National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC

The University of New Mexico

Gregory W Pickrell

Robert Kaplar

Jack David Flicker

Andrew A Allerman

Jason C Neely

Jeffrey Steinfeldt

Andrew Armstrong

Jacob Mueller

Harold P Hjalmarson

Jane Lehr

Andrew Binder

Luciano Andres Garcia Rodriguez

Lee Gill

Luke Yates

Mary H Crawford

Vincent M Abate

Jeramy R Dickerson

Emily Ann Schrock

Brendan P Gunning

Michael L Smith

A vertical gallium nitride (GaN) PN diode uses epitaxial growth of a thick drift region with a very low carrier concentration and a carefully designed multi-zone junction termination extension to achieve high voltage blocking and high-power efficiency. An exemplary large area (1 mm) diode had a forward pulsed current of 3.5 A, an 8.3 mΩ-cmspecific on-resistance, and a 5.3 kV reverse breakdown. A smaller area diode (0.063 mm) was capable of 6.4 kV breakdown with a specific on-resistance of 10.2 mΩ-cm, when accounting for current spreading through the drift region at a 45° angle.

High voltage gallium nitride vertical PN diode

A disclosed switching apparatus, such as a circuit breaker, includes a transistor switch circuit connected between a power input terminal and a load terminal, and, connected to the power input terminal and bypassing the transistor switch circuit, a switchable bypass leg that is optically switched by a series-connected photoconductive semiconductor switch (PCSS). The transistor switch circuit includes at least one cascade of three or more series-connected transistors, and at least one resistor network configured to divide a voltage from a voltage source across a cascade of series-connected transistors. Operating the switch apparatus includes detecting whether a sensed electric current is in a fault condition, opening the transistor switch circuit upon detecting a fault condition, and then closing the PCSS so that the electric current is diverted onto a switchable bypass path. The opening of the transistor switch circuit comprises turning OFF a normally-ON transistor switch circuit.

Optically switched circuit breaker with cascaded transistor topology

Growing community of inventors

Rio Rancho, NM, United States of America

Gregory W Pickrell