Could GaN chips outlast the systems they are built into?
GaN Systems tests GaN HEMTs to ten times JEDEC qualification requirements
GaN Systems has announced it has surpassed 10,000 hours of qualification testing for its GaN E-HEMT devices. This is 10 times the 1,000-hour requirement to meet JEDEC qualification.
As the power electronics industry increases adoption of GaN power transistors, the need for high confidence in the technology is imperative. The announcement by GaN Systems reinforces the early-adopter confidence in GaN transistors.
The industry standard of 1,000 hours of JEDEC testing equates to 10+ years of lifetime at normal operating conditions. Extend that testing to 10,000 hours (1.5 years) and the lifetime jumps to >1,000 years. This is what the power system makers want: GaN semiconductors that outlast the rest of the system.
Due to the physics of semiconductors, the GaN results are not surprising. Semiconductor design engineers are aware that the critical factor in device lifetime is a complex property known as Activation Energy. Activation Energy is the minimum amount of energy required to initiate a particular process, in this case, the energy to cause failure in the semiconductor device. The higher the value, the more energy it takes to damage the device.
For GaN, the activation energy is ~2.0eV, while for silicon the activation energy is ~0.7eV. It take far more energy to damage a GaN power transistor than a silicon power transistor. Consequently, at the same operating conditions, a system using GaN transistors accumulates less damage and lasts a longer time. GaN Systems now has the data to back the long-life conclusion.
"We are proud of our device lifetimes," said Jim Witham, GaN Systems CEO. "One and a half years of testing at accelerated conditions takes a lot of ovens, a large number of test equipment and a lengthy amount of time. For GaN Systems, this is a notable achievement. Our customers from consumer electronics to automotive electric vehicles are pleased to see GaN transistor long lifetime clearly demonstrated."
