APPLICATION NOTE

HV Floating MOS-Gate Driver ICs

(HEXFET is a trademark of International Rectifier)
Topics Covered:
Gate drive requirements of high side devices Block diagram of a typical MGD Bootstrap operation How to select the bootstrap components How to calculate the power dissipation in the MGD How to deal with negative transients Layouts and other guidelines How to isolate the logic from the power circuit How to boost the output current of an MGD to drive modules How to provide a continuous gate drive

AN978-b

International Rectifier 233 Kansas Street El Segundo CA 90245 USA

How to provide a negative gate drive Driving Buck converters Driving Dual-Forwards and switched reluctance motor controllers Cycle-by-cycle current control by means of the SD pin Brushless and induction motor drives Push-pull and other low-side applications Driving a high-side P-Channel MOSFET How to drive thyristor gates Troubleshooting guidelines

1. GATE DRIVE REQUIREMENTS OF HIGH-SIDE DEVICES

The gate drive requirements for a power MOSFET or IGBT utilized as a high side switch (drain connected to the high voltage rail, as shown in Figure 1) driven in full enhancement, i.e., lowest voltage drop across its terminals, can be summarized as follows: 1. Gate voltage must be 10-15V higher than the drain voltage. Being a high side switch, such gate voltage would have to be higher than the rail voltage, which is frequently the highest voltage available in the system. The gate voltage must be controllable from the logic, which is normally referenced to ground. Thus, the control signals have to be level-shifted to the source of the high side power device, which, in most applications, swings between the two rails. The power absorbed by the gate drive circuitry should not significantly affect the overall efficiency.

V+

HIGH VOLTAGE RAIL

GATE

2.

SOURCE

3.

With these constraints in mind, several techniques are presently used to perform this function, as shown in principle in Table I. Each basic circuit can be implemented in a wide variety of configurations.

Figure 1. Power MOSFET in high side configuration

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International Rectifiers family of MOS-gate drivers (MGDs) integrate most of the functions required to drive one high side and one low side power MOSFET or IGBT in a compact, high performance package. With the addition of few components, they provide very fast switching speeds, as shown in Table II for the IR2110, and low power dissipation. They can operate on the bootstrap principle or with a floating power supply. Used in the bootstrap mode, they can operate in most applications from frequencies in the tens of Hz up to hundreds of kHz.

2. A TYPICAL BLOCK DIAGRAM

The block diagram of the IR2110 will be used to illustrate the typical structure of most MGDs (Figure 2). It comprises a drive circuit for a ground referenced power transistor, another for a high side one, level translators and input logic circuitry.

VR VB
V DD / VBS LEVEL TRANSLATOR
PULSE DISCRIMINATOR UV DETECT

CBOOT Q Q VS HO

VDD

LATCH LOGIC

HIN
R S
V /V DD CC LEVEL TRANSLATOR AND PW DISCRIMINATOR PULSE GENERATOR

Cd-sub

Cb-sub VCC

SD
S R
V /V DD CC LEVEL TRANSLATOR AND PW DISCRIMINATOR

UV DETECT

LO
DELAY

LIN VSS

2 COMM

Figure 2. Block Diagram of the IR2110

HIGH SIDE CMOS LD MOS (LEVEL SHIFTERS)

p+

n+ n+ p-well n-

p p+

n+ p

n+ n-

n+ p Cd-sub

p+

Cb-sub

pCOM

Figure 3. Silicon crossection showing the parasitic capacitances.

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2.1 Input logic
Both channels are controlled by TTL/CMOS compatible inputs. The transition thresholds are different from device to device. Some MGDs, (IR211x and IR215x) have the transition threshold proportional to the logic supply VDD (3 to 20V) and Schmitt trigger buffers with hysteresis equal to 10% of VDD to accept inputs with long rise time. Other MGDs (IR210x, IR212x, IR213x) have a fixed transition from logic 0 to logic 1 between 1.5 to 2 V. Some MGDs can drive only one high-side power device. Others can drive one high-side and one low-side power device. Others can drive a full three-phase bridge. It goes without saying that any high-side driver can also drive a low side device. Those MGDs with two gate drive channel can have dual , hence independent, input commands or a single input command with complementary drive and predetermined deadtime. Those application that require a minimum deadtime should use MGDs with independent drive and relay on a few passive components to build a deadtime, as shown in Section 12. The propagation delay between input command and gate drive output is approximately the same for both channels at turn-on (120ns) as well as turn-off (95ns) with a temperature dependence characterized in the data sheet. The shutdown function is internally latched by a logic 1 signal and activates the turn off of both power devices. The first input command after the removal of the shutdown signal clears the latch and activates its channel. This latched shutdown lends itself to a simple implementation of a cycle-by-cycle current control, as exemplified in Section 12. The signals from the input logic are coupled to the individual channels through high noise immunity level translators. This allows the ground reference of the logic supply (VSS on pin 13) to swing by 5V with respect to the power ground (COM). This feature is of great help in coping with the less than ideal ground layout of a typical power conditioning circuit. As a further measure of noise immunity, a pulse-width discriminator screens out pulses that are shorter than 50ns or so.

2.2 Low Side Channel

The output stage is implemented either with two N-Channel MOSFETs in totem pole configuration (source follower as a current source and common source for current sinking), or with an N-Channel and a P-Channel CMOS inverter stage. Each MOSFET can sink or source gate currents from 0.12 to 2A, depending on the MGD. The source of the lower driver is independently brought out to pin 2 so that a direct connection can be made to the source of the power device for the return of the gate drive current. The relevance of this will be seen in Section 5. An undervoltage lockout prevents either channel from operating if VCC is below the specified value (typically 8.6/8.2V). Any pulse that is present at the input command for the low-side channel when the UV lockout is released turns on the power transistor from the moment the UV lockout is released. This behavior is different from that of the high-side channel, as we will see in the next section.

2.3 High side channel

This channel has been built into an isolation tub (Figure 3) capable of floating from 500 or 600V to -5V with respect to power ground (COM). The tub floats at the potential of VS, which is established by the voltage applied to VB. Typically this pin is connected to the source of the high side device, as shown in Figure 2 and swings with it between the two rails. f an isolated supply is connected between this pin and VS , the high side channel will switch the output (HO) between the positive of this supply and its ground in accordance with the input command. One significant feature of MOS-gated transistors is their capacitive input characteristic, i.e., the fact that they are turned on by supplying a charge to the gate rather than a continuous current. If the high side channel is driving one such device, the isolated supply can be replaced by a capacitor, as shown in Figure 2.

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I The gate charge for the high side MOSFET is provided by the bootstrap capacitor which is charged by the 15V supply through the bootstrap diode during the time when the device is off (assuming that VS swings to ground during that time, as it does in most applications). Since the capacitor is charged from a low voltage source the power consumed to drive the gate is small. The input commands for the high side channel have to be level-shifted from the level of COM to whatever potential the tub is floating at which can be as high as 500V. As shown in Figure 2 the on/off commands are transmitted in the form of narrow pulses at the rising and falling edges of the input command. They are latched by a set/reset flip-flop referenced to the floating potential. The use of pulses greatly reduces the power dissipation associated with the level translation. The pulse discriminator filters the set/reset pulses from fast dv/dt transients appearing on the VS node so that switching rates as high as 50V/ns in the power devices will not adversely affect the operation of the MGD. This channel has its own undervoltage lockout ( on some MGDs) which blocks the gate drive if the voltage between VB and VS, i.e., the voltage across the upper totem pole is below its limits (typically 8.7/8.3V). The operation of the UV lockout differs from the one on VCC in one detail: the first pulse after the UV lockout has released the channel changes the state of the output. The high voltage level translator circuit is designed to function properly even when the VS node swings below the COM pin by a voltage indicated in the datasheet, typically 5 V. This occurs due to the forward recovery of the lower power diode or to the Ldi/dt induced voltage transient. Section 5 gives directions on how to limit this negative voltage transient.

3. HOW TO SELECT THE BOOTSTRAP COMPONENTS

As shown in Figure 2 the bootstrap diode and capacitor are the only external components strictly required for operation in a standard PWM application. Local decoupling capacitors on the VCC (and digital) supply are useful in practice to compensate for the inductance of the supply lines. The voltage seen by the bootstrap capacitor is the VCC supply only. Its capacitance is determined by the following constraints: 1. Gate required to enhance MGT 2. Iqbs - quiescent current for the high side driver circuitry 3. Currents within the level shifter of the control IC 4. MGT gate-source forward leakage current 5. Bootstrap capacitor leakage current Factor 5 is only relevant if the bootstrap capacitor is an electrolytic capacitor, and can be ignored if other types of capacitor are used. Therefore it is always better to use a non-electrolytic capacitor if possible. For more detailed information on bootstrap component selection see DT98-2a Bootstrap Component Selection for Control ICs. The minimum bootstrap capacitor value can be calculated from the following equation: where:

Iqbs (max) ICbs ( leak ) 2 2Qg + + Qls + f f C Vcc Vf VLS VMin

EQ(2)

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Qg=Gate charge of high side FET f=frequency of operation Icbs(leak)=Bootstrap capacitor leakage current Ilson=20mA, Ilsoff=20mA, tw=200ns VLS= Voltage drop across the low side FET or load Vf= Forward voltage drop across the bootstrap diode Qls = level shift charge required per cycle = 5nC (500V/600V ICs) or 20nC (1200V ICs) The bootstrap diode must be able to block the full voltage seen in the specific circuit; in the circuits of Figures 25, 28 and 29 this occurs when the top device is on and is about equal to the voltage across the power rail. The current rating of the diode is the product of gate charge times switching frequency. For an IRF450 HEXFET power MOSFET operating at 100kHz it is approximately 12mA. The high temperature reverse leakage characteristic of this diode can be an important parameter in those applications where the capacitor has to hold the charge for a prolonged period of time. For the same reason it is important that this diode be ultrafast recovery to reduce the amount of charge that is fed back from the bootstrap capacitor into the supply.

4. HOW TO CALCULATE THE POWER DISSIPATION IN AN MGD

The total losses in an MGD result from a number of factors that can be grouped under high voltage and low voltage static and dynamic. a) Low voltage static losses (PD(1v)q) are due to the quiescent currents from the three low voltage supplies VDD, VCC and VSS. In a typical 15V application these losses amount to approximately 3.5mW at 25C, going to 5mW at TJ = 125 C . Low voltage dynamic losses (PD(lv)SW) on the VCC supply are due to two different components: Whenever a capacitor is charged or discharged through a resistor, half of energy that goes into the capacitance is dissipated in the resistor. Thus, the losses in the gate drive resistance, internal and external to the MGD, for one complete cycle is the following: PG = V QG f For two IRF450 HEXFETs operated at 100kHz with Vgs = 15V, we have: PG = 2 15 120 E 10 -9 100 E 103 = 0.36W The factor 2 in the formula is valid in the assumption that two devices are being driven, one per channel. If VSS is generated with a bootstrap capacitor/diode, this power is supplied from VCC. The use of gate resistors reduces the amount of gate drive power that is dissipated inside the MGD by the ratio of the respective resistances. If the internal resistance is 6 Ohms, sourcing or sinking, and if the gate resistor is 10 Ohms, only 6/16 of PG is dissipated within the MGD. These losses are not temperature dependent. b2)Dynamic losses associated with the switching of the internal CMOS circuitry. They can be approximated with the following formula: PCMOS = VCC QCMOS f with QCMOS between 5 and 30nC, depending on MGD. In a typical 100kHz application these losses would amount to tens of mW, largely independent from temperature. c) High voltage static losses (PD(hv)q) are mainly due to the leakage currents in the level shifting stage. They are dependent on the voltage applied on the VS pin and they are proportional to the duty cycle, since they only occur when the high side power device is on. If Vs were kept continuously at 400V they would typically be 0.06mW at 25C, going to 2.25mW at 125C. These losses would be virtually zero if VS is grounded, as in a push-pull or similar topology.

b) b1)

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d) High voltage switching losses (PD(hv)sw) comprise two terms, one due to the level shifting circuit (Figure 2) and one due to the charging and discharging of the capacitance of the high side p-well (Cb-sub in Figure 3). Whenever the high side flip-flop is reset, a command to turn-off the high side device (i.e., to set the flip-flop) causes a current to flow through the level-shifting circuit. This charge comes from the high voltage bus through the power device and the bootstrap capacitor. If the high side flip-flop is set and the low side power device is on, a command to reset it causes a current to flow from Vcc, through the diode. Thus, for a half-bridge operating from a rail voltage VR, the combined power dissipation is: (VR + VCC) QP f with Qp the charge absorbed by the level shifter, and f the switching frequency of the high side channel. QP is approximately 4nC at VR = 50V, going to 7nC as the rail voltage increases to 500V. In a typical 400V, 100kHz application these losses would amount to approximately 0.3W. This includes the charging and discharging of Cd-sub. There is a third possible source for QP, when the high side flip-flop is being reset (i.e., the power device is being turned on) and the low side power device is off. In this case the charge comes from the high voltage bus, through the device capacitances and leakages or through the load. The power dissipation is somewhat higher than what would be calculated from the above expression. In a push-pull or other topology where VS (pin 5) is grounded, both level shifting charges are supplied from VCC with significantly lower losses. d2) In a high-side/low-side power circuit the well capacitance Cb-sub is charged and discharged every time VS swings between VR and COM. Charging current is supplied by the high voltage rail through the power device and the epi resistance. Discharge occurs through the lower device and the epi resistance. The losses incurred in charging or discharging a capacitor through a resistor are equal to QV/2, regardless of the value of resistance. However, much of these losses occur outside the bridge driver, since the epi resistance is negligible compared to the internal resistance of the power devices during their switching transitions. Assuming a charge value of 7nC at 450V and an operating frequency of 100kHz, the total losses caused by the charging and discharging of this capacitance amount to: Q V f = 7 10-9 450 105 = 0.31W almost totally outside the IR2110. For all practical purposes, Cb-sub cannot be distinguished from the output capacitance of the lower power device. If VS is grounded the capacitor is charged at a fixed voltage and these losses would be zero. Cb-sub (like Cd-sub) is a reverse biased junction and its capacitance is a strong function of voltage. These charges are not temperature dependent. The above discussion on losses can be summarized as follows:
The dominant losses are switching and, in high voltage applications at 100kHz or above, the static losses in Item a and Item c can be

d1)

neglected outright. The temperature dependence of the switching losses is not significant; The combined losses are a function of the control mode, as well as the electrical parameters and temperature. Knowing the power losses in the MGD, the maximum ambient temperature can be calculated (and vice-versa) from the following expression: Ta max = Tj max - PD Rth j-a where Rth j-a is the thermal resistance from die to ambient.

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The following example shows a typical breakdown of losses for two IRF830s in a half-bridge, from a 400 V rail, 100 kHz, no load, no gate resistors. PD(lv)q 0.004W

PD(lv)SW : PCMOS = 15 16 10 -9 100 103 = 0.024 PG = 2 15 28 10 -9 100 103 = 0.084 PD(hv)q 0.002

PD(hv)sw: (400 + 200) 7 10 -9 100 103 = 0.42 Total 0.534 The value of 200V in the formula to calculate PD(hv)sw is appropriate at no load, since this case would be the third in Section 4.2.d.l, i.e. the output of the half-bridge settles on a voltage that is between the two rails. The actual junction temperature can be measured while in operation by pulling lmA from the Shutdown pin with the help of an adjustable current source, like the LM334. The voltage at the pin is 650mV at 25C, decreasing by 2mV/C.

5. HOW TO DEAL WITH NEGATIVE TRANSIENTS ON THE VS PIN

Of the problems caused by parasitics, one of the main issues for control ICs is a tendency for the VS node to undershoot ground following switching events. Conversely, overshoot does not generally cause a problem due to the high differential voltage capability of International Rectifiers proven HVIC process. International Rectifier control ICs are guaranteed completely immune to VS undershoot of at least 5V, measured with respect to COM. If undershoot exceeds this level, the high side output will temporarily latch in its current state. Provided VS remains within absolute maximum limits the IC will not suffer damage, however the high-side output buffer will not respond to input transitions while undershoot persists beyond 5V. This mode should be noted but proves trivial in most applications, as the high-side is not usually required to change state immediately following a switching event. The signals listed below should be observed both in normal operation and during high-stress events such as short circuit or over-current shutdown, when di/dt is highest. Readings should always be taken directly across IC pins as shown in figure 4, so that contributions from parasitics in the drive coupling are included in the measurement. (1) High side offset with respect to common; VS-COM (2) The floating supply; VB - VS The following guidelines represent good practice in control IC circuits and warrant attention regardless of the observed latch-up safety margin. Minimize the parasitics 1a. 1b. 1c. 1d. Use thick, direct tracks between switches with no loops or deviation. Avoid interconnect links. These can add significant inductance. Reduce the effect of lead-inductance by lowering package height above the PCB. Consider co-locating both power switches to reduce track lengths.

PROBE HERE VB HOU T VS PROBE HERE PROBE HERE VB VS COM NOT HERE

COM

Figure 4. Look at the VS spike during the reverse recovery. Always probe right at the IC pin.

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Reduce control IC exposure. 2a. 2b. 2c. Connect VS and COM as shown in figure 6. Minimize parasitics in the gate drive circuit by using short, direct tracks. Locate the control IC as close as possible to the power switches.

VCC LD1 VB 6 CB R1 Q1

Improve local decoupling. 3a. Increase the bootstrap capacitor (Cb) value to above 0.47mF using at least one low-ESR capacitor. This will reduce overcharging from severe Vs undershoot. Use a second low-ESR capacitor from Vcc to COM. As this capacitor supports both the low-side output buffer and bootstrap recharge, we recommend a value at least ten times higher than Cb. Connect decoupling capacitors directly across appropriate pins as shown in figure 7. If a resistor is needed in series with the bootstrap diode, verify that VB does not fall below COM, especially during start-up and extremes of frequency and duty cycle.
HO VS 7 5

+
HV1

LS1 IR2110 VCC 1 2 VCC C1 R2 Q2 LD2

LLOAD

RLOAD

3b.

+
HV2

3c. 3d.

LO COM

LS2

Figure 5a. A typical half-bridge circuit with stray inductances.

Granted proper application of the above guidelines, the effects of VS undershoot will be minimized at source. If the level of undershoot is still considered too high, then some reduction of dv/dt may be necessary.
IR2110 PC BOARD KIT R3 D1 1N2074A Q1D VDD IR2110 HO +15V 0V SD 11 SD LIN LO VSS COM +15V RTN VSS 3 2 Q2S +100V RTN HIN 10 HIN 7 5 +15V VCC 3 Q2 IRF740 C3 0.47 R2 3.3 VB 6 C1 0.47 R1 3.3 Q1S Q2D VS Q1 IRF740 100V

VDD +15V

+
CF

100F 250V

External snubbing and/or increasing gate drive resistance may be used to trade efficiency for lower switching rate. If the system will not tolerate this, then fast anti-parallel clamping diodes may be considered appropriate. HEXFRED diodes are ideal for this purpose. For More detailed information on managing transients see DT97-3 Managing Transients in Control IC Driven Power Stages

LIN 12

100H

Figure 5b. Test Circuit

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6. LAYOUT AND OTHER GENERAL GUIDELINES
A typical half-bridge circuit is shown in Figure 5a, together with its stray inductances. It shows critical stray inductances located in the high current path which affect the operation of the circuit. LD1 and LS2 are in a dc path and are due to the wiring inductance between the MOSFETs and the decoupling capacitors; LS1 and LD2 are in an ac path and are due to the wiring inductance between the MOSFETs. The stray inductance in a dc path can be cancelled with a capacitor, those in an ac path cannot be compensated for.

This circuit has been implemented with the printed circuit board included in the IR2110 Bridge Driver Designers Kit (part number IR2119), as shown in Figure 5b. To eliminate the effects of the inductance of the wiring between the power supply and the test circuit, a 100mF/250V electrolytic capacitor was connected between Q1D and Q2S terminals, as shown in Figures 6 and 7. This virtually eliminates any stray inductance in the dc path. The associated waveforms are shown in Figure 8. When Q1 turns off, the body diode of Q2 carries the freewheeling current. The voltage spike across the freewheeling diode is approximately 10V, as shown in the top trace, due to the forward recovery of the diode and the internal packaging RECTIFIER inductances. LINE However, the corresponding negative spike at pin 5 of the IR2110 is 50V, as shown by the lower trace. This is caused by the di/dt in the stray inductances LD2 and LS2 in the ac path and the fact that these inductances effectively isolate pin 5 from the clamping action of the freewheeling diode. The severity of the problem can be understood considering that by switching 10A in 20ns with a stray inductance of 50nH, a 25V spike is generated. A small paper clip has an inductance of 50 nH. The most effective way of dealing with this spike is to reduce the stray inductance in the ac path. This can be done by mounting the source or emitter of the high-side device very close to the drain or collector of the low-side device, as shown in the layout of Figure 10. After this inductance has been reduced to the lowest practical limit, the di/dt may have to be reduced by reducing the switching speed by means of the gate resistor. Driving MOS-gated power transistors directly from the IR2110 or similar MGD can result in unnecessarily high switching speeds. The circuit shown in figure 5b produced 4ns turn-off time with 0W series gate resistance and generated a negative spike of 90V at pin 5 of the IR2110. A graph of the negative spike and the turn-off time versus series gate resistance is shown in Figure 9.

BYPASS CAP

LOGIC GND VSS COM

RECTIFIER RETURN

Figure 6. Ground connections and layout

TW

IST

ED

POWER CIRCUIT BOARD

POWER LINE PLANE POWER GND PLANE RECTIFIER BOARD BIG SLOW CAP.

Figure 7. Power Bypass Capacitor

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Increasing the value of the series gate resistor, the amplitude of the negative spike decreases rapidly, while the turn-off time is a linear function of the series gate resistance. Selecting a resistor value just right from the knee in Figure 9 provides a good trade-off between the spike amplitude and the turn-off speed. A 27W speed gate resistor was selected for the test circuit which resulted in an 18V spike amplitude and set the turn-off time to 48ns. A parallel diode, with the anode towards the gate, across the gate resistor is also recommended. The diode is reverse biased at turn-on but holds the gate down at turn-off, and during the off state. The reduction in the turn-on speed reduces the spike of reverse recovery, as explained in Section 12 (see also Ref 2). The value of gate resistor should be as low as the layout allows, in terms of overvoltage on the device and negative spikes on the VS pin. The layout should also minimize the stray inductance in the charge/ discharge loops of the gate drive to reduce oscillations and to improve switching speed and noise immunity, particularly the dv/dt induced turn-on. To this end, each MOSFET should have a dedicated connection going directly to the pin of the MGD for the return
100 Turn-off time 80 Spike amplitude [V] Turn-off time (ns)

Spike across freewheeling diode

Spike at pin 5 of IR2110

Figure 8. Waveform while Q1 turning off 20A inductive load (20ns/div and 20V/div)

V+

60

+15V

40 Amplitude of the negative spike 20 0 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Series gate resistance (Ohms) 70 80

HIN

G1 D1

SD

S1 G2 D2

LIN

Figure 9. Series gate resistance vs. the amplitude of the negative voltage spike and the turn-off time.
of the gate drive signal. Best results are obtained with a twisted pair connected, on one side, to gate and source, on the other side, to gate drive and gate drive return. On PC boards parallel tracks should be used. The layout shown in Figure 10 is reduces the stray inductances in the ac path, in the dc path, as well as the stray inductance in the gate drive loop. In this circuit the voltage differential measured between the gate pin of the power MOSFET and the drive pin of the IR2110 during a fast transient was in excess of 2V.

GND

S2

Figure 10. IR2110 test circuit Note: Dotted lines represent pads on bottom side of board. V+, GND, D1, S1, D2, S2, terminals have plated through holes

10

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+100V

HFA30T60C +15V mA Q1 9 VDD 12 INPUT LIN LO VCC 1 R1 100 Q4 VSS 0.1F 13 +15V RTN 0.1F Q2 IRFD110 IRFD110 Q3 3 IRFD9110 IRFD 9110 0.1V/A

100H

CT C

4.7F 25V Q5 G

IR2110

+ 1F
100V 16F

E E

500V

+100 V RTN

Figure 11. Test Circuit

7. HOW TO BOOST GATE DRIVE CURRENT TO DRIVE MODULES

Modules and other paralleled MOS-gated power transistors require significantly more current and lower gate drive impedance than what a typical MGD can provide. The high input impedance power buffer shown in Figure 11 delivers 8A peak output current. It can be mounted close to the power module, thus reducing the inductance of the gate drive loop and improving the immunity to dv/dt induced turn-on. It draws negligible quiescent current and can still be supplied by a bootstrap capacitor. The buffer receives its drive signal from the IR2110 or, preferably, an MGD with lower gate drive capability, and drives an IGBT module which has a total gate charge of 600 nC. Q1 and Q2 are low current drivers for Q3 and Q4 which can be sized to suit the peak output current requirement. When the input signal changes state, R1 limits the current through Q1 and Q2 for the few nanoseconds that both transistors are on. When the input settles to its new state, the driver transistor quickly discharges the gate capacitance of the conducting output transistor forcing it into off-state. Meanwhile the gate of the other output transistor will be charged through R1; the turn-on will be delayed by the RC time constant formed by R1 and the input capacitance of the output transistor.

IR2110 Output (5V/div.) Buffer Output (5V/div.)

IGBT collector current (20A/div.)

Figure 12a. Waveform, turn-on, IGBT module switching inductive load of 60A. (50ns/div.)

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IGBT collector current (20A/div.)

The typical switching performance while driving an inductive load current of 60A is shown in Figure 12. Turn-on and turn-off delays are 50nS. Rise and fall times are less than 40nS. The buffer was tested with a 0.1mF capacitive load, as shown in Figure 13. The ringing was due to the resonant circuit at the output, formed by the capacitive load and the stray inductances. The current consumption vs. frequency plot is shown in Figure 14. It is possible to use lower on-resistance, lower voltage HEXFETs in the booster stage, but it was found that the large reduction in RDS(on) gave rise to large peak currents which caused a great deal of noise and ringing in the circuit.

Buffer output (5V/div)

IR2110 output (5V/div.)

Figure 12b. Waveform, turn-off. Propagation delay is 50ns, fall time is less than 40ns when driving 600nC gate charge of the module 50ns/div.

Buffer input (5V/div.)

Quiescent Current Consumption (mA) 7.0 6.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0 0 0.1 Buffer driving module at 400V Buffer driving module at 0V Buffer only

Buffer output (5V/div.)

1 Frequency (kHz)

10

Figure 13. Waveform driving 0.1mF capacitor (250nS/div.)

Figure 14. Current consumption vs. frequency

A typical use for this buffer is shown in Figure 15. Use good quality 10 mF tantalum or 10 mF electrolytic and 0.l mF ceramic capacitors at the output of the buffer. These decoupling capacitors should be mounted physically close to the output HEXFETs to nullify the effects of stray inductance. They reduce the ringing at the gate during turn-on. Use short, tightly twisted wires between the output of the buffers and the modules. Use a single point ground at the emitter of the bottom IGBT module. In a bridge configuration, connect the emitters of the bottom IGBT modules to a common point with short heavy wires. Use this point as a common ground.

12

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8. HOW TO PROVIDE A CONTINUOUS GATE DRIVE
Some applications, like brushless dc motors, require that the high-side device be on for an indefinite period of time. Under these conditions the charge in the bootstrap capacitor. Isolated supplies are normally used for this purpose. They add cost and are frequently responsible for spurious turn-on of the power devices due to the coupling of the switching dv/dt through the interwinding capacitance of their transformer. An inexpensive alternative to an isolated supply is the charge pump circuit shown in Figure 16. The IR2125 MGD was selected to demonstrate the cooperation of the charge pump and the bootstrap circuits. The IR2125 also has linear current limiting and time-out shut down capability, providing protection for the MOS-gated device. To provide the low operating current requirement of the IR2125, the charge pump employs a CMOS version of the 555 timer. When the IGBT is off, the bootstrap capacitor is charged through the bootstrap diode and the load resistor. When the IGBT is on, the 100k resistor connected to ground charges the 100nF capacitor connected between pins 1 and 8 of the 555 timer generating -15V referenced to pin 5 of the IR2125. The charge pump circuit formed by the two lN4148 diodes and the 10nF capacitor which converts the 7.5kHz square wave at pin 3 of the 555 timer to + 15V referenced to VS and charges the bootstrap capacitor. Figure 17 shows the circuit waveforms at startup. As the IGBT turns on, the bootstrap diode disconnects pin 8 of the IR2125 from the +12V power supply, and the voltage across the bootstrap capacitor starts dropping. At the same time the 100k resistor located between pin 1 of the 555 timer and ground starts charging the 100nF capacitor connected to it and generates supply voltage for the CMOS (MAXIM ICL71555IPA) timer. The output voltage of the charge pump increases with increasing supply voltage. The charge pump maintains the voltage in the bootstrap capacitor, keeping the voltage above the undervoltage threshold level of the IR2125.
100F +15 V 9 6 IRFD 9110 IRFD9110 HV IGBT MODULE(S)

VDD

VB

+
HO IR2110 7 0.1 F IRFD 110 100

10F

+
IRFD110

CF

+
10 11

VS 5 VCC HIN SD LO LIN 1 100 0.1 F 3 IRFD9110

HIN LIN

IRFD9110

IGBT MODULE(S)

TO LOAD

10F

SD

12

13 15V RTN

VSS COM

2 IRFD110

IRFD110 HV RTN

Figure 15. Application circuit schematic

11DF6 +HV

IR2125
1 +12V 1F IN ERR 12V 100pF RTN + 2 3 4 VCC 1N ERR VSS VB DUT CS VS 6 5 10nF IN4148 RS 8 7 100 nF RG

100K

ICM755
2 TRIG 6 1nF OUT RES 3 4

IN4148

LOAD

8 THR GND V+ 100nF

15V 100K 1W HV RTN

Figure 16. High-side drive provides fast switching, continuous on-time and switching device protection .

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The following considerations should be kept in mind in the selection of the components: - In selecting the zener, consider that he absolute maximum voltage supply voltage for the 555 is 18V - The 100k lW (value valid for a 500V +HV supply) resistor should be sized according to the maximum supply current at the high side of the IR2125, the minimum operating power supply voltage and the timing requirements - The supply current at the VB pin (IQBS) of the IR2125 increases with increasing temperature

Bootstrap capacitor voltage 5V/div.

9. HOW TO GENERATE A NEGATIVE GATE BIAS

Inherently neither the MOSFET nor the IGBT requires negative bias on the gate. Setting the gate voltage to zero at turn-off insures proper operation and virtually provides negative bias relative to the threshold voltage of the device. However, there are circumstances when a negative gate drive or an other alternative may be necessary.
1ms/div.

Output of the 555 timer 5V/div. switching frequency 7.5kHz.

Figure 17. Waveform at start-up.

The semiconductor manufacturer specifies negative gate bias for the device, When the gate voltage can not be held safely below the threshold voltage due to noise generated in the circuit. The ultimate in switching speed is desired

Although reference will be made to IGBTs, the information contained is equally applicable to power MOSFETs. The IGBTs made by International Rectifier do not require negative bias. The switching times and energy loss values that are published on the data sheets for both discretes and modules were measured at zero gate voltage turn-off. The problem of dv/dt induced turn-on arises when the voltage increases rapidly between the collector-emitter terminals of the IGBT. During the transient, the gate-collector (Miller) capacitance delivers charge to the gate, increasing the gate voltage. The height and width of the voltage blip at the gate is determined by the ratio of the gatecollector and gate-emitter capacitances, the impedance of the drive +200V circuit connected to the gate, and the applied dv/dt between the collector-emitter terminals.
IRGPC40F

The following test was conducted to determine the threshold voltage and the effect of the series gate resistance in high dv/dt applications. The test circuit is shown in Figure 18. The positive bias to the upper IGBT was increased until the switching losses in the bottom IGBT indicated excessive shoot-through current. The turn-on loss was measured at 15A inductor current and 6V/ns switching speed. The results are shown in Figure 19. The threshold voltage levels increasing the turn-on losses are 4V, 5V and 5.6V with 47W, 10W, and 0W series gate resistance, respectively. A parallel diode across the series gate resistor (anode toward the gate) helps clamp the gate low, so the series gate resistor can be sized according to the turn-on requirements.

+
9V

5K

VG

RG D1 1F 100 H

D1 = HFA30TA60C CT IRGPC40F +12V 0V 200V RTN 0.1V/A

Figure 18. Test circuit

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The current blip due to charging the output capacitance (Coes) of the IGBT is frequently mistaken for conduction current. The amplitude of the current blip is approximately 5A for a IRGPC50F IGBT at a dv/dt of 20V/ns. The amplitude of the blip does not change with the applied negative bias. The basic buffer circuit and the negative charge pump are shown in Figure 20. The buffer circuit employs two p-channel and two n-channel MOSFETs. Resistor R1 between the gates of Q3 and Q4 slows down the turn-on of the output transistor and limits the shoot-through current in the drivers. D1 reduces the voltage to the gate of Q3 and Q4. D2, C2 and R2 form a level shifter for Q2. C3, C4, D3 and D4 convert the incoming signal to negative DC voltage. After turn-on, the negative voltage settles in a few cycles even at extremely low or high duty cycles (1-99%). The settling time and the stiffness of the negative voltage are affected by the output impedance of the signal source.
2.00 IRGPC40F 1.75 RG-47 1.50 RG-0 1.25

RG-10

1.00 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 BIAS VOLTAGE VG (V) 7 8

Figure 19. Turn-on losses vs. VG

+15V Q1 IRFD9014 INPUT +15V 0V C5 1F C3 470nF R1 C2 100nF D4 15V RTN 1N 4148 C4 100 nF 100K IRFD014 OUTPUT RTN D2 15V D3 1N4148 R2 Q2 Q4 IRFD014 D1 8.2V 100 C1 100nF OUTPUT +15V -12V Q3 IRFD9014

Figure 20. Buffer with negative charge pump

The circuit shown in Figure 21 utilizes the high voltage level shifting capability of the IR2110 combined with the drive capability and negative bias of the MOS buffer shown in Figure 20. The circuit was tested with two 270 A IGBT modules with 600 nC of gate charge. The waveforms are shown in Figure 22. The turn-on delay of the circuit is 1 mS, the turn-off delay is 0.2 mS . The settling time of the negative bias voltage is about 10ms at 5kHz switching frequency at 50% duty cycle. At start-up, the circuit delivers some negative gate voltage even after the first cycle. During power down, the gate voltage remains negative until the reservoir capacitor discharges.

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IMPORTANT NOTE: A negative gate drive is not required for IR IGBTs and IGBT modules. Also for NPT type IGBTs the negative gate drive is required to account for the significant change in the Ccg to Cge capacitance ratio. It is possible to eradicate the need for negative gate drive by adding gate capacitance, which reduces the Ccg to Cge ratio, and hence swamps out the miller effect, eliminating the false turn-on caused by the induced miller voltage on the gate.
6 IRFD9014 1F 470nF 15V 8.2V 100 100nF IRFD9014 +HV

VB

HO 7

1N 100nF 4148 HIN SD LIN 10 HIN 11 SD 12 LIN 5 1N4148

Input to Buffer 10V/div.

VS

100 nF 100K IRFD014 3 1 1F 1N 4148 IRFD9014 470nF 100nF 15V 8.2V 1N4148 100 nF 100K IRFD014

IRFD014

TO LOAD

IGBT Gate 10V/div.

LO VDD 10F 9 VDD

IRFD9014

100 100nF

Collector Current 10A/div.

VDD RET

13

VSS COM

IRFD014

Figure 22. Waveform from negative bias Half-Bridge driver (1ms/div.)

HV RET

Figure 21. Half-Bridge drive that generates negative bias

10. HOW TO DRIVE A BUCK CONVERTER

Figure 25 shows a typical implementation of a buck converter with the high side drive function performed by the IR2117. The diode connected on COM prevents the negative spikes from affecting the operation of the IC and provides an extra measure of noise immunity. As mentioned before, COM should not be connected together.
+15 VR < 500V D1 VCC HIN COM 3 4 1F 1 2 8 7 6 5
LOAD

VB HO VS C

IRF450

At start-up the bootstrap capacitor is discharged and, in most applications would charge through the inductor and the filter capacitor. The same is true under no-load conditions, when the freewheeling diode may not conduct at all. This alternative path works, as long as the filter capacitor is at least 10 times larger than the bootstrap capacitor. The Q of this resonant circuit should be low enough to insure that the bootstrap capacitor does not get charged beyond the limits of VSS (20V). If this is not so, a zener in parallel with the bootstrap capacitor would take care of possible overvoltages. This is true whether the dc-to-dc converter performs the function of a supply or speed control for a dc motor.

LOGIC GROUND POWER GROUND D1: 1N6622, UF4005 C: 0.47mF ( f > 5kHz FOR IRF540 OR SIMILAR DIE SIZES)

Figure 25. Buck Converter

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In the following two cases, however, the recharging current for the bootstrap capacitor cannot flow neither in the diode, nor in the load: 1. In a typical battery charger applications, as the one shown in Figure 26, the +12V from the output appears at the VS pin and reduces the voltage across bootstrap capacitor at start-up and the undervoltage protection in the MGD inhibits the operation. When the regular PWM operation of the buck is interrupted due excessive voltage at the output. This is normally due to a sudden removal of a heavy load at the output which results in higher output voltage than the set value due to the limited speed of the control loop and the stored energy in the Ll inductor. With no load or light load at the output, the filter capacitor can keep the output high for long time while the CB is being discharged at faster rate by the leakage current of the high-side driver.

2.

As shown in Figure 27, the addition of R1 provides an alternative charging path for the bootstrap capacitor. Because VIN is higher than VO,

+
VCC 15V

+
C1 1

15V

D1

14.3V

Q1

+
CIN

+
VIN

VCC 2 IN FROM PWM 10K 3 ERR 4 VSS

VB 7 OUT 6 CS VS CB

RG

12V D2 VB - VS = 2.3V

L1

V0

+12V

+
C0

Figure 26. In battery charger applications, the +12V from the output appears at the S pin and reduces V the voltage across CB at start-up and the undervoltage protection in the IR21XX inhibits the operation.

some charging current always flows through R1 even if VS pin is sitting at VO potential.
D1 1 mA AVERAGE R1 1QBS=0.8mA VB OUT CS VS D2 C0 7 6 D3 CB L1 V0 LOAD RG Q1

To keep CB charged the average current through R1 should be higher than the worst case leakage current. D3 should be a low level zener diode with sharp knee at low currents. The recommended part numbers for 12V and 15V are respectively: lN4110 and lN4107. This technique can also be used in place of a dedicated supply to power the PWM controller, as well as the IR2110 and other auxilliary circuits, if the output voltage of the buck converter is between 10 and 20V.

+15V IR2125

+
CIN VIN

IL

Figure 27. Adding R1 to the circuit, charging current can be derivated from VIN.

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11. DUAL FORWARD CONVERTER AND SWITCHED RELUCTANCE MOTOR DRIVES
Figure 28 shows a bridge arrangement that is frequently used to drive the windings of a switched reluctance motor or a transformer in a dual forward converter. The use of the IR2110 requires the addition of four to insure that the bootstrap capacitor is charged at turn on and in subsequent cycles, should the conduction time of the freewheeling diodes become very short.
VR < 400V

+15

VDD

6 7

VB HO VS VCC LO +15 R C D1 Q1 D2

HIN LIN SD .47F

5 10 12 11 13 VSS 3 1 2

COM

2.2F

Q2

LOGIC GROUND

D1, D2: 11DF4, UES 1106, EGP10G Q1: IRF710 OR IRFU310 Q2: IRFD014 C: 0.47 F (f > 5kHz) R: 10k

Figure 28. Dual forward converter and switched reluctance motors

12. FULL BRIDGE WITH CURRENT MODE CONTROL

Figure 29 shows an H bridge with cycle-by-cycle current control implemented with current sensing devices on the low side in combination with the shutdown pin of the IR2110. The detailed implementation of the current sensing circuit is dependent on the PWM technique used
L1 D1 C1 HO VS 2.2F LO COM CURRENT SENSING COM VCC L2 L2 VCC HO VS 2.2F LO VR L1 D1 C1

VDD

HIN .47 10 LIN F 12 SD 11 V

SS

6 7 5 3 1 2

VB

VB

6 7 5 3 1 2

9 10 12 11 13 SD .47 F

VDD HIN LIN VSS

13

Figure 29. Typical implementation of all H-Bridge with cycle-by-cycle current mode control

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to generate the desired output voltage, the accuracy required, the availability of a negative supply, bandwidth, etc. (Ref. 3, 4 and 5 cover these aspects in greater detail). As explained in Section 2.1, the shutdown function is latched so that the power MOSFETs will remain in the off-state as the load current decays through their internal diodes. The latch is reset at the beginning of next cycle, when the power devices are once again commanded on. As shown in Figures 6 and 7, decoupling capacitors mitigate the negative effects of Ll . L2 , on the other hand, must be reduced with a tight layout, as per Figure 10. The turn-on and turn-off propagation delays of the IR2110 are closely matched +160V (worst case mismatch: 10ns), with the IR2110 turn-on propagation delay 25ns longer 1N4148 VB 50F VDD +15V 6 than the turn-off. This, by itself, 0.47F 9 HO should insure that no conduction 7 .47F overlap of the power devices would 100F 11DF4 22 VS occur, even if the on and off input 5 HIN 10 command coincide. As an added 1N4148 V 3 CC safety margin a resistor diode network LIN 12 can be added to the gate, as shown LO +15V 1 with dashed lines in Figure 29. The 22 11 50F SD COM purpose of this network is to further 2 13 delay the turn-on, without affecting the turn-off, thereby inserting some VSS additional dead-time. The resistor-diode network is also useful in reducFigure 30a. Test circuit for waveforms shown in Figure 30b. IRF450 operated at ing the peak of the current spike durapproximately 100kHz in a 100 mH inductor. ing the reverse recovery time. As explained in Ref. 2, this has an impact on power losses, as well as dv/dt and EMI. Figure 30 shows the waveforms taken from a test circuit laid out as shown in Figure 10. Operation at 500kHz with the IRF830 HEXFET did not present any problem nor cause any noticeable heating of the IR2110.

VDS OF HIGH SIDE IRF450 50V/div.

VDS OF LOW SIDE IRF830 50V/div.

LOAD CURRENT 1A/div. into 50 H

5V/div.

Vgs OF HIGH SIDE IRF450

VGS OF LOW SIDE IRF830 10V/div.

VBS 5V/div. (AC) 2s/div. (93kHz)

0.5s/div.

Figure 30b.

Figure 30c.

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13. BRUSHLESS AND INDUCTION MOTOR DRIVES
The implementation of a three-phase bridge for motor drives requires a more careful attention to the layout due to the large di/dt components in the waveforms. In particular, the driver furthest away from the common grounding point will experience the largest voltage differential between COM and the ground reference (Ref. 1).

IR2110 8 NC +15V 15V 0V 15V 0V 9 VDD 10 HIN 11 SD 12 LIN HO 7 VB 6 VS 5 NC 4 VCC 3 +15V 1 +15V 15V 0V 15V 0V

IR2110 8 NC 9 VDD 10 HIN 11 SD 12 LIN HO 7 VB 6 VS 5 NC 4 VCC 3 +15V 2 +15V 15V 0V 15V 0V

IR2110 8 NC 9 VDD 10 HIN 11 SD 12 LIN HO 7 VB 6 VS 5 NC 4 VCC 3 +15V 3

13 VSS COM 2 14 NC LO 1

13 VSS COM 2 14 NC LO 1

13 VSS COM 2 14 NC LO 1

Figure 31. Three-Phase Inverter using three IR2110 devices to drive six IGBTs

In the case of the three-phase drivers, like the IR213x, the guidelines of Sections 5 and 6 should be complemented with the following: Three separate connections should go from the COM pin of the MGD to the three low-side devices. Furthermore, there are several operating conditions that require close scrutiny as potential problem areas. One such condition could occur when a brushless dc motor is operated with locked rotor for an indefinite period of time with one leg of the bridge being off. In this condition the bootstrap capacitor could eventually discharge, depending on the voltage seen by VS during this period of time. As a result the top power device would shut off and would not go on when commanded to do so. In most cases this would not be a cause for malfunction, since the lower device would be commanded on next and the bootstrap capacitor would be charged and ready for next cycle. In general, if the design cannot tolerate this type of operation, it can be avoided in one of four ways: a. b. c. a charge pump could be implemented, as described in Section 8; the control could be arranged to have a very short normal duty cycle with a minimum pulse width of a couple of microseconds; if a pole can be inactive for a limited and known period of time, the bootstrap capacitor could be sized to hold up the charge for that time. Isolated supplies could be provided for the high-side, in addition to the bootstrap capacitor.

d.

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If the bridge is part of an induction motor drive that use a PWM technique to synthesize a sine wave, each pole goes through prolonged periods of time with zero or very low duty cycle at low frequency. The bootstrap capacitor should be sized to hold enough charge to go through these periods of time without refreshing. In circuits like the one shown in Figure 31, galvanic isolation between the high voltage supply and the logic circuitry is frequently mandated by safety considerations or desirable as a form of damage containment in case of inverter failure. Optoisolators or pulse transformers are frequently used to perform this function. For drives up to 5 kW, the circuit shown in INT-985 is probably the simplest and most cost-effective way of providing isolation. The use of an MGD shields the optoisolator from the highvoltage dv/dt and reduces their cost while providing a high performance gate drive capability.

14. PUSH-PULL
High-voltage MGDs can still make a very useful contribution in applications that do not capitalize on their key feature, the high voltage level shifting and floating gate drive. Convenience, noise resilience between VSS and COM and high speed drive capability are appealing features in most power conditioning applications. They can perform the interface and gate drive function with the simple addition of the decoupling capacitors, as shown in Figure 32.

Logic Supply 9 10 Logic Input 11 IR2112 VDD HIN SD LIN VSS VB HO VS

+Vdc +12V 6 7 5 Rg 1F

VCC 3 12 LO COM 1 2 1F Rg

13

Figure 32. Push Pull Drive Circuit

15. HIGH-SIDE P-CHANNEL

V DD

IR2110
7 9 HIN 10 SD 11 L IN 12 1 V SS 13 2 3 5 VS V CC LOAD 6 VB

MGDs can also drive a P-Channel device as a high side switch, provided that a negative supply referenced to the positive rail is available, as shown in Figure 33. When operated in this mode, the HIN input becomes active low, i.e. a logic 0 at the input turns on the PChannel MOSFET. Whenever VS (or VB) are at fixed potential with respect to ground, the power losses mentioned in Section 4.2.d.2 would be zero.

Figure 33. IR2110 driving a high side P-Channel

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9 27k 0.1F 47k 11 SD 10-15Vdc 12 LIN VSS VCC 2 COM LO 1 22pF 10 VDD HO 6 HIN VB 5 VS 3 7

16. THYRISTOR GATE DRIVE

The circuit shown in Figure 34 can provide isolated gate drive to a thyristor, with status feedback. The 2:1 ratio in the gate drive transformer doubles the current available to the gate from what is delivered by the MGD.

2.7M

2.7M

27k

13 27k CONT

COM 10 ohm

Gate 10 ohm

10 ohm 470

1ohm 0.047 F 240 ohm 0.5 watt

Cathode

Figure 34. Isolated SCR Gate Drive Circuit

17. TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDELINES

To analyze the waveforms of the floating channel of the IR2110 a differential input oscilloscope is required. It is assumed that any voltage differential not referenced to ground is measured in this way. It is also assumed that obvious checks have been made, for example: Pins are correctly connected and power supplies are decoupled. The bootstrap charging diode is ultra-fast, rated for the rail voltage. The shutdown pin is disabled. Logic inputs do not cause simultaneous conduction of devices, unless the topology requires it.

SYMP T O M
No gate drive pulses Gate drive pulses on lower channel only

P O SSIBL E C AUSE
Verify that Vcc is above the UV lockout value Measure voltage across bootstrap capacitor; it should be above the lockout level. If it is not, check why capacitor doesn't get charged. Insure that capacitor is charged at turn-on Verify that VS doesn't go below COM by more than 5-10V . Verify that high side channel does not go in UV lockout. Verify that dv/dt on VS with respect to COM does not exceed 50V/ns. If so, switching may need slowing down. Verify that logic inputs are noise-free with respect to VSS Verify that input logic signals are longer than 50ns Reduce inductance of gate drive loop. Use twisted wires, shorten length. If reduction of loop inductance does not bring ringing to acceptable level, add gate resistors.

Erratic operation of top channel

Excessive ringing on gate drive signal

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TABLE 1
ME T H O D BASIC CIRCUIT KEY FEATURES
Full gate control for indefinite periods of time. Cost impact of isolated supply is significant (one required for each high side MOSFET). Level shifting a ground referenced signal can be tricky: Level shifter must sustain full voltage, switch fast with minimal propagation delays and low power consumption. Opto isolators tend to be relatively expensive, limited in bandwidth and noise sensitive.

FLOATING GATE DRIVE SUPPLY

FLOATING SUPPLY

GATE DRIVE

LEVEL SHIFTER OR OPTO ISOLATOR

LOAD OR LOW SIDE DEVICE

PULSE TRANSFORMER
LOAD OR LOW SIDE DEVICE

Simple and cost effective but limited in many respects. Operation over wide duty cycles requires complex techniques. Transformer size increases significantly as frequency decreases. Significant parasitics create less than ideal operation with fast switching waveforms.

CHARGE PUMP
OSCILLATOR LOAD OR LOW SIDE DEVICE

Can be used to generate an "over-rail" voltage controlled by a level shifter or to "pump" the gate when MOSFET is turned on. In the first case the problems of a level shifter have to be tackled. In the second case turn on times tend to be too long for switching applications. In either case, gate canb e kept on for an indefinite period of time. Inefficiencies in the voltage multiplication circuit may require more than two stages of pumping.

BOOTSTRAP
LEVEL SHIFTER

GATE DRIVE

LOAD OR LOW SIDE DEVICE

Simple and inexpensive with some of the limitations of the pulse transformer: duty cycle and on-time are both constrained by the need to refresh the bootstrap capacitor. If the capacitor is charged from a high voltage rail, power dissipation can be significant. Requires level shifter, with its associated difficulties.

CARRIER DRIVE
STOP OSCILLATOR LOAD OR LOW SIDE DEVICE

Gives full gate control for an indefinite period of time but is somewhat limited in switching performance. This can be improved with added complexity.

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TABL E II
Die Siz e HEX-2 Typical sw itching times for different HEXFET die sizes HEX-3 HEX-4 (Vcc=15V test circuit as in Figure 9, w ithout gate , netw ork) HEX-5 HEX-6 R ise T ime 25ns 38ns 53ns 78ns 116ns Fa ll T ime 17ns 23ns 34ns 54ns 74ns

References: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. New High Voltage Bridge Driver Simplifies PWM Inverter Design, by D. Grant, B. Pelly. PCIM Conference 1989 Application Note AN-967 PWM Motor Drive with HEXFET III Application Note AN-961 Using HEXSense in Current-Mode Control Power Supplies Application Note AN-959 An Introduction to the HEXSense Dynamic Performance of Current Sensing Power MOSFETs by D. Grant and R. Pearce, Electronic Letters, Vol. 24 No. 18, Sept 1, 1988

IR WORLD HEADQUARTERS: 233 Kansas St., El Segundo, California 90245 Tel: (310) 252-7105 Data and specifications subject to change without notice. 6/19/2003

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