GaN Nanoinverter: Enabling Low-Cost Residential Solar Energy System

In todayĺs residential PV system, the basic architecture has not changed much in the past twenty years after microinverters are introduced into the market, where the solar cells are connected to a junction box which is then connected to microinverters or DC optimizer/rapid shut down devices via a set of MC4 connectors. In the case of DC optimizer, an additional DC/AC inverter is needed. There are many cables, connectors, and equipment in the system. This means higher cost in materials, manufacturing, complex installation and high energy loss which lead to multiple failure points. Nanoinverter uses Gallium Nitride power switch operating at 500 kHz to 1MHz to enable a very compact design (1/3 of the Enphase microinverter) while achieving 99% percent efficiency (2% higher than todayĺs best microinverter). Additional innovation such as active decoupling will be utilized to further reduce its size so that it can eventually be placed into the junction box. As a result, the electronic components, cables and connectors are largely reduced and no other equipment are needed for grid connection. This will result in a true plug-and-play AC module architecture with substantially reduced installation cost and fire risk. Nanoinverter and Nanoinverter based AC module product could reduce residential solar energy cost by another 50% within 5 years. Phase I SBIR project will focus on proof of concept design and demonstration, design for cost reduction and risk mitigation. In Phase II, redesign of the prototype will enable a high TRL level solution with 50% cost reduction. UL certification as well as third party national lab testing will be conducted. Commercial product will be launched at the end of Phase II. If successfully executed, the nanoinverter technology could enable a rapid growth company with revenue exceeding $400M in its first ten year of operation. Many jobs will be created in the United States and making US solar industry more competitive globally.