BULACAN STATE UNIVERSITY

CITY OF MALOLOS, BULACAN

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Name: ESPERANZA, Ronabelle M.

Course/Year/Section: ECE 3A

Experiment No. 6
Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT)
✎Objectives

1. To study the characteristics of IGBT and its operations.

☑ Materials
Name of the apparatus/
No. Range/Rating Quantity
equipment/ components
1. IGBT IRG4BC20U or equivalent 1 pc
2. Resistor 47Ω and 1 kΩ 1 pc each
3. Potentiometer 5 kΩ 2 pcs
4. Voltage Source 15 V and 35 V 1 pc each

☑ Characteristics

The IGBT (insulated-gate bipolar transistor) combines features from both the
MOSFET and the BJT that make it useful in high-voltage and high-current switching
applications. The IGBT has largely replaced the MOSFET and the BJT in many of these
applications.

The IGBT is a device that has the output conduction characteristics of a BJT but
is voltage controlled like a MOSFET; it is an excellent choice for many high-voltage
switching applications. The IGBT has three terminals: gate, collector, and emitter. One
common circuit symbol is shown in Figure 1. As you can see, it is similar to the BJT
symbol except there is an extra bar representing the gate structure of a MOSFET rather
than a base.

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 BULACAN STATE UNIVERSITY
CITY OF MALOLOS, BULACAN
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Figure 1. IGBT schematic symbol

☑ Circuit Diagram

Figure 2. IGBT circuit

☑ Procedure

1. Connect the circuit as shown in Figure 2.

2. Adjust the potentiometer ‘P1’ to maximum value (100%) and ‘P2’ to minimum
value (0%).
3. Use an ammeter to measure collector current (IC)
4. Use a voltmeter to measure the gate-emitter voltage (VGE) and collector-emitter
voltage (VCE).
5. Switch on the power supply.
6. Adjust the potentiometer ‘P1’ to set the VGE to 5.25V.

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 BULACAN STATE UNIVERSITY
CITY OF MALOLOS, BULACAN
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

7. Vary the potentiometer ‘P2’ to increase the value of collector-emitter voltage

(VCE) and measure the corresponding values of collector current (IC) and VCE
8. Repeat procedure 2-7 for other values of VGE (6V and 6.75V).
9. Record the measurements in the table below.
10. Plot the graph of VCE vs IC.

Table 1. Observation
VCE IC
P2 (%) VGE = 5.25V VGE = 6V VGE = 6.75V VGE = 5.25V VGE = 6V VGE =
6.75V
0% 3.5 uV 3.5 uV 3.5 uV 120.575 fA 120.575 fA 120.554 fA
10% 943.169 mV 918.579 mV 917.836 mV 5.145 mA 5.194 mA 5.196 mA
20% 973.52 mV 929.471 mV 928.436 mV 7.115 mA 7.167 mA 7.168 mA
30% 2.243 V 936.462 mV 935.198 mV 7.527 mA 8.718 mA 8.719 mA
40% 4.614 V 943.292 mV 941.771 mV 7.527 mA 10.47 mA 10.472 mA
50% 7.737 V 951.025 mV 949.166 mV 7.528 mA 12.759 mA 12.761 mA
60% 11.612 V 960.592 mV 958.246 mV 7.528 mA 16.07 mA 16.072 mA
70% 16.24 V 973.538 mV 970.397 mV 7.529 mA 21.446 mA 21.449 mA
80% 21.622 V 993.538 mV 988.847 mV 7.53 mA 31.885 mA 31.89 mA
90% 27.757 V 1.034 V 1.025 V 7.531 mA 61.299 mA 61.317 mA
100% 34.646 V 1.478 V 1.338 V 7.533 mA 713.226 mA 716.214 mA

☑ Plot

V CE vs. I C
5.25 V 6V 6.75 V

8.00000E-01
COLLECTOR CURRENT

7.00000E-01
6.00000E-01
5.00000E-01
4.00000E-01
3.00000E-01
2.00000E-01
1.00000E-01
0.00000E+00
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
VOLTAGE ACROSS THE COLLECTOR - EMITTER

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 BULACAN STATE UNIVERSITY
CITY OF MALOLOS, BULACAN
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

☑ Self-Test

1. What is a major application area for IGBTs?

IGBTs are primarily employed in power electronics applications such as
inverters, converters, and power supply.

2. Name an advantage of an IGBT over a power BJT.

An IGBT is preferable to a power BJT because it has a higher gain than a
regular bipolar transistor, as well as a higher operating voltage and less input loss
than a MOSFET.

3. Compare the IGBT to MOSFET.

The Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor, or IGBT, is a type of transistor that
can be utilized in tiny signal amplifier circuits in the same manner as BJT or
MOSFET transistors can. However, because the IGBT combines the low conduction
loss of a BJT with the rapid switching speed of a power MOSFET, an excellent solid-
state switch for usage in power electronics applications exists. Furthermore, the
IGBT has a lower "on-state" resistance, RON, than an analogous MOSFET. This
means that, for a given switching current, the I2R drop across the bipolar output
structure is substantially lower. The IGBT transistor's forward blocking action is
like that of a power MOSFET.

☑ Conclusion

The IGBT is a hybrid device that combines a power MOSFET on the input
and a BJT on the output. This combination results in a device with a minimal
conduction loss on the output and a simple input gate drive requirement. In high
voltage and high current switching applications, IGBTs outperform power
MOSFETS.

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 BULACAN STATE UNIVERSITY
CITY OF MALOLOS, BULACAN
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Screenshot of circuit experiment on Multisim:

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