NRC pushes merits of Gallium nitride for use in future electronics, lighting

Performance far superior to silicon

The National Research Council (NRC) is aggressively pushing ahead with its Gallium nitride (GaN) R&D program as the technology expands from niche to widespread use in radio frequency (RF) electronics, LED lighting and power electronics. The agency recently released a new design kit (written manual and software) that allows companies to test out new devices and produce pilot quantities of their products at the GaN foundry the NRC has established within its highly successful Canadian Photonics Fabrication Centre (CPFC).

"Companies are blown away by our facilities. There's been a very positive reaction to GaN," says Dr Jennifer Bardwell, GaN program lead and a 12-year veteran of NRC's GaN research team. "We're trying to develop critical mass and an ecosystem in Canada for this technology and fabless firms are our primary target, acting as the bridge between the design house and chip packaging or systems integration … It's an important technology for Canada and the world."

GaN's emergence and soaring commercial prospects are due to the material's superior performance compared to silicon — high dielectric strength, high operating temperature, high current density, high speed switching and low on-resistance. And as silicon-based semiconductors used in wireless RF electronics reach their performance limits in terms of switching speed and voltage, interest in GaN is exploding globally for use in radar, electronic warfare and communications technologies.

GaN foundry unique in Canada

NRC's GaN foundry is the only one in Canada, giving Canadian firms the ability to compete with nations such as Taiwan, the US and EU, which are also pursuing GaN R&D. The foundry is currently working with 3 inch and 4 inch wafers

For CMC Microsystems, NRC's emphasis on GaN coincides with its own work training students to use the technology. CMC currently has a partnership with NRC for use of its foundry services.

"GaN is starting to win big in LED lighting as material costs come down. It's as stable as it comes with very strong application areas," says Dr Ian McWalter, CMC's president and CEO. "Canada has a good chance to be a reasonable player in GaN globally, especially on the power electronics side."

NRC's focus is on RF electronics and, to a lesser extent, power electronics. The GaN program was one of the first to be approved under the restructured NRC and is one of several programs now being offered within its Information and Communication Technology (ICT) portfolio. Those programs have $32 million in annual funding, covering labour, capital and operations (no breakdown for the GaN program available).

"We focus on RF because our value proposition is better although it has a higher cost structure than power electronics," says Bardwell. "The silicon substrate is expensive but it's better for high-frequency performance."

superior environmental performance

GaN also has a strong environmental upside due to its more efficient power usage. McWalter says GaN is more energy efficient than silicon and that even a 1-2% reduction in power consumption can make a huge difference and a strong selling point. GaN has an anticipated market of $160 billion in the next 10 years, second only to silicon.

"Large markets are evolving and we would like to get more people trying it out but we need access to advanced technologies" he says. "The hardware side is really important as there is more value added."

Firms wanting to go beyond pilot runs of their GaN-powered devices must go outside of Canada.

McWalter says several countries are contemplating the construction of a commercial foundry and Canada could be among them.

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