Gate Drivers

Isolation in gate drivers is an important safety feature in high-power (>2.5kW) applications. Galvanic isolation provides communication between two circuits that are completely electronically isolated.

Galvanic isolation can provide high voltage levels of isolation and better elimination of ground loops. Junction isolation only provides a high voltage isolation between the two circuits, meaning that they are not completely isolated electronically.

Efficiency matters in all applications, but especially so the higher the power level. A 95% efficiency at 100W is a 5W power loss, but a 95% efficiency at 100kW is a 5kW power loss. To maximize your efficiency, pairing a SiC MOSFET with the proper Gate Driver can lower conduction and Eon/Eoff losses by over 25% each. Silicon MOSFETs have a typical voltage swing from 0V to 10V, while IGBTs typically have a 0V to 15V swing. onsemi’s EliteSiC MOSFETs can be driven with a 0V to 15V, 0 to 18V, and -3 to 18V swings, with varying efficiency (see figure below).