Power electronics

MOSFEt DRIVE CIRCUITs

GROUP-1
➢ ANSHAD S
➢ ARATHI L S
➢ ASWATHY V S
➢ CHITHRA DEVI V
➢ FEROSE H
What is MOSFET gate drive?

It is a type of power amplifier that accepts a low power input and it will produce a
high current drive input for the gate of a high power transistor.
 Gate drive vs. base drive
Whereas the conventional bipolar transistor is a current-driven device, the MOSFET is a
voltage-driven device. Figure 1 a bipolar transistor. A current must be applied between the
base and emitter terminals to produce a flow of current in the collector. a MOSFET, which
produces a flow of current in the drain when a voltage is applied between the gate and source
terminals. The gate of a MOSFET is composed of a silicon oxide layer. Since the gate is
insulated from the source, an application of a DC voltage to the gate terminal does not
theoretically cause a current to flow in the gate, except in transient periods during which the
gate is charged and discharged. In practice, the gate has a tiny current on the order of a few
nanoamperes. When there is no voltage between the gate and source terminals, no current
flows in the drain except leakage current, because of a very high drain-source impedance.
MOSFET characteristics

• The MOSFET is a voltage-driven device, no DC current flows into the gate.

• In order to turn on a MOSFET, a voltage higher than the rated gate threshold voltage Vth
must be applied to the gate.

• While in a steady on or off state, the MOSFET gate drive basically consumes no power.

• The gate-source capacitance of a MOSFET seen by the driver output varies with its
internal state.

• MOSFETs are often used as switching devices at frequencies ranging from several kHz to
more than several hundreds of kHz. The low power consumption needed for gate drive
is an advantage of a MOSFET as a switching device. MOSFETs designed for low-voltage
drive are also available
Fast turn-on gate circuit
▪ The gate draws a small leakage current and it has high switching speed.
▪ The turn-on time of an MOSFET depends on the charging time of the input or
gate capacitance.
▪ The turn-on time can be reduced by connecting an RC circuit to charge the gate
capacitance faster.
▪ To achieve switching speed on the order of 100ns or less, the gate driver circuit
should have a low output impedance and the ability to sink to source relatively
large currents.
▪ A totem pole arrangement that is capable of sourcing and sinking a large
currents.
Totem pole push-pull circuit
Totem pole push-pull driver ciruit
Advantages:-
❑ It handles the current spikes and power losses.
❑ Two base-emitter junction in this circuit protect each other against reverse
breakdown
❑ There is no need to provide any protecting diode for reverse current.
Limitations:-
❑ Speed is reduced during high frequency conversions.
❑ To overcome this we place p-channel and n-channel mosfet instead of npn and
pnp for higher frequency conversions and fast switching.
Example of a MOSFET gate drive circuit
The basic requirements for a MOSFET drive circuit include an ability to apply
a voltage sufficiently higher than Vth to the gate and a drive capability to sufficiently
charge the input capacitance.
Basic drive circuit
Logic drive circuit
There is a growing need for MOSFETs for switching applications (load
switches) to provide a conducting path in a circuit only when it is operated, and
thereby reduce the power consumption of electronic devices. At present, MOSFETs are
directly driven by a logic circuit or a microcontroller in many applications.
THANK YOU….