Gate Drivers Protect IGBTs, Reduce EMI

Next generation gate drivers with new protection and soft shutdown features that enable the design of more robust IGBT power stages, the 600V IR2137 and 1200V IR2237 are pin-for-pin and functionally equivalent devices for use with 230 and 460 vac motor drives rated up to 5 HP or 3.75 kW. This new generation of devices replace the 600V IR2133 and 1200V IR2233 gate driver ICs that are widely used for ac drives. With de-sat detection at the high-side gate drive locally to sense short-circuit conditions, the new devices protect IGBTs from mis-wiring or motor-phase insulation breakdowns that can cause line-to-line shorts or ground faults. Furthermore, a soft shutdown synchronized for all three phases provides turn-off characteristics that avoid excessive transient overvoltage spikes due to fast short-circuit current turn-off.