Impact of Gate Driver Configuration on the Switching Behavior of GaN-HEMTs

Authors:
Open Access
Publisher website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Gallium nitride high-electron-mobility transistors (GaN-HEMTs) enable fast switching commutation due to their small parasitic capacitances, which necessitates the effective gate driving techniques. Gate drivers with split-output topology offer advantages such as reducing the risk of false turn-ON and minimizing the size of gate loop. However, the output capacitance of gate driver in this configuration may reduce the commutation speed of GaN-HEMTs, and values of this capacitance are overlooked in the gate driver datasheets. This paper highlights the critical role of gate driver output capacitance on the switching performance of GaN-HEMTs, which has been discussed by proposing an analytical model and demonstrated through both simulations and experiments. The results show that this capacitance can slow down the switching speed specifically in the split-output gate driver configurations, leading to inaccurate switching waveform predictions. Furthermore, a measurement method and corresponding output capacitance data for a series of commercially available gate drivers are presented. These findings offer practical guidance for gate driver selection in GaN-HEMT applications.
Funding Information
  • French Region of Hauts-de-France, France
  • Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/V026577/1)

This publication has 23 references indexed in Scilit: