High frequency high power density 3D integrated Gallium Nitride based point of load module

Abstract

The Gallium Nitride (GaN) transistors offer the capability of high efficiency at high operation frequency. This paper will discuss the characteristics of enhancement mode and depletion mode GaN transistors; the high frequency GaN converter design considerations include gate driving, reducing dead-time loss, minimizing parasitics inductance, and the three dimension (3D) technology to integrate the active layer with low profile low temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) magnetic substrate to achieve high power density. The final demonstrations are two 12 V to 1.2 V conversion integrated point of load (POL) modules: a single-phase10A 800W/in3 5MHz converter, a two-phase 20 A 1000 W/in3 5 MHz converter using the depletion mode GaN transistors. These converters offer unmatched power density compared to state-of-the-art industry products and research.