Lidar Demonstration Board Drives Lasers with Currents up to 220 A with Under 3-ns Pulses Using eGaN® FETs

The ultra-fast transition EPC2034C eGaN FETs used on the EPC9150 enables high current pulses up to 220 A and pulse widths under 3 ns, thus allowing a lidar system to see farther, faster, and better.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) announces the availability of the EPC9150, a 200 V, high current, pulsed-laser diode driver demonstration board. In a lidar system, used to create 3-D maps for autonomous vehicle applications, speed and accuracy of object detection is critical. As demonstrated by this board, the rapid transition capability of the EPC2034C eGaN FETs provide power pulses to drive the laser diodes, VCSELs or LEDs up to ten times faster than an equivalent MOSFET and in a small fraction of the area, energy, and cost. Thus, enhancing the overall performance, including accuracy, precision, and processing speed as well as the price of a lidar system.

eGaN^® FETs and integrated circuits provide the high current pulses, extremely narrow pulse widths, and small size that make affordable, high performance lidar possible. Using the 200 V, 12 square mm, EPC2034C eGaN FET, the EPC9150 can generate a 220 A laser pulse peak in a pulse width that is only 2.9 nanoseconds wide. The high current increases the range of the lidar system, while the short pulse width leads to higher resolution, and the tiny size and low cost make eGaN FETs and ICs ideal for lidar applications from automotive to industrial robotics and security.

The EPC9150 ships with an interposer board. The interposer board is a collection of break-away 5 mm x 5 mm square interposer PCBs with footprints to accommodate different lasers, RF connectors, and a collection of other footprints designed for experimentation with different loads. The use of the interposers allows many different lasers or other loads to be mounted, allowing users to test the performance with the load requirements that are appropriate to their application.

Price and Availability

The EPC9150 demonstration board is priced $414.00 each.

Both are available for immediate delivery from Digi-Key at http://www.digikey.com/Suppliers/us/Efficient-Power-Conversion.page?lang=en

About EPC

EPC is the leader in enhancement mode gallium nitride (eGaN^®) based power management. eGaN FETs and integrated circuits provide performance many times greater than the best silicon power MOSFETs in applications such as DC-DC converters, remote sensing technology (lidar), motor drives for emobility, robotics, and drones, and low cost satellites.

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eGaN is a registered trademark of Efficient Power Conversion Corporation, Inc.