Renesas Electronics Corporation announced on March 23, 2026, the TP65B110HRU, the industry’s first bidirectional switch using depletion-mode GaN technology. The device is capable of blocking both positive and negative currents in a single component with DC blocking capability. The 650V-class bidirectional GaN switch targets single-stage solar microinverters, AI data centers, and onboard electric vehicle chargers. It simplifies power converter designs by replacing conventional back-to-back FET switches with one low-loss, fast-switching device.
Traditional power conversion designs rely on unidirectional silicon or silicon carbide switches that block current in one direction only. This requires multi-stage topologies with multiple switched bridge circuits. For example, a typical solar microinverter uses a four-switch full bridge for DC-to-DC conversion followed by a second stage for AC output. Single-stage designs using back-to-back unidirectional switches increase switch count four-fold and reduce efficiency.
The bidirectional GaN switch enables single-stage topologies with fewer switching devices. In a solar microinverter, only two high-voltage Renesas SuperGaN bidirectional devices are needed, eliminating intermediary DC-link capacitors and reducing switch count by half. The architecture supports higher switching frequencies and higher power density due to fast switching and low stored charge. A real-world single-stage solar microinverter implementation achieved higher than 97.5% power efficiency.
The TP65B110HRU combines a high-voltage bidirectional depletion-mode GaN chip with two low-voltage silicon MOSFETs that have a 3V threshold voltage, ±20V gate margin, and built-in body diodes. It is compatible with standard gate drivers that require no negative gate bias, enabling simpler gate loop design and fast, stable switching in both soft and hard switching conditions. The device offers >100 V/ns dv/dt immunity with minimum ringing and short delays.
Key specifications include:
- ±650V continuous peak AC and DC rating, ±800V transient rating
- 2kV Human Body Model ESD protection
- 110 mΩ typical R_DS(on) at 25°C
- 3V typical V_GS(th)
- No negative drive required
- ±20V maximum V_GS
- 1.8V freewheeling diode voltage drop
- TOLT top-side cooled package with industry-standard pin-out
Renesas demonstrated the bidirectional GaN switch at booth #1219 during the Applied Power Electronics Conference (APEC) in San Antonio, Texas, from March 22-26, 2026.
The TP65B110HRU is available in quantity. An evaluation kit, RTDACHB0000RS-MS-1, is also available for testing with different drive options, AC zero-crossing detection, and ZVS soft switching.
Rohan Samsi, Vice President of the GaN Business Division at Renesas, noted that the bidirectional GaN platform allows higher efficiency with fewer components, smaller PCB area, and lower system cost while accelerating design through integration with gate drivers, controllers, and power management ICs.
