PowiGaN 1250V Lateral GaN Delivers Exceptional Reliability for High-Voltage Industrial Applications
Power Integrations’ 1250V lateral GaN HEMT raises the bar for surge headroom and long-term reliability—now integrated into the InnoSwitch3-EP family for simpler, higher-voltage designs.
At a Glance
- Only true 1250 V rated lateral GaN HEMT with significant line-transient headroom.
- Cascode architecture (GaN + low-voltage Si MOSFET) enables effective, reliable normally-off operation.
- Integrated into InnoSwitch3-EP for GaN efficiency with familiar, simplified design.
- Off-state robustness: stable leakage beyond 2000 V; typical breakdown ~2300 V.
- Reliability projections: ~1 ppm cumulative failure over 15,000+ years at 1000 V, 100 °C (accelerated model).
- 92%+ full-load efficiency demonstrated in a 60 W, 24 V flyback at 700 V input.
- Handles momentary transients up to 1250 V while continuing to switch.
Architecture and Operation
The 1250-volt lateral GaN HEMT is a normally-on device built on PowiGaN™ technology and placed in series with a low-voltage silicon MOSFET in a cascode configuration. This pairing delivers effective and reliable normally-off behavior—essential for safe product-level operation in high-voltage power electronics.
At the product level, the 1250 V GaN cascode is integrated into an InnoSwitch™3-EP IC, combining GaN’s efficiency benefits with the single-chip design simplicity that engineers expect from the InnoSwitch platform—now extended to even higher operating voltages.
Reliability Under High Stress
In the off state, the device exhibits stable leakage beyond 2000 V with a typical breakdown around 2300 V, supporting excellent results in High-Temperature Reverse Bias (HTRB) evaluations. Over 1,000 hours of HTRB at 1000 V and 150 °C, leakage stability remained excellent—validating its suitability for long-term, high-reliability operation.
Intrinsic off-state failure rates were modeled using accelerated drain-bias testing across multiple temperatures. From voltage- and temperature-acceleration experiments (including tests at a fixed 100 °C and a 2150 V drain bias), the projected field performance indicates a cumulative failure rate near 1 ppm over more than 15,000 years of equivalent operation at 1000 V and 100 °C, highlighting substantial built-in margin.
Switching Reliability: DHTOL Results
Switching robustness was validated with Dynamic High-Temperature Operating Life (DHTOL) stress using hard switching at 1000 V (80% of the 1250 V rating). Across the full test duration, only limited RDS(on) shift was observed, reinforcing the device’s ability to meet stringent high-reliability industrial requirements.
Application Demonstration: 60 W Flyback
Engineers evaluated the part in a 60 W, 24 V / 2.5 A flyback power supply built around the 1250 V InnoSwitch IC. The design achieved best-in-class full-load efficiency exceeding 92% at a 700 V input.
While the GaN cascode is intended for continuous operation with peak VDS below 1000 V, it can tolerate momentary transients up to 1250 V. In surge testing, the device continued switching through short-duration events at its maximum rated voltage without failure.
Takeaway
The 1250 V PowiGaN™ cascode brings together high surge headroom, excellent reliability data, and integration within InnoSwitch™3-EP—a compelling combination for next-generation high-voltage industrial and energy applications.
Learn more about InnoSwitch3 and related GaN solutions at Power.com.
