Navitas Unveils GaNSense™ Motor Drive ICs for High-Efficiency Home and Industrial Applications up to 600W

Navitas Semiconductor has introduced a new line of GaNSense™ Motor Drive integrated circuits (ICs), purpose-built for home appliance and industrial motor drive systems up to 600 watts. Engineered specifically for motor control, these fully integrated ICs incorporate two gallium nitride (GaN) FETs in a half-bridge configuration, along with embedded drive circuitry, intelligent control, precision sensing, and autonomous protection features. Compared to traditional silicon-based IGBT solutions, this innovation delivers up to 4% higher energy efficiency, reduces printed circuit board (PCB) area by 40%, and lowers overall system cost by 15%.

A standout feature is the ICs’ bidirectional, lossless current sensing, capable of accurately measuring both positive and negative current flow. This functionality is essential in motor drive environments, where recirculating currents between switching coil phases can flow in reverse. By eliminating the need for external shunt resistors, this integrated sensing not only boosts efficiency and reliability but also enables a more compact and streamlined system design.

The ICs offer fully adjustable turn-on and turn-off slew rates, empowering engineers to fine-tune electromagnetic interference (EMI), optimize system performance, and achieve peak efficiency. Additionally, the built-in autonomous freewheeling feature activates the GaN switch when reverse current is detected, minimizing conduction losses and allowing for smaller, more cost-effective heatsinks.

Safety and reliability are further enhanced by integrated protection mechanisms, including high-side and low-side short-circuit protection, over-temperature protection (OTP), and robust electrostatic discharge (ESD) resistance rated at 2kV across all pins.

The initial 650V GaNSense Motor Drive IC lineup includes the NV6257 (2 x 170 mΩ, PQFN 6×8), NV6287 (2 x 170 mΩ, PQFN 8×10), and NV6288 (2 x 120 mΩ, PQFN 8×10), all supporting applications up to 600 watts. These devices are ideally suited for a wide range of residential motor-driven systems such as air conditioners, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers, heat pumps, refrigerators, and hair dryers. In industrial settings, they address the needs of low-power motor drives, including fans, pumps, and circulators.

Navitas will showcase the GaNSense Motor Drive IC family at PCIM 2025, taking place from May 6th to 8th in Hall 9, Booth #544.