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Texas Instruments announced the expansion of its low-power gallium nitride (GaN) portfolio, designed to help improve power density, maximize system efficiency, and shrink the size of AC/DC consumer power electronics and industrial systems. TI’s overall portfolio of GaN field-effect transistors (FETs) with integrated gate drivers addresses common thermal design challenges, keeping adapters cooler while pushing more power in a smaller footprint.
“Today’s consumers want smaller, lighter and more portable power adapters that also provide fast, energy-efficient charging,” said Kannan Soundarapandian, general manager of High Voltage Power at TI.
“With the expansion of our portfolio, designers can bring the power-density benefits of low-power GaN technology to more applications that consumers use every day, such as mobile phone and laptop adapters, TV power-supply units, and USB wall outlets. Additionally, TI’s portfolio also addresses the growing demand for high efficiency and compact designs in industrial systems such as power tools and server auxiliary power supplies.”
The new portfolio of GaN FETs with integrated gate drivers, which includes the LMG3622, LMG3624 and LMG3626, offers the industry’s most accurate integrated current sensing. This functionality helps designers achieve maximum efficiency by eliminating the need for an external shunt resistor and reducing associated power losses by as much as 94% when compared to traditional current-sensing circuits used with discrete GaN and silicon FETs.
TI’s GaN FETs with integrated gate drivers enable faster switching speeds, which helps keep adapters from overheating. Designers can reach up to 94% system efficiency for <75-W AC/DC applications or above 95% system efficiency for >75-W AC/DC applications. The new devices help designers reduce the solution size of a typical 67-W power adapter by as much as 50% compared to silicon-based solutions.
The portfolio is also optimized for the most common topologies in AC/DC power conversion, such as quasi-resonant flyback, asymmetrical half bridge flyback, inductor-inductor-converter, totem-pole power factor correction and active clamp flyback.
To learn more about the benefits of TI GaN for the most common AC/DC topologies, read the technical article, “The benefits of low-power GaN in common AC/DC power topologies.”
TI has a long history of globally owned, regionally diverse internal manufacturing operations, including wafer fabs, assembly and test factories, and bump and probe facilities across 15 worldwide sites. TI has been investing in manufacturing GaN technology for more than 10 years.
With plans to manufacture more than 90% of its products internally by 2030, TI has the ability to provide customers with dependable capacity for decades to come.
Original – Texas Instruments
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Nexperia announced its first silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs with the release of two 1200 V discrete devices in 3-pin TO-247 packaging with RDS(on) values of 40 mΩ and 80 mΩ. NSF040120L3A0 and NSF080120L3A0 are the first in a series of planned releases which will see Nexperia’s SiC MOSFET portfolio quickly expand to include devices with a variety of RDS(on) values in a choice of through-hole and surface mounted packages.
This release addresses the market demand for the increased availability of high performance SiC MOSFETs in industrial applications including electric vehicle (EV) charging piles, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) and inverters for solar and energy storage systems (ESS).
“With these inaugural products, Nexperia and Mitsubishi Electric wanted to bring true innovation to a market that has been crying out for more wide-bandgap device suppliers”, according to Katrin Feurle, Senior Director & Head of Product Group SiC at Nexperia. “Nexperia can now offer SiC MOSFET devices which offer best-in-class performance across several parameters, including high RDS(on) temperature stability, low body diode voltage drop, tight threshold voltage specification as well as a very well-balanced gate charge ratio making the device safe against parasitic turn on. This is the opening chapter in our commitment to producing the highest quality SiC MOSFETs in our partnership with Mitsubishi Electric. Together we will undoubtedly push the boundaries of SiC device performance over the coming years”.
“Together with Nexperia, we’re thrilled to introduce these new SiC MOSFETs as the first product of our partnership”, says Toru Iwagami, Senior General Manger, Power Device Works, Semiconductor & Device Group in Mitsubishi Electric. “Mitsubishi Electric has accumulated superior expertise of SiC power semiconductors, and our devices deliver a unique balance of characteristics.”RDS(on) is a critical performance parameter for SiC MOSFETs as it impacts conduction power losses. Nexperia identified this as a limiting factor in the performance of many currently available SiC devices and used its innovative process technology to ensure its new SiC MOSFETs offer industry-leading temperature stability, with the nominal value of RDS(on) increasing by only 38% over an operating temperature range from 25°C to 175°C. Unlike other many currently available SiC devices in the market.
Nexperia’s SiC MOSFETs also exhibit the very low total gate charge (QG), which brings the advantage of lower gate drive losses. Furthermore, Nexperia balanced gate charge to have an exceptionally low ratio of QGD to QGS, a characteristic which increases device immunity against parasitic turn-on.
Together with the positive temperature coefficient of SiC MOSFETs, Nexperia’s SiC MOSFETs offers also ultra-low spread in device-to device threshold voltage, VGS(th), which allows very well-balanced current-carrying performance under static and dynamic conditions when devices are operated in parallel. Furthermore, low body diode forward voltage (VSD) is a parameter which increases device robustness and efficiency, while also relaxing the dead-time requirement for asynchronous rectification and free wheel operation.
Nexperia is also planning the future release of automotive grade MOSFETs. The NSF040120L3A0 and NSF080120L3A0 are available in production quantities now. Please contact Nexperia sales representatives for samples of the full SiC MOSFET offering.
Original – Nexperia
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Micro Commercial Components received a supplier award in the Semiconductors/Analog category from Syndicat Professionnel de la Distribution en Electronique Industrielle (SPDEI), the French trade union for electronics distributors. Members of this powerful organization include Arrow, Silica, EBV, TTI, RS, Farnell, and others in the region.
MCC values its relationships with SPDEI distributor partners and is honored to accept this award for providing outstanding support and industry collaboration.
The 27th annual SPDEI Awards were given to a total of 27 electronics companies in the following categories:
- Semiconductors/Digital
- Semiconductors/Analog
- Wireless and Sensors
- Display and Embedded
- Passive Components
- Connectivity
- Electromechanical Components, Cables, and Accessories
- Energy
The awards ceremony was held on November 21, 2023, at the Automobile Club de France in Paris. Gilda Goltais, MCC Country Manager for France, Belgium, and North Africa, was in attendance to accept this award. MCC was one of only three companies to win in the Semiconductors/Analog category.
Prior to the awards ceremony, SPDEI held its annual conference, where key challenges, trends, and opportunities — such as French and European regulatory issues and the push for greener solutions and products — were discussed with over 100 industry professionals in attendance.
MCC would like to thank SPDEI for acknowledging the ongoing efforts to provide superior service. And MCC looks forward to supporting SPDEI members for many years to come as the power electronics industry continues to evolve.
Original – Micro Commercial Components
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The Executive Board of Siltronic AG expects a significant improvement in sales and EBITDA by 2028. Thus, the Group sales are expected to exceed EUR 2.2 billion by 2028 and the EBITDA margin to reach the high 30’s per-centage area. Based on the Group sales forecast for 2023, this corresponds to an increase in sales of more than 40 percent. The EBITDA margin will also improve significantly compared to the 28 to 30 percent forecast for 2023. The targets are based on stable overall price and exchange rate developments (EUR/USD: 1.10).
For the upcoming year 2024, Siltronic expects that at least the first half of the year will still be bur-dened by high inventories at chip manufacturers and their customers. On the earnings side, the start-up costs of the new production site in Singapore will have a negative impact on the company’s margin in 2024.
The confidence until 2028 is supported by the increasing relevance of global megatrends such as artificial intelligence, digitalization and electromobility. This will lead to a strong increase in demand for semiconductors and therefore also for wafers. For example, the wafer area required to manu-facture an AI-compatible server is up to eight times larger than that required for a conventional server. The wafer area required for electric vehicles is also 60 to 100 percent higher than for con-ventional combustion vehicles.
The increase in Group profitability will mainly be driven by the expected volume growth and higher cost efficiency, which will be significantly higher than the expected inflation-related cost increases.
Above-average growth in Siltronic’s focus activities
The company expects wafer demand to grow by an average of four to five percent per year until at least 2028 and a positive trend in all segments: Memory, Logic and Power. Growth is expected to be particularly strong for 300 mm wafers, especially in the leading edge area, as well as for wafers for Power applications. Siltronic should be able to benefit from these trends in particular thanks to its good market positions.
The company has made systematic preparations for the expected growth phase with high investments, especially for the construction of a new production fab for 300 mm wafers in Singapore (FabNext) and the improvement of the product mix in Freiberg, Saxony. At the beginning of November 2023, the first wafers were produced in Singapore – slightly earlier than planned. Production will be gradually ramped from the beginning of 2024. In view of the high level of automation and efficient cost structure, Siltronic is aiming for EBITDA margins of more than 50 percent for FabNext in the mid-term.
Siltronic is already characterized by a high level of resilience, which is reflected in its consistently solid margins even in difficult economic times. In addition to its high cost sensitivity, this is primarily due to its close customer relationships. The company has entered into long-term agreements with many of its customers, securing around two thirds of its sales.
“In view of the expected next growth phase driven by megatrends, we have defined medium-term targets for Siltronic up to 2028 against which we will be measured. Group sales are expected to increase to more than EUR 2.2 billion and the EBITDA margin to the high 30’s. Among other things, we will benefit from our new, highly efficient fab in Singapore, our technological leading position and our strength in the Power segment,” commented Dr. Michael Heckmeier, CEO of Siltronic AG, on the development.
Future use of capital focused on securing further growth opportunities, strengthening tech-nology leadership and reducing debt
Siltronic will make investments of around EUR 1.3 billion for the above-mentioned projects in 2023. However, as of September 30, 2023, the company maintains a robust financial position with an eq-uity ratio of 49 percent and holds in excess of EUR 500 million in cash and cash equivalents, along with financial assets.
This reflects a sound and secure financial and balance sheet structure. After reaching the peak of investment activity in 2023, expenditures are expected to noticeably decrease again by more than 50 percent in 2024 alone compared to the previous year. Siltronic will consist-ently invest the cash flows generated in the course of the planned targets in securing organic growth opportunities, expanding automation and digitalization, strengthening its leading technology position and further improving the quality of its balance sheet, including reducing debt.
This also includes a continued strong focus on research and development (R&D) in order to continue to utilize technology-driven competitive advantages in the future. In the medium term, between four and five percent of Group sales are to be invested in R&D activities.
“Despite the peak of our investments in 2023, we are in a very solid position with an equity ratio of almost 50 percent and a high liquidity reserve. From 2024, our capex will fall noticeably, but organic growth with the expansion of FabNext remains our top priority. In addition, we will use the expected cash flows from our growth plan until 2028 to strengthen our leading technology position and im-prove the quality of our balance sheet. This will create sustainable value for all our stakeholders,” adds Claudia Schmitt, CFO of Siltronic AG.
Original – Siltronic
