US 11,641,198 B1Granted

Wide voltage gate driver using low gate oxide transistors

AssigneeTexas Instruments Incorporated

InventorsAhmed Essam Hashim, Karthikeyan Kandaswamy, Abhishek Badarinath

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Abstract

A gate driver circuit includes first through third transistors, a first voltage clamp, and control logic. The first transistor has a first control input and first and second current terminals. The first current terminal couples to a first voltage terminal. The first voltage clamp couples between the first voltage terminal and the first control input. The second transistor couples between the first control input and the second voltage terminal. The third transistor couples between the first control input and the second voltage terminal. The third transistor is smaller than the second transistor. The control logic is configured to turn on both the second and third transistors to thereby turn on the first transistor, and the first control logic configured to turn off the second transistor after the first transistor turns on while maintaining in an on-state the third transistor to maintain the first transistor in the on-state.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A gate driver circuit, comprising:

a first transistor having a first control input and first and second current terminals, the first current terminal coupled to a first voltage terminal;
a second transistor having a second control input and third and fourth current terminals, the fourth current terminal coupled to a second voltage terminal, and the second and third current terminals coupled together at an output terminal of the gate driver circuit;
a first voltage clamp coupled between the first voltage terminal and the first control input;
a second voltage clamp coupled between the second control input and the second voltage terminal;
a first current path coupled between the first control input and the second voltage terminal;
a second current path coupled between the first control input and the second voltage terminal, the first current path configured to provide a larger current than the second current path;
control logic configured to turn on the first transistor by turning on both the first and second current paths, and the control logic configured to turn off the first current path after the first transistor is turned on while maintaining in an on-state the second current path to maintain the first transistor in the on-state.

4 more elements

A gate driver circuit, comprising:

a first transistor having a first control input and first and second current terminals, the first current terminal coupled to a first voltage terminal;
a first voltage clamp coupled between the first voltage terminal and the first control input;
a second transistor coupled between the first control input and a second voltage terminal;
a third transistor coupled between the first control input and the second voltage terminal, the third transistor being smaller than the second transistor;
and
first control logic configured to turn on both the second and third transistors to thereby turn on the first transistor, and the first control logic configured to turn off the second transistor after the first transistor turns on while maintaining in an on-state the third transistor to maintain the first transistor in the on-state.

3 more elements

A gate driver circuit, comprising:

a first transistor having a first control input and first and second current terminals, the first current terminal coupled to a first voltage terminal;
a second transistor having a second control input and third and fourth current terminals, the fourth current terminal coupled to a second voltage terminal, and the second and third current terminals coupled together at an output terminal of the gate driver circuit;
a first current path having a first current value, the first current path coupled between the first control input and the second voltage terminal;
a second current path having a second current value, the second current path coupled between the first control input and the second voltage terminal, wherein the second current value is greater than the first current value;
a first dual-knee voltage clamp coupled between the first voltage terminal and the first control input, the first dual-knee voltage clamp configured to clamp a voltage difference between the first voltage terminal and the first control input at a first voltage clamping threshold;
and
a second dual-knee voltage clamp coupled between the second control input and the second voltage terminal, the second dual-knee voltage clamp configured to clamp a voltage difference between the second control input and the second voltage terminal at a second voltage clamping threshold.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.