Expanding on its gallium nitride (GaN) power portfolio, Texas Instruments Inc (TI) has launched two high-speed GaN field-effect transistor (FET) drivers to create more efficient, higher-performing designs in speed-critical applications such as light detection and ranging (LiDAR) and 5G radio-frequency (RF) envelope tracking. The LMG1020 and LMG1210 can deliver switching frequencies of 50MHz while improving efficiency and enabling five times smaller solution sizes previously not possible with silicon MOSFETs.
With what is claimed to be an industry-best drive speed as well as a minimum pulse width of 1ns, the LMG1020 60MHz low-side GaN driver enables high-accuracy lasers in industrial LiDAR applications. The small wafer-level chip-scale (WCSP) package of just 0.8mm by 1.2mm helps to minimize gate-loop parasitics and losses, further boosting efficiency.
The LMG1210 is a 50MHz half-bridge driver designed for GaN FETs up to 200V. The device’s adjustable dead time control feature is designed to improve efficiency by as much as 5% in high-speed DC/DC converters, motor drives, Class-D audio amplifiers as well as other power-conversion applications. Designers can achieve high system-noise immunity with what is said to be the industry’s highest common-mode transient immunity (CMTI) of more than 300V/ns.
Features of the LMG1020 and LMG1210:
High speed: The two devices’ ultra-fast propagation delay (2.5ns for the LMG1020 and 10ns for the LMG1210) enables power solutions that are 50 times faster than with silicon drivers. Additionally, the LMG1020 is capable of delivering high-power 1ns laser pulses, enabling long-range LiDAR applications. High efficiency: Both devices enable high-efficiency designs. The LMG1210 offers a low switch-node capacitance of 1pF and user-adjustable dead time control to improve efficiency by as much as 5%. Power density: The integrated feature of dead time control in the LMG1210 allows for reduced component count and higher efficiency, enabling designers to reduce power-supply size by as much as 80%. The increased power density of the LMG1020 enables the highest resolution in LiDAR in the industry’s smallest package.
The LMG1020 and LMG1210 are the latest additions to the what is claimed to be industry’s largest GaN power portfolio, ranging from 200V drivers to 80V and 600V power stages. With over 7 million hours of GaN process reliability testing, TI is addressing the need for proven and ready-to-use solutions through reliable GaN products, bringing decades of silicon manufacturing expertise and device-development talent to GaN technology.
TI is showcasing its GaN portfolio and enabling GaN technology in booth 501 at the Applied Power Electronics Conference (APEC 2018) in San Antonio, Texas (4-8 March).
Tools and support to speed design
Designers can quickly evaluate the new devices with the LMG1020EVM-006 and LMG1210EVM-012 evaluation modules and SPICE models. Engineers can jump-start their GaN designs using the Nanosecond Laser Driver Reference Design for LiDAR and the multi-megahertz GaN Power Stage Reference Design for High-Speed DC/DC Converters.
Prototype samples of the LMG1020 and LMG1210 are available now in TI’s online store and through the firm’s authorized distribution network. The LMG1020 comes in a WCSP package and is priced at $1.79 in 1000-unit quantities. The LMG1210 comes in a quad flat no-lead (QFN) package and is priced at $2.19 in 1000-unit quantities.
