6. Environmental aspects

Combined with a highly thermally conductive silicon carbide substrate, gallium nitride brings considerable advantages to power applications: voltage withstand 5 to 10 times better than traditional semiconductors, and improved heat dissipation. This semiconductor can be used to produce components that combine high breakdown voltage, electron mobility and current. Applications of GaN devices dedicated to RF or EP generally result in lower costs and energy consumption, which translates into lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Beyond radiation resilience, for satellite applications, GaN devices offer unrivalled RF electrical performance compared with silicon and GaAs components. For space applications, this translates into smaller, lighter and more compact devices, making them ideal for applications where space is limited. Their size reductions contribute to cost savings...