Porsche is looking to make its in-car audio systems even lighter with a new semiconductor technology.
Developed in partnership with the University of Stuttgart, the new audio technology uses gallium nitride (GaN) in a Burmester high-end sound system.
These cutting-edge semiconductors – which are currently used in smartphones and tablets, as well as USB chargers – offer better switching frequencies than conventional silicon-based transistors. The net result of this is less heat generated which, in turn, means that the electronic components that these semiconductors are used in can be smaller and lighter.
The new semiconductors will allow for smaller and lighter speakers
When used in the new Burmester sound system, these GaN semiconductors generate less heat and lose less energy, which allows the units to be smaller but no less powerful. Audio systems use a heatsink – a metal part that spreads heat out and away from an electronic device – and with this new technology, the heatsink can be made smaller.
Since these heatsinks are smaller, the amount of aluminium required to make them is less and this lowers the overall environmental impact of the system.
In Porsche vehicles, this feature means that even the brand’s most lightweight sports cars could get a high-end sound system that doesn’t impact vehicle performance due to excess weight.
Porsche is already implementing the technology, too, with first production examples expected to be produced next year. The brand says that it has already filed ‘several’ patents for the technology as well.