Parasitic Inductance Effects on the Switching Loss Measurement of Power Semiconductor Devices

Abstract

This paper gives the detailed analysis of the parasitic inductance effects on the switching loss measurement of power semiconductor devices, especially IGBTs. Base on the circuit operation analysis and measurement of IGBT characteristics, it's shown that the larger parasitic loop inductance will result in more turn-off losses but less turn-on losses, while the emitter inductance of the IGBT also has a significant effect on the gate drive circuit because it's included not only in the main power circuit but also in the gate drive circuit. It's proved that the emitter inductance slows down the turn-on and turn-off procedure thus increases the turn-on and turn-off switching power losses.