The integrated fast short-circuit protection technique with soft turn-off for SiC MOSFET

Abstract

In this paper, the integrated fast short-circuit protection technique with soft turn-off is proposed for SiC (silicon carbide) MOSFET. Two short-circuit faults, HSF (hard switching fault) and FOF (flashover fault), can be judged by detecting EMI (electromagnetic interference) noises of SiC MOSFET. When there are short-circuit faults for SiC MOSFET, the soft turn-off is initiated to reduce EMI noises and protect SiC MOSFET. The proposed fast short-circuit protection technique is realized on the chip and is verified in a 0.18 μm BCD (Bipolar-CMOS-DMOS) process. Simulation results show that the proposed short-circuit protection has a fast response speed and then SiC MOSFET is turned off slowly when there are HSF and FOF. Therefore, the proposed fast short-circuit protection technique can be well applied for SiC MOSFETs, making SiC MOSFETs safely used in HV (high-voltage) and high current applications.