News: Microelectronics
14 March 2024
Worksport to incorporate GaN into future versions of COR mobile battery generator system
Worksport Ltd of West Seneca, NY, USA (an automotive accessory manufacturer developing clean energy solutions) has announced a strategic move to integrate gallium nitride (GaN) in its upcoming product offerings.
Motivated by GaN’s potential to provide superior performance, increased efficiency and reduced size and weight compared with conventional silicon-based solutions, Worksport’s goal is to integrate GaN into future versions of its COR Mobile Battery Generator Systems, through various partnerships, including one announced in early February with GaN semiconductor maker Infineon Technologies AG of Munich, Germany.
Compared with silicon, GaN-based power switches feature lower overall capacitances, especially considering that they do not have an anti-parallel body diode. GaN switches therefore allow for faster switching speeds and reduced power losses. GaN can also withstand higher temperatures than silicon. Using GaN can hence boost efficiency, thermal management, and performance. Additionally, since GaN has a wide bandgap energy, devices can withstand much higher voltages than silicon-based devices while also using smaller packages. This can result in power converters with a much higher power density than is typically found in silicon-based switches.
Worksport reckons that, by leveraging GaN technology, its future products will be able to deliver unmatched performance while also consuming less energy, resulting in longer battery life due to higher-efficiency power converters. Also, due to GaN’s higher efficiency, GaN-based power converters radiate less heat and have lower cooling requirements and a reduced need for cooling fans, leading the firm to believe that it could yield a more compact size for its power electronics. Moreover, Worksport believes that, by using GaN, it will be able to create more reliable and longer-lasting devices while reducing the risk of overheating and performance degradation.
Worksport using Infineon’s GaN power transistors in converters of its portable power stations
