AN 4840 Gate Triggering and Gate Characteristics Application Note AN4840-4 July 2014 LN31796 Authors: Colin Smith; Colin Rout 1(b) and 1(c) show curves with linear axes (2 graphs are needed to be the equivalent of Fig 1(a)). When gate drive load lines are to be superimposed linear versions are much more user friendly - see below. Introduction: In all thyristor data sheets a set of curves showing device gate characteristics is given. This gives information fundamental to the correct triggering of the thyristor but the right interpretation sometimes causes problems. Note, the curves should be used in conjunction with the table of ratings and trigger characteristics given elsewhere in each data sheet. This table gives the relevant test conditions. Information provided by curves Igt, Vgt. The value of gate current, Ig and voltage, Vg to be supplied to the thyristor to guarantee simple triggering should always be greater than the appropriate data book values of Igt and Vgt. Simple triggering is adequate for low di/dt applications only - see below. In this application note two types of gate curve are shown (Fig. 1a to c). Fig 1(a) shows the traditional format with logarithmic 'X' and 'Y' axes. This version allows a wide range of gate current and voltage to be shown. Fig Note, that although the device may trigger at Ig and Vg values below the Igt and Vgt values shown, no guarantee can be given. Fig 1a Page 1 of 6 AN 4840 Igd and Vgd are the values of Ig and Vg below which the thyristor can be guaranteed NOT to fire. This is important for guarding against spurious triggering caused by pick up on the gate leads. Because it is very dependent on applied anode - cathode voltage and junction temperature, Igd is not provided as standard information in data sheets. However, test information can be provided by the factory on request. Fig 1b Load line 30V, 10 Fig 1c Gate Characteristic This characteristic is that of the forward biased gate-to-cathode junction, together with associated on-chip series and parallel resistors, e.g. gate-to-emitter shorts. The graph shows the upper limit i.e. highest impedance and lower limit i.e. lowest impedance for all thyristors of that type likely to be manufactured. Page 2 of 6 AN 4840 The limits take into account the temperature range -40 to +125C. All devices will have characteristics between these limits. Gate characteristic information is used in conjunction with firing circuit output load lines to pre-determine operating values of gate current and voltage - see below. Gate Rating Limits Thyristors turn on best when Ig and Vg values are well above Igt and Vgt limits - see below. However, peak gate current, gate voltage and power rating limits should not be exceeded. Vfgm. Peak forward gate voltage. If the open circuit voltage of the firing circuit exceeds this rating (usually 30 volts) there is a danger of internal voltage breakdown. In practice, 50 or more volts can often be achieved but is not guaranteed since some internal device constructions are limited. various pulse widths and repetition rates. Also on the graph are lines of constant power. These lines are the power limits corresponding to the pulse powers given in the table and are used in conjunction with gate drive load lines. Note the limit for the AVERAGE gate power is given by the 50Hz 10,000 µs pulse combination as 10 watts. Matching the gate drive/firing circuit to the thyristor triggering requirements The basic approach is to draw the output load line of the firing circuit onto the gate characteristic curve. It is usually assumed that the gate drive has a purely resistive linear characterisation - fig 2. The characteristic is defined by its open circuit source voltage Voc and its short circuit current Isc. The straight line between these 2 points represents the Ifgm. Peak forward gate current. This rating is determined by the current carrying capability of internal gate leads, bonds and surface metallisation of the thyristor, depending on the technology. Note that the 'X' axis of the graph only extends to 10 amps so that the Ifgm limit of large thyristors is not shown. Fig.2 Output load line for gate drive Pgm. Peak gate power. The average heating effect of the gate current is the issue here. Thus, a narrow rectangular pulse of high Pqm is as permissible as a wide pulse of low Pgm. Included on the graph is a table showing maximum permitted peak gate power for internal source resistance of the gate drive. Gate drive output is often defined in terms of its open circuit voltage and internal source resistance. To select the correct gate drive load line it is useful to draw several possibilities onto the characteristic curve (Fig 1). Compare the 20V, Page 3 of 6 AN 4840 10 ohm line drawn onto the logarithmic and linear axis versions. Clearly, the linear version is much easier to work with. The first requirement for the load line is that it must pass through the 'preferred gate drive area' to the right of the appropriate Igt Vgt limit point. For operation down to -40C, this is point B. For +25C minimum operation temperature, point A applies. Load line 10V, 14.3 ohm is adequate for 25C operation but load line 10V, 16.6 ohm is not since it crosses the 25C 'zone of uncertain triggering'. Unfortunately, most applications demand gate drive levels well above the minimum, with good di/dt performance being the most demanding. For DCR3030 a 30V, 10 ohm load line is preferred. This load line lies well to the right of Point B. Low values of triggering Ig and Vg are satisfactory for simple resistive loads with minimal overload currents and low di/dt. In this near-ideal situation a simple pulse of 10S or less would suffice, with Ig only slightly more than Igt. In practice, this situation is unrealistic and an appropriate gate pulse shape must be chosen to match the application. Fig 3 shows the general shape for a single gate pulse. It consists of an initial short, fast rising high amplitude section followed by a longer low amplitude "back-porch" section. The back-porch section has to be long enough to allow an inductive load anode current to rise to the device latching current. In most applications a CR snubber network is connected across the thyristor. Because of the high di/dt of the snubber discharge current on thyristor triggering, the initial gate pulse should be of high amplitude and rate of rise. Where the load itself is capacitive, or very low inductance, circuit di/dt levels are even higher and hard gate drives are needed. For example, the gate drive recommendation for DCR3030 to achieve its di/dt ratings of 400A/s is 30 volt, 10 ohms, with current rise time less than 0.5s. High gate drive is only necessary for the duration of the turn-on period - a few microseconds. After that the gate amplitude may be allowed to fall to a low maintaining value, i.e. the back-porch current. Fig 3. Gate pulse characteristics More on Igt, Vgt, gate pulse widths and recommended gate drive Two basic circuit connections should be considered. 1) Using single thyristor elements. 2) Using series and parallel combinations. First consider single thyristor elements. The function of the back-porch current is to allow the thyristor to be retriggered if the anode current transiently dips below the holding current value. However, it is quite common for the gate signal to be needed for several milliseconds after initial triggering. This is done by providing a train of pulses for the duration of the triggering period since a Page 4 of 6 AN 4840 single long pulse would require too much power from the gate drive. Series and parallel combinations. All the above remarks relating to triggering of single thyristors apply equally to series and parallel combinations. An additional requirement is to ensure that all thyristors in the combination turn on as nearly together as is possible. This is done by reducing the tgd value, i.e. the difference between individual device delay times. For this, a hard gate drive is also required. time) is needed for the majority of applications. A low power gate drive is likely to cause triggering problems. The basic pulse should have a high current front end and low current back-porch. In some situations a train of these pulses may be needed. For further information on gate drive circuits, please see Dynex Application Note AN6148 “Thyristor Gate Drives” and also Chapter 7 section 7.2 of “ Power Electronics: Devices, Drivers, Applications, and Passive Components by Prof Barry Wayne Williams” as detailed in Application Note AN6144. Gate drive recommendations From the above it is clear that a hard gate drive (high current, high voltage, fast rise Fig. 5 A typical gate signal Page 5 of 6 AN 4840 IMPORTANT INFORMATION: This publication is provided for information only and not for resale. The products and information in this publication are intended for use by appropriately trained technical personnel. Due to the diversity of product applications, the information contained herein is provided as a general guide only and does not constitute any guarantee of suitability for use in a specific application.The user must evaluate the suitability of the product and the completeness of the product data for the application. 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