Next-gen GaNFast ICs power ultra-fast charger at top speed

Navitas Semiconductor announced its next-generation GaNFast power ICs with GaN-Sense technology drive a special-edition Redmi smartphone launched in China. The K50 Champion Edition gaming phone is a joint-release by Redmi and the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team, commemorating their 2021-season Formula 1 constructors' championship victory.

Matching the race-winning speed of the legendary eight-times-champion Mercedes-AMG F1 team, the co-branded Redmi K50 'champion' gaming phone can fully charge in a extremely fast 17 minutes. Even under full-speed, intense gaming use, 0-100% charging can be accomplished in only 37 minutes - a refreshing record in the industry. Its next-gen GaN power ICs provide this improvement in charging speed.

The phone has a 6.67" flexible OLED screen, DisplayMate A+ certification, Qualcomm's flagship Snapdragon 8 processor, and dual Sony cameras on the front and rear. A powerful 4700mAh battery is squeezed into a slimline 8.5mm body, with 'dual heat source separation' to separate processor heat from the charging circuit. Double vapour-chamber liquid cooling, with a total area of up to 4860mm², keeps the phone cool and the gaming at top speed.

The K50's 120W ultra-fast charger measures 55mm x 55mm x 28.4mm (86cc), a lightweight 138g, and delivers an industry-leading power density of 1.4W/cc.

Next-gen GaN functions 20x faster than conventional silicon and can deliver up to 3x more power and 3x more charging speed in half the size and weight. These ICs with GaNSense technology integrate real-time, accurate sensing of system parameters, incorporating current and temperature, to improve energy savings by 10% and enhance system reliability with a 'detect-to-protect' performance of only 30ns - 6x faster than discrete implementations.

Wang Xiang, president and partner of Xiaomi Group, said about the product launch: "We are very pleased to see the cooperation happen once again between Xiaomi and Navitas Semiconductor. Our newly-released Redmi K50 Champion Edition gaming phone comes with an in-box 120W GaN charger, enabling an industry-leading charging experience. We look forward to continuing our in-depth collaboration with Navitas and continue to bring a faster and lighter consumer charging experience to our mobile phone customers with superior products and leading technologies.

"We are excited that Redmi selected Navitas for this high-profile K50 Champion' in-box' ultra-fast charger, adding to our long, successful partnership," said Gene Sheridan, Navitas' CEO and co-founder. "It's a perfect match of GaNFast charging, Redmi gaming passion and Formula 1's incredible speed."