Recent advances in silicon technology have pushed the silicon properties to its theoretical limits. Therefore, wide band gap semiconductors, such as silicon carbide ( SiC ) and gallium nitride ( GaN ) have been considered as a replacement for silicon. The discovery of these wide band gap semiconductors have given the new generation power devices a magnificent prospect of surviving under high temperature and hostile environments. The primary focuses of this review are the properties of GaN , the alternative substrates that can be used to deposit GaN and the substitution of SiO 2 gate dielectric with high dielectric constant (k) film. The future perspectives of AlGaN / GaN heterostructures are also discussed, providing that these structures are able to further enhance the performance of high power devices.