Three-phase half-bridge gate driver simplifies motor drive design

It is designed to drive n-channel MOSFETs or IGBTs in a half-bridge configuration. It has floating high-side drivers, bootstrap operation which allows the IC to switch up to 600V. Standard logic level inputs are down to 2.4V to enable an easy control interface, said the company.

The gate driver is designed for BLDC and PMSM motor drive applications such as those commonly found in industrial motors, as well as air conditioners, household appliances, power and garden tools and sewing machines.

The increased use of BLDC and PMSM motors is a result of industry directives to improve the efficiency of electrical motors and achieve the goal of zero maintenance to minimise the total cost of ownership. The IC is optimised for three-phase applications, driving three half-bridges formed from n-channel MOSFETs or IGBTs.

A high voltage process enables the floating high-side drivers to operate up to 600V while the driver outputs feature high-pulse current buffers to minimise driver cross conduction.

The device incorporates multiple protection. Over-current is sensed via an external resistor to turn off all outputs, while matched propagation delays with an internal deadtime and shoot-through logic prevent both outputs from being high when both inputs are high (a fault state).

There is also a V_CC under-voltage lockout which shuts down the respective high side output, and built-in immunity to high dv/dt transients at the V_S pin minimises the risk of false triggering.

The DGD2136 also has a fault signal output that enables monitoring of the driver stage and can be used with the RC input pin to provide an adjustable reset time.

The gate driver is offered in an industry-standard SO-28 package.