Unidirectional switch circuit
AssigneeIdeal Power Inc.
InventorsMudit Khanna, Ruiyang Yu, Jiankang Bu, Yifan Jiang, R. Daniel Brdar
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A switch circuit for coupling two circuit terminals together is disclosed. The switch circuit includes a double-base bipolar junction transistor and a field-effect transistor coupled, in series, between a first terminal and a second terminal. Various driver circuits may be employed to activate, in response to an activation of a switch signal, the field-effect transistor, and couple one or both of the base terminals of the double-base bipolar junction transistor to voltage sources to initiate base currents to reduce the channel resistance of the double-base bipolar junction transistor.
Claims20
An apparatus, comprising:
- a switch device coupled between a first terminal and a second terminal, wherein the switch device includes a double-base bipolar junction transistor and a first field-effect transistor;
- and
- a driver circuit configured, in response to an activation of a switch signal, to:
- when a first voltage of the first terminal is greater than a second voltage of the second terminal, activate the first field-effect transistor, and couple an upper-base of the double-base bipolar junction transistor to a voltage source to enable a forward current to flow from the first terminal to the second terminal;
- and
- when the first voltage of the first terminal is less than the second voltage of the second terminal, couple the upper-base of the double-base bipolar junction transistor to the voltage source to enable a reverse current to flow from the second terminal to the first terminal through a body diode of the first field-effect transistor and the double-base bipolar junction transistor.
A method, comprising:
- receiving, by a switch circuit, a switch signal, wherein the switch circuit includes a double-base bipolar junction transistor and a first field-effect transistor coupled, in series, between a first terminal and a second terminal;
- and
- in response to activating the switch signal:
- when a first voltage of the first terminal is greater than a second voltage of the second terminal, activating the first field-effect transistor, and coupling an upper-base of the double-base bipolar junction transistor to a voltage source to enable a forward current to flow from the first terminal to the second terminal;
- and
- when the first voltage of the first terminal is less than the second voltage of the second terminal, coupling the upper-base of the double-base bipolar junction transistor to the voltage source to enable a reverse current to flow from the second terminal to the first terminal through a body diode of the first field-effect transistor and the double-base bipolar junction transistor.
An apparatus, comprising:
- a switch device coupled between a first terminal and a second terminal, wherein the switch device includes a double-base bipolar junction transistor and a first field-effect transistor;
- and
- a driver circuit configured, in response to an activation of a switch signal, to:
- when a first voltage of the first terminal is greater than a second voltage of the second terminal, activate the first field-effect transistor, and couple a lower-base of the double-base bipolar junction transistor to a voltage source to enable a forward current from the first terminal to the second terminal;
- and
- when the first voltage of the first terminal is less than the second voltage of the second terminal, couple the lower-base of the double-base bipolar junction transistor to the voltage source to enable a reverse current to flow from the second terminal to the first terminal through a body diode of the first field-effect transistor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.