Gallium Nitride based 3D integrated non-isolated point of load module

The introduction of Gallium Nitride (GaN) based power devices offers the potential to achieve higher efficiency and higher switching frequencies than possible with Silicon MOSFET's. This paper will discuss the GaN device characteristics, packaging impact on performance, gate driving methods, and the integration possibilities using GaN technology. The final demonstration being an integrated 3D point of load (POL) converter operating at a switching frequency of 2MHz for a 12V to 1.2V buck converter with a full load current of 20A. This 3D converter employs a low profile low temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) inductor and can achieve a full load efficiency of 83% and a power density of 750W/in 3 which doubles the power density of current integrated POL converters on the market today.