Navitas’ GaN advances net-zero in agriculture via Virtual Forest

Navitas Semiconductor, a pure-play, next-generation power semiconductor company, and industry leader in GaN power ICs and SiC, announced that Virtual Forest, one of India’s leading electronics design companies specializing in motor control and human interface technologies for consumer appliances, fluid movement and mobility, has adopted its GaNFast power integrated circuits (IC) technology for a zero-emission, powerful 3 hp (2,250W) solar-powered irrigation pump.

For many farmers worldwide, irrigating remote crops requires powerful pumps to lift water from rivers and streams up to field-level, with the majority powered by polluting and noisy diesel generators or expensive, lossy long-distance electrical cables. The Virtual Forest solar pump with maximum power point tracking (MPPT) operates in conjunction with solar panel and energy storage to provide robust, energy-independent, and pollution-free performance at the point of use. 

The 3 hp (2,250W) pump is remotely accessed via quad-band IoT with low power consumption. It can raise over 50 gallons-per-minute of water to a height of over 90 feet, enough to water 3 acres of farmland, and help to produce 10 tonnes of wheat. Further, the IoT enabled solar pump ensures optimal water usage through intelligent analytics, therefore minimizing ground water utilization.

Navitas GaNSense half-bridge power ICs monolithically by integrating two GaN power FETs with GaN drivers, level-shifters, protection features and high-efficiency loss-less current sensing. High-efficiency NV6269 half-bridge ICs, in easy-to-use 8x10 mm QFN packages are used in a 3-phase motor inverter, with 3x-5x energy savings vs legacy silicon IGBTs.

"The $450 million solar-pump market in India is expected to reach $1.5 Bn by 2026, calling for a solar revolution on Indian fields,” said Virtual Forest’s CEO, Omer Basith, adding “Reliable, off-grid systems are critical to overcome food insecurity and achieve energy efficiency. Leveraging Navitas’ high-power, efficient GaNSense half-bridge, we seek to deliver a robust solution to the market. We are nurturing our dream to drive gigatons of reduction in carbon emissions, thereby making the world a greener place to live in. Hence, our name — Virtual Forest.”

“The design team at Virtual Forest adopted the GaNSense half-bridges very quickly, for a fast time-to-market,” said Alessandro Squeri, Navitas’ Senior Sales Director. “With GaNSense 'easy-to-use' features, Virtual Forest comes into the partnership with high efficiency, low component count and a robust design for tough environments.”