Have you ever substituted a GaN transistor from a PCB? If the answer is Yes, you know what I am talking about. If it is not your case, you are a lucky guy and this can be very interesting for you.
In Figure 1 you can appreciate the size of a GaN transistor from EPC. As you can see, they are really small, therefore, they are not as simple to substitute as a TO-247. However, they can give you a better performance in your circuit.
Figure 1. GaN device from EPC
(http://epc-co.com/epc/Products/eGaNFETsandICs/EnhancementModeMonolithicHalf-Bridge.aspx)
Substituting GaN transistors after breaking any of them used to be a headache for engineers. Sp Control, together with the UAM University, has a solution: emulation of power converters.
The Emulation of systems is very common in big scale system, like medium and high voltage electric grids or motor control, known as Hardware in the Loop (HIL), but it is not very common at circuit level due to the difficulty of achieving high resolution of the analysis. Sp has developed a technology that will allow you to emulate classical converter behavior at high frequency to ensure the functionality of your circuit before using the real one.
Figure 2 Control instability is a very common problem during the close loop test
Most of the problems appear closing the control loop, where load steps can create instabilities, provoking electrical problems. With our emulator, you can test your control under safe conditions. Removing GaN devices will not frustrate you by using this amazing technology.
Chema Molina 