WIDE BANDGAP EPC introduces GaN-based BLDC motor drive evaluation board

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Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) has introduced the EPC91121 motor drive inverter evaluation board, built around the Gen-7 EPC2366 40 V eGaN power transistor. The EPC91121 is engineered for rapid prototyping of advanced motor drive architectures in applications such as drones, robotics, industrial automation, handheld power tools, and other compact electromechanical systems where high efficiency and power density are critical.

The EPC91121 is a complete three-phase inverter solution capable of delivering up to 70 Apeak (50 ARMS) output current from input voltages ranging between 18 V and 30 V, making it ideal for battery-powered systems operating around a 24 V supply. Designed for rapid prototyping and evaluation, the board integrates the key functions required for a motor drive inverter, including gate drivers, housekeeping power supplies, voltage and temperature monitoring, and current sensing.

High-bandwidth current sensing on all three phases supports measurements up to ±125 A, while phase and DC-bus voltage sensing provide the feedback needed for precise monitoring and advanced motor-control techniques such as field-oriented control (FOC) and space-vector PWM.

Additional features include shaft encoder and Hall-sensor interfaces and multiple test points, simplifying system integration, measurement, and debugging during development.

expert GaN vs. MOSFET

Evaluating GaN as a low-voltage alternative to Silicon MOSFETs

At the heart of the design is the 40 V EPC2366 Gen 7 eGaN FET, featuring ultra-low on-resistance of 0.84 mΩ, enabling extremely efficient power conversion and fast switching performance. The evaluation platform supports PWM switching frequencies up to 150 kHz, significantly higher than typical silicon-based motor drives. This capability allows engineers to reduce magnetic component size, minimize switching losses, and improve overall system responsiveness.

“With the EPC91121, engineers can evaluate high-frequency GaN-based three-phase inverter designs while leveraging integrated sensing and control interfaces for advanced motor control, “ said Marco Palma, Director, Motor Drives Systems and Applications at EPC.

The board’s optimized layout ensures low-distortion switching, reducing motor acoustic noise and torque ripple while controlling dv/dt to below 10 V/ns for stable operation and improved electromagnetic compatibility. For rapid development, the board features a 40-pin controller interface compatible with platforms from Renesas, Microchip, Texas Instruments and STMicroelectronics, allowing engineers to leverage existing motor-control ecosystems.

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