New Gate Drivers Drill Down on Flexibility and Efficiency
Littelfuse, Allegro Microsystems, and Power Integrations have released new gate drivers to improve interoperability with complex industrial designs.
As clean energy and smart home systems become more powerful, OEMs are seeking flexible electronic components that can boost the efficiency of the finished product. Gate drivers are vital to controlling the switching of such high-power semiconductor devices.
Littelfuse, Allegro Microsystems, and Power Integrations have recently released new gate drivers.
Gate drivers provide isolation to protect sensitive control circuitry and incorporate features to prevent damage. They must also optimize interoperability with other components in industrial systems. Recently, Littelfuse, Allegro Microsystems, and Power Integrations have all introduced new innovations in gate driver technology aimed at tackling these challenges.
Littelfuse: Drivers Geared for SiC MOSFETs and IGBTs
Littelfuse recently announced the IX4352NE, a 16-pin SOIC gate driver specifically targeted at silicon carbide MOSFET and high-power IGBT applications in industrial systems. SiC MOSFETs and IGBTs offer high temperature endurance and quicker switching speeds. The IX4352NE (datasheet linked) has separate 9-A source and sink outputs, enabling customizable turn-on and turn-off timing of the gate drive. Precise timing control reduces switching losses and improves overall efficiency.
Internal block diagram of the IX4352NE. Image used courtesy of Littelfuse
An additional benefit to separate source and sink outputs is reduced crosstalk, which can introduce noise and unpredictability in the circuit. Users can tailor their design to give more current to the source or sink as necessary.
The IX4352NE has built-in protection features, such as open-drain FAULT signals, which can be output to a microcontroller to alert that a fault condition has occurred. Littelfuse says this new device stands out from predecessors because of its thermal shutdown, which automatically sets pins, including the FAULT pin, when the IX4352NE internal junction temperature reaches a nominal 160°C.
Allegro: Dual Chipsets Interface With External Transformers
Allegro Microsystems has announced the launch of new gate drivers to augment its Power-Thru portfolio and interface with external transformers in customer designs. The AHV85000 and AHV85040 dual chipset interfaces with an external transformer to carry both the PWM signal and gate bias power, removing the need for any external gate drive auxiliary bias supply or high-side bootstrap.
Application schematic showing AHV85000 and AHV85040 dual chipset. Image used courtesy of Allegro Microsystems
Allegro Microsystems says this streamlines system design and diminishes EMI by reducing total common-mode (CM) capacitance. Furthermore, it enables the operation of a floating switch at any point within a switching power topology. The chipset is available in small 3 mm x 3 mm DFN packaging, according to the datasheet.
Power Integrations: Compact Plug-and-Play Modules
Power Integrations has launched its SCALE-iFlex XLT family of low-cost, dual-channel gate drivers. This family includes single-board, plug-and-play modules. In spite of their compact size, the drivers can withstand an operating voltage of 1,600 V (primary side to secondary side). The devices are designed to operate Mitsubishi's single LV100, Infineon's XHP 2, Fuji Electric's HPnC, and equivalent semiconductor modules up to 2,300 V blocking voltage.
The driver promotes active thermal management of inverter modules, cutting down the bill-of-materials (BOM) and boosting reliability.
Plug-and-play gate driver for 1,200 V and 1,700 V half-bridge power modules. Image used courtesy of Power Integrations
The new family also offers Negative Temperature Coefficient (NTC) data reporting, a feature that takes isolated temperature measurements of the power module and by extension, enables accurate thermal management of converter systems. Using the same hardware, this feature promotes a 25–30% converter power increase, eliminating multiple connectors, cables, and extra isolation barrier crossing circuits.
Power Integrations says this makes the family especially suitable for applications in wind and energy storage solutions.
Setting a High Standard
With the demand for AI exploding and its associated energy costs, gate driver technologies like those from Littelfuse, Allegro Microsystems, and Power Integrations could become the industry standard very soon.
