- Infineon Technologies new evaluation platform comprises of a motherboard with interchangeable drive cards
- The cards feature driver ICs for high-frequency switching of SiC power devices
Double pulse testing is a standard procedure for designers to learn about the switching behaviour of power devices. To facilitate the testing of drive options for the 1200 V CoolSiC MOSFET in TO247 3-pin and 4-pin packages, Infineon Technologies has introduced a modular evaluation platform. It comprises of a motherboard with interchangeable drive cards. The drive options include a Miller clamp and a bipolar supply card. This development will help increase the wide usage of silicon carbide and shorten the time-to-market for a variety of applications.
Extensive motherboard performance
The motherboard of the evaluation platform is split into two sections: the primary supply side having the 12 V supply and the pulse-width modulation (PWM) connected while the secondary side has the secondary supply of the driver, the half-bridge with connections for the shunt for current measurement and the external inductance. The positive operating voltage of the drivers can be adjusted between +7.5 V and +20 V, while the negative voltage can be regulated between +1 V and -4.5 V. The motherboard was designed for a maximum voltage of 800 V and a maximum pulse current of 130 A. For measurements at high temperatures of up to 175 degree Celsius, the heatsink can be used together with a heating element.
Suitable reference design
Serving as a reference design for two drive options, the cards feature driver ICs from the EiceDRIVER family for high-frequency switching of SiC power devices. The first modular card contains the 1EDC Compact 1EDC20I12MH with an integrated active Miller clamp, which is typically activated below 2 V. The second drive card includes the 1EDC Compact 1EDC60H12AH allowing a bipolar supply, where VCC2 is +15 V and GND2 is negative. With these two driver cards, the portfolio offers large options preferred by designers for driving SiC MOSFETs.
Availability
All three components of the modular evaluation platform – motherboard, Miller clamp and bipolar drive cards – can be ordered now. An additional drive card for short circuit detection will be added to the portfolio during summer 2020 and a card for SMD package testing will follow during the second half of this year.
