creation of the GaN subcommittee (JC-70.1) within JEDEC. This subcommittee develops guidelines and standards for qualification of GaN power devices.

■ Supply stability

In recent years, demand for wide bandgap power semiconductors has increased significantly, leading to a shortage of supply.

Accordingly, customers are stepping up to secure a stable supply of high-quality, reliable devices without interruption, even as market demand continues to increase.

As the world's largest supplier of power semiconductors, Infineon has built a solid production capacity and is recognized in the market for its excellent supply stability.

By owning key technologies such as GaN epitaxy, front-end and back-end processes, packaging and testing, Infineon has complete control over the supply chain for GaN devices. This is based on our accumulated experience with silicone products.

Infineon continues to increase its production capacity and recently completed construction and commissioning of a large-scale 300mm silicon manufacturing facility at its Villach plant in Austria .

After moving silicon production to this new facility, the existing 150mm and 200mm wafer production lines will be converted to GaN device production.

This increased production capacity, together with Infineon's proven allocation management process, allows us to process customer orders extremely efficiently while increasing flexibility.

It also plans to further expand front-end capacity at its Kulim plant in Malaysia.

This will provide room for further increases in GaN epitaxy capacity.

In addition, Infineon recently decided to invest more than €2 billion to build a third production module at this plant. This is expected to significantly increase the production capacity of wide bandgap (SiC and GaN) semiconductors.

To prevent supply disruptions, Infineon is implementing a comprehensive business continuity management framework that covers all business processes.

Conduct detailed risk assessments at each stage throughout the value chain to identify potential risks early and respond quickly.

Evaluate and classify various situations based on their impact or likelihood of occurrence, and take appropriate measures accordingly.

This framework also includes partners, assessing whether they meet Infineon's exact requirements. This ensures supply chain continuity even during unexpected events such as pandemics, geopolitical events, and raw material shortages.

■ Customer Support

Infineon provides comprehensive technical support for distribution channels as well as a self-service design support platform for customers.

When developing new products, detailed and accurate technical documentation is created to explain device operation and features.

These include product data sheets and a series of application notes that explain how to use the new devices and how their performance is improved compared to previous generation Infineon or competitor products.

Infineon also provides application boards to evaluate device performance for many products.

These application boards are available via the Infineon website (online Board Finder ) or through our distribution partners.

Together with the application board, the product registration environment (myInfineon) provides access to schematics, layouts, BOMs, firmware, etc.

Additionally, Infineon supports teams of professional and experienced field application engineers in many countries around the world.

These FAE teams provide local technical advice and support to help customers resolve issues.

Additionally, you can obtain technical information and share opinions through forum activities in the online community provided by Infineon.

■ Infineon supplies high-quality GaN product line

With technological excellence, stable production capacity, long-standing experience in supply chain management and comprehensive business continuity processes, Infineon is well-prepared to manage the growing demand for GaN power devices and provide customers with high-quality, reliable products on time.

Click here to learn more about Infineon's efficient and reliable CoolGaN™ GIT HEMT technology, including switches, drivers and recently launchedage-gan/" target="_blank">You can see the entire system product portfolio including the IPS product family (CoolGaN™ IPS).

※ Contributor
Eric Persson, Senior Principal Engineer, Infineon Technologies