Skyworks Solutions, Inc. provides an upgrade path for its Si823x and Si823Hx ISO drivers with the launch of the Si82Ex/Fx value and performance isolated gate drivers. Both lines can be used to drive silicon MOSFET, IGBT, silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) devices.
(Source: Skyworks Solutions, Inc.)
The family of Si82Ex value gate drivers offers backward compatibility and a traditional voltage-controlled design, using Skyworks’ advanced proprietary silicon isolation technology with support for 6 kV RMS for one minute isolation voltage. Key features include voltage mode gate drive architectures with a variety of CMOS inputs with deglitch options, dual channels with universal or high-side/low-side configuration and UVLOs according to the power switch type being driven. They are available in a variety of packaging options.
The Si82Fx with advanced isolation technology offers a new approach to driving power devices through its “paradigm-shifting” drive strength control feature called Selectable Variable Current Drive, or SelVCD, the company said. This enables the driver’s output to operate as a programmable current source that maintains current output within a tight tolerance of the target across operating conditions. This enables more flexible control and enhanced switching efficiency when compared to traditional voltage-controlled drivers, the company said.
Like the Si82Ex, the Si82Fx family also offer voltage mode gate drive architectures with a variety of CMOS inputs with deglitch options, dual channels with universal or high-side/low-side configuration and UVLOs. They offer isolation ratings up to 6 kV and comply with VDE 60747-17 and AEC-Q100. They also offer automotive-grade options and a variety of packaging.
A product video highlights the Si82Fx’s “revolutionary” current-controlled output with selectable rise and fall speeds. The tailored output delivers constant current precisely and with maximum charge delivery to the load FET gate, minimizing gate turn-on and turn-off times and reducing switching losses. In addition, detrimental effects like electromagnetic emissions and turn-on overshoot can be mitigated without the limitation of fixed gate resistors.
The video also noted that the selectable variable current drive, which provides precise current control, delivers shorter dead times for half-bridge power supplies and shorter layout gate loops due to the elimination of fixed gate resistors. Also, an integrated Miller clamp eliminates the need for a dedicated clamping pin, preventing “efficiency-robbing” shoot-through conditions at a fraction of the cost of competing solutions.
Skyworks offers the Si82Fx Isolated Gate Driver Evaluation Kit (Si82F39ABE-KIT) to simplify the functional testing and engineering validation of the Si82Fx isolated gate driver family. This SelVCD device evaluation board features universal inputs, deadtime control, 8-V UVLO and a 6-kV isolation rating.
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