Transphorm announced that Boco Electronics’ 3.6 kW power supply uses its SuperGaN® FETs. The robust 12-volt AC-to-DC power supply achieves a peak efficiency of greater than 96% and is designed to be used in rugged environments caused by ultra-demanding applications such as crypto mining rigs and high-performance datacenter systems.
Driven by Transphorm’s SuperGaN devices in a patented bridgeless totem-pole PFC topology, that power efficiency rating is nearly 1 percent higher or 36 Watts lower power consumption than what Boco Electronics achieves in traditional PFC configurations. The totem-pole PFC topology along with the FET’s TO-247 package also enables reduction of the overall power system’s component count, in turn reducing the overall system cost.
“Mining rigs run 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Given this, our customers seek higher power, higher efficiency, higher reliability power supplies to support these intensive applications,” said Golden Yin, CEO, Hangzhou Boco Electronics. “We knew we could meet those requirements by matching our strong design capabilities with advanced GaN solutions. Whereas GaN was the right technology in general, Transphorm’s SuperGaN products were the right devices. They proved to be better suited for the higher power ranges while offering the higher field reliability required by such industrial applications when compared to alternative options.”
The Transphorm device used in the power supply is the JEDEC-qualified TP65H035G4WS, a normally-off 650-volt device with an on resistance of 35 milliohms. Part of the SuperGaN Gen IV product family, it offers an industry-leading ±20 volt gate robustness with the industry’s best noise immunity threshold of 4 volts.
With faster switching and lower losses, Transphorm’s GaN replaces traditional MOSFETs used by Boco Electronics in similar incumbent power supplies. Further, it allows Boco Electronics to use the advanced totem-pole PFC in lieu of an interleaving H (full bridge) PFC or interleaving DCM PFC.
The system’s resulting power density increased, allowing for additional space for increased cooling air flow. Notably, development of the power supply took only six months, aligning with the ease of drivability and designability synonymous with Transphorm’s devices.
“Power hungry applications like crypto mining—which solve complex mathematical problems while processing massive amounts of data—are increasingly more expensive to support, from hardware to raw energy resources. In fact, mining farms that used to benefit from local government support and cheaper energy delivery through hydropower in China are now being forced to relocate as a result of regulatory changes,” said Kenny Yim, Vice President of Asia Pacific Sales, Transphorm. “As a result, we’re seeing manufacturers of related high power application systems turn to GaN for remarkably better performance and efficiency to combat higher electricity prices. It’s a trend we’re proud to support as we continue to strengthen and enhance our GaN platform.”
Transphorm’s role in Boco Electronics’ product development process went beyond supplying transistors. The semiconductor company’s technical support team collaborated with the Boco Electronics engineering team on design reviews to ensure the GaN technology was maximized for the highest performance output possible.
