Replacing established silicon technology requires more than design alone. It requires proven reliability under real operating conditions. To ensure a new power supply can perform in demanding environments, particularly in medical and industrial systems, hardware must undergo extensive endurance testing before deployment.
As the industry moves beyond the limitations of legacy compliance standards and builds on established reliability validation frameworks, laboratory stress testing provides the final step in verifying wide bandgap semiconductor performance under real operating conditions.
An Inside Look at Stress Testing
The definitive benchmark for proving a component’s reliability is called the High Temperature Reverse Bias (HTRB) test. Think of this as a simulated, high-speed aging process designed to deliberately force hidden material flaws or early failures to show themselves in the lab rather than out in the field.
During this standard industry evaluation, components are placed inside a specialized laboratory oven heated up to a controlled 150°C environment. While enduring that intense heat, the parts are continuously blasted with up to 100% of their maximum electrical voltage rating. Instead of a quick check, engineers leave the components trapped under this combined thermal and electrical stress for a full 1,000 hours. This corresponds to roughly 42 days of non-stop operation.
The Two Tiers of Validation Testing
As active members of both the European Power Supply Manufacturers Association (EPSMA) and the Power Sources Manufacturers Association (PSMA), our engineering teams align their validation testing with strict global safety expectations. This requires analyzing the power supply on two distinct levels:
| Testing Phase | What the Lab Does | What it Proves |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Component Stress | 42 days of continuous runtime inside a 150°C oven under maximum electrical voltage. | Catches micro-level material weaknesses before mass assembly. |
| 2. Full-System Aging | 1,000 hours of non-stop operation at full workload inside the final metal casing. | Ensures the entire unit runs cool and stays perfectly stable. |
Verifying Long-Term System Stability
Surviving individual component stress testing is only step one. Once those parts are integrated into the actual power supply, the completed unit undergoes its own 1,000-hour full-load test. This step evaluates how advanced components interact with internal transformers and filters under real-world workloads, proving that the entire system will run safely without degrading over time.
These testing processes provide the data needed to reduce the risks associated with adopting new technology. The result is a clear pathway to custom power solutions that run cooler, fit into smaller spaces, and provide absolute peace of mind in critical care environments.
- → Demanding transparent laboratory benchmarks before deploying hardware.
- → Using long-term stress data to safeguard mission-critical operations.
- –> Transitioning safely to advanced hardware via verified EPSMA and PSMA design standards.
Download and read more in PRBX White paper 045:
Challenges and Opportunities in Adopting Wide Band Gap Technologies like Gallium Nitride!
WP 045 – 2025.08.26
Wide bandgap (WBG) semiconductors like gallium nitride (GaN) advance power electronics with higher efficiency, faster switching, and greater power density, though adoption faces challenges.
Learn more about it in our White Paper:
Challenges and Opportunities in Adopting Wide Band Gap Technologies like Gallium Nitride!
