GaN Functional Safety / Short-Circuit Patent Landscape
The GaN functional safety and short-circuit protection space is in a growth stage, with multi-year filing activity up 48% over the prior comparable window, though annual volume peaked in 2022 and the most recent years are further understated by publication lag. Navitas Semiconductor leads a moderately fragmented field where device-level semiconductor IP dominates and protective-circuit coverage remains comparatively thin.
Navitas leads a moderately fragmented field across commercial and academic filers
Navitas Semiconductor holds the top position with 14 patent records, followed by GaN Systems with 9, Semicon Components Industrial with 8, independent inventor Huang Chih Shu with 7, and South. China University of Technology with 6. The top five filers’ combined share amounts to 24% of the hundred largest filers, indicating no single player commands a dominant lock.
The tier gap between the leader (14 records) and the fifth-ranked filer (6 records) is meaningful but not prohibitive, and a cluster of applicants at 4–5 records suggests a competitive second tier. Universities and research institutes account for several of the top-20 positions, which is consistent with a field still establishing foundational device and circuit IP.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Navitas Semiconductor Limited | 14 | |
| 2 | GaN Systems Inc. | 9 | |
| 3 | Semicon Components Industrial LLC | 8 | |
| 4 | HUANG CHIH SHU | 7 | |
| 5 | South China University of Technology | 6 | |
| 6 | DING WENPING | 6 | |
| 7 | Tonghui Electronics Technology Co., Ltd. | 5 | |
| 8 | UNIV OF ELECTRONICS SCI & TECH OF CHINA | 5 | |
| 9 | Shaoxing Xinneng Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. | 5 | |
| 10 | Apple Inc. | 4 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Nanjing University | 4 | |
| 12 | STMicroelectronics Application GmbH | 4 | |
| 13 | NO 55 INST CHINA ELECTRONIC SCI & TECHNOLOGYGROUP … | 4 | |
| 14 | STMicroelectronics (Tours) SAS | 4 | |
| 15 | Ancora Semiconductor Inc. | 4 | |
| 16 | GaNPower International Inc. | 4 | |
| 17 | Peking University | 4 | |
| 18 | Chengdu Hiwafer Semiconductor Co., Ltd. | 3 | |
| 19 | Analog Devices Inc. | 3 | |
| 20 | Hangzhou Dianzi University Fuyang Electronic Information Research Institute | 3 |
Navitas’s position, concentrated in semiconductor packaging and integration sub-classes, reflects its commercial focus on GaN ICs for power conversion rather than standalone protective-circuit IP. GaN Systems similarly emphasizes device-level claims. This leaves higher-level functional-safety and protection-circuit work relatively open to challengers with circuit-design depth.
Filing counts for 2024–2026 are understated due to typical 18–24 month publication lag and should not be read as a slowdown in activity. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Filing volume surged to a 2022 peak; device semiconductor IP dominates the technology mix
Two structural features define this field: a sharp 2022 filing spike that has since eased, and an IPC mix heavily weighted toward semiconductor device classes with comparatively sparse coverage of protective circuit and pulse-technique branches.
Annual filing trend
Annual filings climbed from 7 records in 2017 to a peak of 43 in 2022, then retreated to 17 in 2023 and 14 in 2024. Figures for 2024–2026 are materially understated by publication lag and should not be interpreted as a sustained decline. On a multi-year basis the field remains in a growth stage, with the recent three-year window running 48% above the prior comparable period.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01L (semiconductor devices) dominates with 152 records, reflecting the field’s grounding in GaN device structure and packaging. H10D (semiconductor devices, general) and H02M (power conversion) each contribute meaningfully, while H02H (protective circuit arrangements) at 23 records and H03K (pulse technique and logic circuits) at 21 records represent important but comparatively underweighted branches given the functional-safety focus of the topic.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
HIGH-LINEARITY GaN HEMT RADIO FREQUENCY POWER DEVI…
It is provided a high-linearity GaN HEMT radio frequency power device for improving a transconductance under a large signal, including a substrate layer, a buffer layer, a second barrier layer, a channel layer, a first barrier layer, and a protection layer arranged in sequence. A source, a gate, and a drain are arranged on the protection layer. A first… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Enhancement mode HEMT for digital and analog appli… | 59 |
| 2 | High-Power Electronic Device Packages and Methods | 57 |
| 3 | Power switching systems comprising high power e-mo… | 35 |
| 4 | Method and system for co-packaging vertical galliu… | 30 |
| 5 | Gate Drivers and Voltage Regulators for Gallium Ni… | 27 |
| 6 | POWER SWITCHING SYSTEMS COMPRISING HIGH POWER E-MO… | 24 |
| 7 | Embedded die packaging for power semiconductor dev… | 22 |
| 8 | GATE INPUT PROTECTON FOR DEVICES AND SYSTEMS COMPR… | 21 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the patent structure means for R&D investment decisions
The field’s growth trajectory, moderate concentration, thin protective-circuit coverage, and. China-heavy filing geography each carry distinct implications for teams deciding where to place R&D bets.
Growth stage with annual volume easing from a 2022 peak
The field is classified as Growth: recent three-year filings are 48% above the prior three-year window, confirming sustained expansion on a multi-year basis. Annual volume peaked at 43 records in 2022 and has since eased, though publication lag materially suppresses 2024–2026 counts. Entrants can still establish foundational positions, but the 2022 surge indicates core device IP is being filed aggressively by leading players.
Growth · 2022 peakModerate fragmentation with a competitive second tier
The top five filers hold 24% of the hundred largest filers’ combined total — a moderate concentration level that leaves substantial room for challengers. The second tier (4–6 records each) includes both commercial firms and universities, so competitive dynamics are shaped partly by academic output rather than purely by industry R&D spend. A new entrant with focused circuit-protection IP could enter the second tier with a targeted filing campaign.
Moderate concentrationMinimal documented co-filing; one identified university–industry pair
The corpus contains one identified co-filing relationship: Xidian University and Shaanxi Junpu Xinhang Technology collaborated on one joint application. The near-absence of co-applicant activity suggests that most players are pursuing proprietary IP strategies rather than open consortium approaches. Teams seeking university access to GaN device expertise may find uncontested partnership opportunities with the several academic filers currently publishing independently.
Low co-filing activityChina leads filings; US is the second jurisdiction with significant coverage
China accounts for 84 patent records and the United States for 76, making both jurisdictions essential to any freedom-to-operate or filing strategy. WIPO PCT filings number only 6 and European Patent Office coverage stands at 2, indicating that international protection beyond the two primary markets is limited. South Korea, Taiwan, and India each have one or two records, suggesting nascent but not yet mature coverage in other major semiconductor manufacturing hubs.
CN + US dominantGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| Xidian University | Shaanxi Junpu Xinhang Technology Co., Ltd. | 1 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
Navitas and GaN Systems lead on device IP; protective-circuit specialists are absent from the top tier
The two commercial leaders concentrate their filings in semiconductor device and packaging sub-classes, leaving circuit-level protection and gate-driver IP comparatively underrepresented at the top of the ranking.
Navitas Semiconductor
Navitas holds 14 patent records, the largest position in the corpus. Its technology focus spans H01L 23, H01L 25, and H01L 27 sub-classes, reflecting emphasis on semiconductor packaging, multi-die integration, and array-level device design rather than stand-alone short-circuit detection circuits. Momentum data classifies Navitas as a new entrant to this specific sub-field with 11 recent records, suggesting its GaN functional-safety IP buildup is a recent and accelerating strategic move.
14 patent recordsGaN Systems
GaN Systems ranks second with 9 patent records, concentrated in H01L 29 (transistor and HEMT-level device claims) and H03K 17 (electronic switches and gate-drive circuits), giving it broader circuit-level reach than the leader. Momentum data also classifies GaN Systems as a new entrant in this sub-field with 2 recent records, pointing to a smaller but targeted protective and gate-drive IP position that complements its established power transistor portfolio.
9 patent records| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Navitas Semiconductor Limited | 11 | ▲ new entrant |
| GaN Systems Inc. | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
| HUANG CHIH SHU | 1 | ▲ new entrant |
| South China University of Technology | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
| Shaoxing Xinneng Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. | 5 | ▲ new entrant |
| University of Electronic Science and Technology of China | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
| Xidian University | 3 | ▲ new entrant |
Protective circuits, pulse logic, and power-supply systems are under-served relative to device IP
Several IPC branches adjacent to the dominant H01L device class carry meaningful record counts but remain sparse relative to the overall corpus size, warranting attention from teams with relevant circuit or system expertise.
H02H · Protective circuit arrangements
With 23 patent records, H02H is the most directly relevant branch for functional safety and fault-current protection, yet it represents only 7% of the IPC distribution in a corpus nominally focused on short-circuit behavior. This gap between the topic’s stated focus and its actual coverage indicates that system-level protective circuit IP — over-current detection, desaturation sensing, and fault-response logic for GaN devices — is an under-served area. Teams with analog IC or gate-driver design capability have a plausible entry path by targeting protective topologies that are validated for the high-dV/dt environment of GaN switching.
Search this in Eureka →H03K · Pulse technique and logic circuits
H03K carries 21 records, covering gate-drive pulse shaping, shoot-through prevention, and digital logic for GaN control — all directly relevant to short-circuit robustness at the driver level. Its 6% share of the IPC mix is modest given that gate-drive response time is a primary determinant of short-circuit survival in GaN HEMTs. The presence of GaN Systems in H03K 17 shows commercial viability, but the thin overall count suggests room for focused gate-driver IP targeting sub-microsecond fault response and soft-shutdown for enhancement-mode GaN.
Search this in Eureka →How top filers diverge across device, protection, and system-level technology routes
Route coverage across the main technology branches in the current evidence set.
| Player | H01L 29 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 23 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 21 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 27 · Semiconductor devices | H10D 62 · Semiconductor devices (general) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Navitas Semiconductor Limited | Strong · 11 | Strong · 14 | Absent | Strong · 11 | Moderate · 7 |
| GaN Systems Inc. | Strong · 9 | Moderate · 4 | Absent | Moderate · 3 | Moderate · 2 |
| HUANG CHIH SHU | Strong · 7 | Absent | Moderate · 2 | Strong · 5 | Moderate · 3 |
| STMicroelectronics (Tours) SAS | Absent | Absent | Strong · 4 | Strong · 4 | Strong · 4 |
| South China University of Technology | Strong · 6 | Absent | Strong · 5 | Absent | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus analyzed contains 141 patent families. This covers GaN device and circuit IP related to short-circuit protection and functional safety filed across all major jurisdictions through 2026, with the caveat that the most recent 18–24 months are understated due to publication lag.
Navitas Semiconductor holds the top position with 14 patent records, followed by GaN Systems with 9 and Semicon Components Industrial with 8. Navitas’s filings concentrate in semiconductor packaging and integration sub-classes rather than stand-alone protective-circuit IP.
The field is classified as Growth: recent three-year filings are 48% above the prior three-year window. Annual volume peaked at 43 records in 2022 and has since eased, but this partly reflects publication lag for 2023–2026 filings. The multi-year trend remains expansionary.
China leads with 84 patent records and the United States follows with 76. WIPO PCT filings number 6 and European Patent Office coverage stands at 2. South Korea, Taiwan, and India each have one or two records, indicating limited coverage outside the two primary markets.
H01L (semiconductor devices) accounts for 152 records, reflecting the field’s grounding in GaN device structure and packaging. H10D, H02M (power conversion), H10W, H02H (protective circuits), and H03K (pulse technique and logic) are the next most represented classes, though all are significantly smaller than H01L.
H02H (protective circuit arrangements) and H03K (pulse technique and logic circuits) are the most under-served branches relative to the topic’s functional-safety focus, with 23 and 21 records respectively. System-level protective topologies validated for GaN’s high-dV/dt switching and sub-microsecond gate-driver fault response represent plausible entry points with limited incumbent density.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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