In the future, designers will have to focus more on the cost/performance ratio of their designs. Infineon's TRENCHSTOP™5 has a crucial role to play here. It can cut the system cost of an overall platform by improving efficiency and increasing reliability and/or power (through higher voltage breakthrough). In the cost/performance equation, TRENCHSTOP™5 clearly leans towards performance.
TRENCHSTOP™5 revolutionizes switching and conduction losses. No other IGBT on the market matches its performance here. Initial customer feedback has seen Tcase temperatures fall by over 25 percent in plug-and-play cross-references. Even greater thermal performance can be achieved with optimized, low inductance designs.
The new technology provides three major benefits for applications: by increasing breakthrough voltage from the conventional 600V to 650V, it gives designers a greater safety margin or alternatively allows them to increase the bus voltage and boost unit power. In addition, the significant reduction in Vce(sat) and total switching losses increases efficiency. The gate charge (Qg) is also 2.5 times lower than that of HS3. This ensures that the IGBT is easy to drive, which in turn reduces driver costs.
TRENCHSTOP™5 will be available in two models: H5 and F5. Both models will be available with or without a new 650V anti-parallel free-wheeling silicon diode (FWD).
H5 is a plug-and-play IGBT. Designers will therefore be able to capitalize immediately on the benefits of the IGBT without having to change the driver circuit or gate resistors. The H5 can be driven with a single turn-on/-off gate resistor down to 5Ω for the highest efficiency levels.
F5 is aimed at designs where efficiency is the main priority. In combination with a silicon carbide (SiC) diode, application measurements have recorded a 0.5 percent increase in efficiency compared with the H5. For the F5 to be used successfully, it must be driven with a split turn-on/-off gate resistor and the design must have low inductance.
Features
- 650V breakthrough voltage instead of the conventional 600V makes the device more reliable than a 600V IGBT.
- The bus voltage can be increased by 50V without compromising reliability. Increased bus voltage enables designers to create higher power density designs.
- Qg is 2.5 times lower than in a HS3. As a result, the IGBT can be turned on and off using a lower drive current. This requires a weaker gate driver, which in turn reduces system cost.
- Best-in-class efficiency and lower junction and case temperature thanks to lower switching losses (factor of 2) relative to the HS3 plus a 200mV reduction in Vce(sat).
Applications
- Welding, UPS, solar and all hard-switching applications where short circuit capability is not needed.
- Switching frequency range is between 20kHz and 100kHz PFC and PWM topologies are the focus.
