Very-High current gallium nitride transconductance amplifiers

皇后大学和Guildline Instruments合作的这个CRD项目的目标是开发使用氮化镓(GaN)晶体管的下一代跨导放大器(TCA)技术，以提供从DC到1 MHz的100安培输出电流。大电流TCA被电力公司用来校准他们的电力流量计。弧焊设备是TCA的另一个重要市场，需要大电流来局部熔化待粘合的材料。而粒子加速器，如大型强子对撞机，使用TCA产生电流脉冲，产生磁场，将亚原子粒子推向光速。目前市场上可用的大电流TCA使用多达20个较小TCA‘单元’的并行排列，因为硅晶体管在高频下可以提供的输出电流有限。GaN晶体管可以产生高达千兆赫兹频率的极高漏电流，同时由于半导体的高电子迁移率和高能带隙而表现出高击穿电压。GaN提供了大幅减少构建100安培系统所需的并行TCA单元数量的潜力，从20个减少到大约5个。这代表着该设备在成本、尺寸和功耗方面的显著改善，这反过来将使Guildline Instruments处于非常有利的地位，在为国家研究实验室、国家计量研究所、军队、核电站、航空航天以及电力和电力行业公司服务的竞争激烈的市场中处于领先地位。通过这个项目，将培养三名学生：一名博士和两名本科生。学生将在微电子电路设计、大功率技术、测试和测量方面获得宝贵的技能。

The objective of this CRD project between Queen's University and Guildline Instruments is to develop technology for next-generation transconductance amplifiers (TCAs) using gallium nitride (GaN) transistors to deliver 100 Amps of output current from DC to 1 MHz. High-current TCAs are used by power companies to calibrate their power flow meters. Arc welding equipment is another important market for TCAs where high currents are needed to locally melt the materials to be bonded. And particle accelerators such as the Large Hadron Collider use TCAs to generate the current pulses that produce the magnetic fields that propel subatomic particles to light speed. High-current TCAs available on the market today use a parallel arrangement of up to twenty smaller TCA 'cells' because silicon transistors are limited in the amount output current they can deliver at high frequencies. GaN transistors can source very high drain currents up to gigahertz frequencies while simultaneously exhibiting high breakdown voltages as a result of the semiconductor's high electron mobility and high energy bandgap. GaN offers the potential to significantly reduce the number of parallel TCA cells needed to build a 100 Amp system from twenty to about five. This represents a significant improvement in the cost, size and power consumption of the unit which will, in turn, place Guildline Instruments in a very good position to lead in a highly competitive market that serves national research laboratories, national metrology institutes, militaries, nuclear power plants, aerospace, and companies in the electrical and power industry. Through this project, three students will be trained: one doctoral and two undergraduates. The students will gain valuable skills in microelectronic circuit design, high-power techniques, test and measurement.