News: Microelectronics
10 March 2021
GaN Systems’ power transistor prices drop below $1
GaN Systems Inc of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (a fabless developer of gallium nitride-based power switching semiconductors for power conversion and control applications) says that its low-current, high-volume GaN transistors have fallen below $1 in price.
The transistors are commonly used in GaN chargers and AC adapters for smartphones and laptop applications and a wide variety of consumer and industrial applications. With many consumers, enterprise, and industrial market customers worldwide ramping up production volumes, GaN Systems foresees further price reductions.
While GaN’s performance advantages, including reductions in total system costs and improved power density and power efficiency, have been recognized for years, many power system manufacturers have chosen to wait for GaN to approach silicon prices to implement, notes GaN Systems.
“With volumes skyrocketing, GaN prices have approached, and even undercut, silicon MOSFET pricing,” says CEO Jim Witham. “Within just a few years, we have seen GaN deliver on smaller, lighter, cooler, less expensive power systems. It is not a surprise that so many customers now have GaN in their products and designs.”
Demand for GaN power semiconductors has been growing. Grand View Research forecasts that the global GaN device market will expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.8% from $1.65bn in 2020 to $5.85bn in 2027. GaN Systems has been experiencing this growth, recently announcing the shipment of its 20 millionth GaN transistor and a 40x capacity expansion in 2021.
According to market analyst firm Yole Développement, the rise of GaN adoption has been driven by the high-volume consumer market, such as fast-charger applications. High growth in consumer and enterprise applications, coupled with continual process enhancements and a cost reduction focus at GaN Systems, has led to falling prices.
GaN Systems reckons that, in combination with its proven reliability and high-volume capacity, this trend positions it well for rapid GaN’s adoption across many markets.
