Gate driver

About: Gate driver is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 7532 publications have been published within this topic receiving 75854 citations.

Gate capacitor stress reduction in CMOS/BICMOS circuit

Abstract: Method and apparatus for using a MOSFET having a thin gate oxide layer as a gate capacitor is provided. The method includes the steps of biasing at least one of a source and a drain of the MOSFET by applying a nonzero voltage to the source and the drain, and applying a voltage to a gate of the MOSFET. The voltage applied to the gate is greater than a voltage rating of the MOSFET but less than the sum of the voltage rating and the voltage applied to the source and the drain. The gate of the MOSFET may have a length that measures at least 150.0 nanometers and no more than 350.0 nanometers. The thin gate oxide layer may have a thickness that measures at least 2.00 nanometers and no more than 7.00 nanometers. The MOSFET may be constructed using CMOS technology or BiCMOS technology. Apparatuses implementing this method include a capacitor, a read channel for a hard disk drive, and an electrical circuit for amplification of a signal.

Power module package for high frequency switching system

Abstract: A heat sink with fins has a flat, planar surface soldered to a metallic layer at one surface of a flat, planar ceramic layer. The opposite surface of the ceramic layer has a metallic pattern including base areas for high power, high frequency load switching MOSFETs. Lead frames are soldered between the lead frame base areas and base contact areas of the MOSFET packages. Thermal conduction between the MOSFETs and the heat sink dissipates the heat from switching losses. A gate drive circuit board for the load switching system is supported spaced from the and is separated from the MOSFETs by a thermally blocking air gap, with the component side of the gate drive circuit board facing away from the MOSFETs. Spade terminals of the lead frames extend through openings in the gate drive circuit board to route high power signals independently of the gate driver circuit board.

Multi-driver integrated circuit

Abstract: A monolithic integrated circuit (IC) chip in which is formed a multi-driver power circuit, with each driver circuit including one output power transistor, is partitioned such that the power transistor of each driver circuit, formed in the IC, is spaced apart from those of any other driver circuit a distance sufficiently large to ensure the generation of a temperature differential between the power transistors of the different driver circuits when their power dissipation is different. A thermal sensor is formed in close proximity to each output power transistor, and as far away as possible from the other power transistors of the IC, whereby each thermal sensor is thermally, tightly, coupled to its associated power transistor. Each thermal sensor is electrically coupled to the base of its associated power transistor for controlling the conductivity of its associated power transistor when the power dissipation of its associated power transistor and its resulting temperature exceeds a predetermined level.

Phase Current Sensor and Short-Circuit Detection based on Rogowski Coils Integrated on Gate Driver for 1.2 kV SiC MOSFET Half-Bridge Module

Abstract: Silicon-carbide (SiC) MOSFETs are enabling electrical vehicle motor drives to meet the demands of higher power density, efficiency, and lower system cost. Hence, this paper seeks to explore the benefits that a gate-driver-level intelligence can contribute to SiC-based power inverters. The intelligence is brought by PCB-embedded Rogowski switch-current sensors (RSCS) integrated on the gate driver of a 1.2 kV, 300 A SiC MOSFET half-bridge module. They collect two MOSFET switch currents in a manner of high magnitude, high bandwidth, and solid signal isolation. The switch-current signals are used for short-circuit detection under various fault impedances, as well as for phase-current reconstruction by subtracting one switch current from another. The fundamentals and noise-immunity design of the gate driver containing the RSCS are presented in the paper and can be applied to any half-bridge power module. A three-phase inverter prototype has been built and operated in continuous PWM mode. On this setup, the performance and limitations of the short-circuit detection and phase-current reconstruction are experimentally validated by comparing with commercial current probes and Hall sensors.

Power driver circuit with reduced turnoff time

Abstract: This application discloses circuit and method for reducing the turn-off time of a power transistor driving an inductive load. The circuit clamps the gate to source of a power transistor by using two field effect transistors as the current path across the gate and source of the power transistor. A zener diode connected from the source to gate of the two field effect transistors is used to provide high voltage protection.