February/March 2021

12 MARKET NEWS Issue 1 2021 Power Electronics Europe www.power-mag.com GaN Systems is more convinced than ever that Silicon has reached its limitations in solving critical power systems challenges. GaN transistors are the clear solution for driving more robust growth and product innovation in the electronics industry. “Major companies are designing and shipping products with GaN today. In 2021, we will see significantly increased demand for and adoption of GaN-powered products across multiple markets - especially in consumer products and industrial power supplies. The high reliability of GaN power transistors and their ability to bring economic advantage to many applications will be ever more common over the next twelve months – and beyond”, said marketing manager Paul Wiener. “In 2020, the conversation around GaN technology began to shift from a focus on early adopters and risk - to one of proven reliability and market acceptance. This is the result of products with GaN semiconductors finding success in consumer markets with power adapters and audio, renewed and reenergized work with GaN technology in EV design labs, new EU policy standards around energy efficiency in data centers that only GaN technology can effectively address when combined with power density expectations, and important industry accomplishments in product reliability. 2021 will be the year that GaN technology further demonstrates that it has successfully shifted from early adoption by claiming a substantial and publicly visible foothold in power-reliant markets as diverse as automotive, data centers, and consumer electronics.” Regarding automotive in 2021 GaN Systems foresees advances in power systems with GaN technology and battery technology which are driving significant OEM and Tier 1 supplier adoption for EVs and addressing past concerns around range anxiety and car purchase price. The story of GaN in EV’s will shift to become more of a narrative about enhanced performance and new capabilities for vehicle designs. Traditionally, automotive manufacturers have been conservative in their adoption of new technology. In 2021, governments and the public will continue to demand EV’s with price and range similar to today’s ICE vehicles. Manufacturers will benefit from embracing GaN’s proven and noteworthy reliability and cost-efficiency in delivering their designs for these vehicles. Regarding CHARGERS and ADAPTERS 2020 was the year of the GaN charger. The aftermarket saw more than 100 new models of chargers and adapters in the market for phones, tablets and handheld gaming devices. Looking ahead to 2021, this will be the year of GaN chargers from OEM’s, along with the rise of multiport adapters. GaN chargers are moving from a once niche position to the mainstream standard, while also being positioned to deliver on future evolving customer needs with advances in device design, performance, energy efficiency, and power requirements. Regarding Data Centers in 2021 GaN Systems foresees that the global economy remains on its way to its “digital destiny” as most products and services are now based on a digital delivery model or require digital augmentation to remain competitive. The data center ecosystem will continue to evolve and become even more critical for organizations. Infrastructure efficiency has been a huge concern for many organizations. While 2020 was the year of significant increase in GaN power supply design efforts, we predict that 2021 will focus on actual implementation of GaN in data centers. Smaller power supplies using GaN technology allow for more storage and memory to be added into the same rack space allowing for data center capacity growth without actually having to build more data centers. www.gansystems.com Buried in the tumult of 2020 was a rapid acceleration in the speed of innovation. Nowhere was this more evident than in the record-breaking development of not one, but many, COVID-19 vaccines. The accelerating speed of innovation is also happening in other fields, driven by changing habits and reset priorities due to the pandemic. “Covid has accelerated move to Electric Vehicles and Migration to 48V systems”, said Nicolas Richard, Vicor’s Director of EMEA Automotive Business Development. “2021 will see more 48 V battery systems, particularly in mild hybrids, as manufacturers add active suspension, rear wheel steering or antiroll stabilization systems. Supporting this move, more 48 V systems will need to convert down to 12 V to support car safety, comfort, infotainment, and navigation systems. In addition to enabling lighter cabling or delivering higher power, the conversion from the high-voltage batteries in HEVs and EVs is more efficient when the step down required is reduced by increasing the voltage to 48 V. Primary battery voltages used to power EVs and HEVs will also increase in voltage with 800 V becoming much more common allowing faster charging time. These changes demand a new class of power components to create the power distribution network within next year’s automobiles”. “Data Center Capacity Demand Will Exceed Physical Plant Space”, expects Lev Slutskiy, Vicor’s Regional Manager. “In 2021, the quest for more power efficiency in the datacentre will step up a gear where we believe not only will the datacenter industry purchase more renewable energy than in previous years, but we anticipate more datacenters moving away from AC in favor of DC infrastructure solutions to better cope with the massive increases in power demands of high-performance computing. A more efficient way to manage power is to increase the voltage within these systems and to use renewable energy. The task of conversion of the high voltage (usually 260 – 410 V DC) to the values used at the input of modern computing units (12V or better 48V) could be performed by bus converters. We believe that system designers will use more of these innovative architectural solutions, such as Factorized Power Architectures (FPAs), and efficient converter modules to shorten Vicor’s 2021 Technology Predictions GaN System’s 2021 Technology Predictions