IGBT Driver Cores with Integrated Short-Circuit Soft Shutdown

IGBT driver manufacturer CT-Concept Technologie GmbH, a Power Integrations company, has announced shipments of its first products to include its SCALE™-2+ gate driver chip set. The new SCALE™-2+ technology enables soft shutdown (SSD) to be implemented in the event of a short circuit without requiring additional components. This is particularly beneficial in applications with low stray-inductance where full Advanced Active Clamping - a method invented by Concept for shutting down IGBTs or MOSFETs in a controlled manner under any circumstances - may not be necessary. Concept's well-established SCALE™-2 IGBT driver cores deliver cost, performance, size and reliability benefits. SCALE™-2+ driver technology offers high levels of integration by including an integrated trigger mechanism which limits IGBT MOSFET Collector-Emitter, or MOSFET Source-Drain voltages in the event of a short circuit.

Explains Michael Hornkamp, Director Regional Marketing, Concept: “We have implemented SSD on-chip without any additional external circuitry by controlling the on-chip high-side N-Channel booster stage. We increase the output impedance of the gate driver which enables the IGBT or MOSFET to turn off with a reduced di/dt, thereby limiting the Collector-Emitter or Source-Drain overvoltage. As a result, our new SCALE™-2+ drivers have integrated, cost-effective, short-circuit protection as well as increased flexibility and reduced size.”

The first product to ship with the new SCALE™-2+ chip set is Concept’s 2SC0106T2A0-12. This is a high-performance two-channel IGBT/MOSFET gate driver core for 1200 V IGBTs in the 37 kW to 110 kW power range. The 2SC0106T2A0-12 is suited for servo drives used in industrial applications, UPS and solar inverters. It meets IEC 61800-5-1 and IEC 60664-1 standards for reinforced insulation.