GaN power switches will be designed into an array of power supplies and systems to deliver superior energy efficiency and power density. A major opportunity lies in hybrid motor vehicles, where the expected five to one reduction of switching losses could allow for the elimination of heavy and complex liquid cooling systems. GaN devices that can switch 100 amps and withstand 1,200 volts have been fabricated.

currently use silicon based insulating gate bipolar transistors and diodes in their inverter modules to power the electric motors - typically 30-55kW. This chipset has to be cooled by a liquid based system to maintain the silicon junction temperatures at about 85^oC. However this requires a separate liquid cooling system, in addition to the carbon fuel engine's cooling system. One of the major goals of hybrid vehicle makers is to simplify this set-up by implementing SiC or GaN based electronics that can easily withstand 150^oC or more. The use of a full SiC/GaN chipset, not a partial solution, will allow the use of a single cooling system, resulting in a saving of about 15% on the power module cost.