Advanced wireless communication systems are set to enable anyone to access information anywhere, at any time, between any device and their applications in the era of “internet of things”. These 5th/6th generations (5G/6G) technology poses demanding performance requirements in semiconductor device and RF circuits in terms of power, efficiency, linearity, advanced circuit topologies and system architectures, as the mobile network operators will require operation at relatively high powers and mm-wave frequencies while demanding a reduction in the circuit size.
Rapid progress in fields such as electric vehicle, data center and smart grid has also present serious needs on advanced power electronic, demanding fast switching, low loss discrete and integrated solutions for reliable power conversion and management at small footprint in the medium voltages range up to 1200V.
Such aggressive demands result in a compounded set of challenges. Shrinking the device while increasing operational frequency, high voltage, and high power results in significant challenges on materials, devices, circuits and systems.
Due to its competitive material properties, emerging GaN technologies promise high-power and high-frequency power amplifiers. We are currently investigating GaN device physics, compact modeling, characterization and circuit design.