SEMTECH SC1211

SC1211
High Speed, Combi-SenseTM
Synchronous MOSFET Driver
POWER MANAGEMENT
Description
Features
u High efficiency
u +12V supply voltage with internal LDO for optimum
The SC1211 is a high speed, Combi-SenseTM, dual output driver designed to drive high-side and low-side
MOSFETs in a synchronous Buck converter. These
drivers combined with Combi-Sense PWM controllers,
such as Semtech SC2643VX or SC2643, provide a
cost effective multi-phase voltage regulator for advanced
microprocessors.
gate drive
u High peak drive current
u Adaptive non-overlapping gate drives provide
u
u
The Combi-SenseTM is a technique to sense the inductor
current for peak current mode control of voltage regulator without using sensing resistor. It provides the following advantages:
- No costly precision sensing resistor
- Lossless current sensing
- High level noise free signal
- Fast response
- Suitable for wide range of duty cycle
- Only two small signal components (third optional)
The detailed explanation of the technique can be found
in the Applications Information section.
u
u
u
u
u
u
shoot-through protection
Support Combi-SenseTM and VID-on-fly operations
Fast rise and fall times (15ns typical with 3000pf
load)
Ultra-low (<30ns) propagation delay (BG going low)
Floating top gate drive
Crowbar function for over voltage protection
High frequency (to 1.5 MHz) operation allows use
of small inductors and low cost ceramic capacitors
Under-voltage-lockout
Low quiescent current
Applications
A 30ns max propagation delay from input transition to
the gate of the power FET’s guarantees operation at high
switching frequencies. Internal overlap protection circuit
prevents shoot-through from Vin to PGND in the main
and synchronous MOSFETs. The adaptive overlap protection circuit ensures the bottom FET does not turn on
until the top FET source has reached 1V, to prevent crossconduction.
u Intel Pentium® processor power supplies
u AMD AthlonTM and AMD-K8TM processor power
supplies
u High current low voltage DC-DC converters
8.5V gate drive provides optimum enhancement of
MOSFETs at minimum driver and MOSFET switching loss.
High current drive capability allows fast switching, thus
reducing switching losses at high (up to 1.5MHz) frequencies without causing thermal stress on the driver.
Under-voltage-lockout and over-temperature shutdown
features are included for proper and safe operation.
Timed latches and improved robustness are built into
the housekeeping functions such as the Under Voltage
Lockout and adaptive Shoot-through protection circuitry
to prevent false triggering and to assure safe operation.
The SC1211 is offered in a Power SOIC-8L package.
October 12, 2003
1
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C13
2
VID0
VID1
VID2
1uF
C30
1
2
6
3
5
4
VPN1
U4
D1N4148
D3
4.7uF
C26
DRN
TG
BG
VREG
BST
VIN
CO
VPN
8
4.7uF
7
C35
VPN2
C38
1nF
9
VPN1
C39
1nF
1R0
R22
SC1211
9
100
R28
Q5
VIN
100
R27
Q3
VIN
100
R26
C3
C1
C31
Q6
4.7uF
Q4
1500uF
4.7uF
2.2nF
C34
1R0
R23
L4
+
900nH
1500uF
C28
2.2nF
C25
1R0
R19
L3
+
900nH
C15
2.2nF
C8
1R0
R3
L2
+
900nH
1500uF
C17
Q2
4.7uF
1
PGND
1R0
R15
SC1211
VPN3
C37
1nF
SC1211
9
1R0
R2
Q1
2
P4GND
VCORE
3.7k
VPN2
PGND
7
VID3
0.1uF
R21
8
SC2643VX
13
14
C23
VPN
VID1
VID0
15
U3
VIN
VID2
VID3
VID5
PGOOD
10k
R17
VREG
12
11
1uF
VID4
VCC
250k
R18
CO
10
16
17
18
BST
C22
OSCREF
AGND
1uF
C16
4.7uF
C11
BG
VID4
C36
DACSTEP
FB
D1N4148
D2
TG
0.1uF
9
8
7
19
20
21
22
23
24
PGND
DRN
470pF
R25
optional
OUT1
OUT2
OUT3
OUT4
OUTSEN
OS4
4
1uF
C20
R16
GNDSEN
ERROUT
BGOUT
OS1
U2
5
100k
6
5
4
OS2
OS3
3
C21
21.5k
R13
500
3
2
1
VPN3
6
optional
R20
R12
4.7nF
VCORE
R8 301
1uF
2
VID5
R10
33.2k
R7 931
U1
D1N4148
C2
1
PGOOD
VID_PWRGD
4.7nF
C10
4.7nF
22.1k
C7 3.3nF
4.7uF
VPN
33.2k
R11
22.1k
22.1k
2
C6 0.1uF
C4
D1
CO
R6
VPN3
VCC
2R2
R1
VIN
R9
33.2k
R5
R4
C12
VPN2
VPN1
10
R14
640nH
VIN
0R0
R24
C5
C9
+
L1
BST
C14
+
4
VREG
7
C18
+
 2003 Semtech Corp.
TG
8
C19
+
3
BG
C24
+
1
DRN
C27
+
2
C29
+
1
1
C32
+
1
C33
+
2
+
+12V
P4GND
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
1800uF/6.3V
VCORE
SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Typical Application Circuit
2
6
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Absolute Maximum Ratings
Exceeding the specifications below may result in permanent damage to the device, or device malfunction. Operation outside of the parameters specified
in the Electrical Characteristics section is not implied.
Parameter
Symbol
Maximum
Units
VI N
16
V
BST to DRN
VBST-DRN
11
V
TG to DRN
VTG-DRN
-0.3 to 11
V
-2
V
40
V
45
V
-2 to 30
V
VPEAK, tPULSE < 200ns (2)
-5 to 35
V
VPEAK, tPULSE < 20ns (2)
-VREG to 35
V
-0.3 to 11
V
-3.5
V
VREG-PGND
11
V
VPN
16
V
20
V
-0.3 to 8.5
V
2.56
W
VI N Supply Voltage
TG to DRN Pulse
Conditions
VPEAK, tPULSE < 20ns
VTG-DRN-PULSE
BST to PGND
(2)
VBST-PGND
BST to PGND Pulse
tPULSE < 100ns
VBST-GND-PULSE
DRN to PGND
VDRN-PGND
DRN to PGND Pulse
VDRN-PGND-PULSE
BG to PGND
VBG-PGND
BG to PGND Pulse
VPEAK, tPULSE < 20ns
VBG-PGND-PULSE
VREG to PGND
VPN to PGND
VPN to PGND Pulse
(2)
tPULSE < 100ns
VPN-PULSE
PWM Input
CO
Continuous Pow er Dissipation
PD
Thermal Resistance Junction to Case
θJC
8
°C/W
Junction Temperature Range
TJ
0 to +150
°C
Storage Temperature Range
TSTG
-65 to +150
°C
Lead Temperature (Soldering) 10 Sec.
TLEAD
300
°C
TA = 25°C, TJ =125°C
NOTE: (1). This device is ESD sensitive. Use of standard ESD handling precautions is required.
(2). Pulse width measured from 50% to 50% of peak voltage VPEAK.
Electrical Characteristics
Unless specified: TA = 25°C; VIN = 12V; VREG = 8.5V
Parameter
Symbol
C onditions
Min
Typ
Max
U nits
9
12
15
V
Pow er Supply
Supply Voltage
Qui escent C urrent, Operati ng
VI N
Iq_op
3.0
mA
Start Threshold of VREG Voltage
VREG_START
4
Hysteresi s
VhysUVLO
160
mV
U nder Voltage Lockout
4.3
V
Internal LD O
LD O Output
VREG
VI N = 9V to 15V
8.5
V
D rop Out Voltage
VDROP
VI N = 5V to 8.8V
0.3
V
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Electrical Characteristics (Cont.)
Unless specified: TA = 25°C; VIN = 12V; VREG = 8.5V
Parameter
Symbol
Conditions
Min
Typ
Max
Units
CO
Logic High Input Voltage
VCO_H
Logic Low Input Voltage
VCO_L
2.0
V
0.8
V
T hermal Shutdown
Over Temperature Trip Point
TOTP
155
°C
Hysteresis
THYST
10
°C
High Side Driver (T G)
Output Impedance
RSRC_TG
RSINK_TG
VBST - VDRN = 8.5V
1.5
3.0
1.0
2.0
Ω
Rise Time
tR_TG
CL = 3.3nF, VBST - VDRN = 8.5V
15
ns
Fall Time
tF_TG
CL = 3.3nF, VBST - VDRN = 8.5V
10
ns
Propagation Delay, TG Going High
tPDH_TG
VBST - VDRN = 8.5V
37
ns
Propagation Delay, TG Going Low
tPDL_TG
VBST - VDRN = 8.5V
30
ns
Low-Side Driver (BG)
Output Impedance
RSRC_BG
RSINK_BG
VREG = 8.5V
1.5
3.0
1.5
3.0
Ω
Rise Time
tR_BG
CL = 3.3nF, VREG = 8.5V
10
ns
Fall Time
tF_BG
CL = 3.3nF, VREG = 8.5V
10
ns
Propagation Delay, BG Going High
tPDH_BG
VREG = 8.5V
20
ns
Propagation Delay, BG Going Low
tPDL_BG
VREG = 8.5V
27
ns
BG Minimum Off-time (1)
tOFF_BG
75
ns
VREG ramping up
tPDH_UVLO
2
µs
VREG ramping down
tPDL_UVLO
2
µs
Under-Voltage-Lockout T ime Delay
NOTE:
(1) Guaranteed by design.
 2003 Semtech Corp.
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Timing Diagrams
CO
DRN
1.0V
TG
t PDH_TG
BG
t PDL_TG t F_TG
tR_TG
1.4V
t PDL_BG
tF_BG
tPDH_BG
Rising Edge Transition
 2003 Semtech Corp.
tR_BG
Falling Edge Transition
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Pin Configuration
Ordering Information
Top View
Device
(1)
SC1211STR
1
8
BG
TG
2
7
VREG
BST
3
6
VIN
CO
4
5
VPN
PGND
DRN
P ackag e
Temp Range (TJ)
EDP SO-8
0° to 125°C
Note:
(1) Only available in tape and reel packaging. A reel
contains 2500 devices.
EXPOSED PAD MUST BE SOLDERED
TO POWER GROUND PLANE
(Power SOIC-8)
Pin Descriptions
Pin #
Pin N ame
1
D RN
2
TG
3
BST
Bootstrap pi n. A capaci tor i s connected between BST and D RN pi ns to develop the floati ng
bootstrap voltage for the hi gh-si de MOSFET. The capaci tor value i s typi cally 1µF (cerami c).
4
CO
Logi c level PWM i nput si gnal to the SC 1211 suppli ed by external controller. An i nternal 50kohm
resi stor i s connected from thi s pi n to PGND .
5
VPN
Vi rtual Phase Node. C onnect an RC between thi s pi n and the output sense poi nt to Enable
C ombi -Sense TM operati on. See the Typi cal Appli cati on C i rcui t.
6
VIN
Supply power for LD O and the i nternal C ombi -Sense
converter.
7
VREG
8
BG
PAD
PGND
 2003 Semtech Corp.
Pin Function
The power phase node (or swi tchi ng node) of the synchronous buck converter. Thi s pi n can be
subjected to a negati ve spi ke up to -VREG relati ve to PGND wi thout affecti ng operati on.
Output gate dri ve for the swi tchi ng (top) MOSFET.
TM
ci rcui try. C onnect to i nput power rai l of the
LD O output. D ecouple wi th 1µF to 4.7µF (cerami c) wi th lead length no more than 0.2" (5mm).
Output gate dri ve for the synchronous (bottom) MOSFET.
Ground. Keep thi s pi n close to the synchronous MOSFETs source.
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Block Diagram
VIN
LDO
UVLO
LOGIC
VREG
VPN
BST
CO
CONTROL
&
OVERLAP
PROT ECTION
CIRCUIT
TG
DRN
BG
PGND
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Applications Information
THEOR
Y OF OPERA
TION
THEORY
OPERATION
simultaneously or shoot-through.
The SC1211 is a high speed, Combi-SenseTM, dual output driver designed to drive top and bottom MOSFETs in
a synchronous Buck converter. It features adaptive delay for shoot-through protection and VID-on-Fly operation; internal LDO for optimum gate drive voltage; and
Virtual Phase Node for Combi-SenseTM solution. These
drivers combined with PWM controller SC2643VX form
a multi-phase voltage regulator for advanced microprocessors. A three-phase voltage regulator with 12V input
60A output is shown in the Typical Application Circuit section.
Minimum Off-Time for Bottom Gate
During a load transient of the voltage regulator, the PWM
controller could generate a very narrow pulse for the
driver SC1211. The pulse is so narrow that it reaches
the rising edge threshold of the SC1211 at one point
then immediately falls below the falling edge threshold.
To response such a PWM input, the bottom gate of the
SC1211 has to pull down and pull up almost simultaneously, resulting in a voltage spike at the BG pin. The
spike could exceed the gate voltage rating and damage
the gate. To prevent such fast gate transition, a minimum off-time (typically 75ns) for the bottom gate is designed in the SC1211. When the PWM input reaches
the rising edge threshold of the SC1211, the bottom
gate pulls low and will stay low for the minimum off-time
no matter what the PWM input at the CO pin is.
Startup and UVLO
To startup the driver, a supply voltage is applied to VIN
pin of the SC1211. The top and bottom gates are held
low until VIN exceeds UVLO threshold of the driver, typically 4.0V. Then the top gate remains low and the bottom gate is pulled high to turn on the bottom FET. Once
VIN exceeds UVLO threshold of the PWM controller, typically 7.5V, the soft-start begins and the PWM signal takes
fully control of the gate transitions.
VID-on-Fly Operation
Certain new processors have required to changing the
VID dynamically during the operation, or refered as VIDon-Fly operation. A VID-on-Fly can occur under light load
or heavy load conditions. At light load, it could force the
converter to sink current. Upon turn-off of the top FET,
the reversed inductor current has to be freewheeling
through the body diode of the top FET instead of the
bottom FET. As a result, the phase node voltage remains
high. The SC1211 incorporates the ability by pulling the
bottom gate to high internally, which over rides the adaptive circuit and turns the bottom FET on. The delay time
from the PWM falling egde to the bottom gate turn-on is
set at 200ns typically.
Gat
e TTransition
ransition and Shoo
ough Pr
o t ection
Gate
Shoott thr
through
Pro
Refer to the Timing Diagrams section, the rising edge of
the PWM input initiates the bottom FET turn-off and the
top FET turn-on. After a short propagation delay (tPDL_BG),
the bottom gate begins to fall (tF_BG). An adaptive circuit
in the SC1211 monitors the bottom gate voltage to drop
below 1.4V. Then after a preset delay time (tPDH_TG) is
expired, the top gate turns on. The delay time is set to
be 20ns typically. This prevents the top FET from turning
on until the bottom FET is off. During the transition, the
inductor current is freewheeling through the body diode
of either bottom FET or top FET, upon the direction of
the inductor current. The phase node could be low
(ground) or high (VIN).
Virtual Phase Node for Combi-Sense TM
Peak-Current-Mode control is widely employed in multiphase voltage regulators. It features phase current balance, fast transient response, and over current protection, etc. These are essential to low-voltage high-current regulators designed for advanced microprocessors.
Usually, a costly current sensing resistor is required to
obtain the output inductor current information for the
peak current control. The Combi-SenseTM technique featured by the SC1211 is an approach to sense inductor
current without using sensing resistor.
The falling edge of the PWM input controls the top FET
turn-off and the bottom FET turn-on. After a short propagation delay (tPDL_TG), the top gate begins to fall (tF_TG).
As the inductor current is commutated from the top FET
to the body diode of the bottom FET, the phase node
begins to fall. The adaptive circuit in the SC1211 detects the phase node voltage. It holds the bottom FET
off until the phase node voltage has dropped below 1.0V.
This prevents the top and bottom FETs from conducting
 2003 Semtech Corp.
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Applications Information (Cont.)
Refer to Semtech SC2643VX Combi-Sense TM Current
Mode Controller about the details of the Combi-Sense
technique.
VIN
VIN
Optimized Gat
e Driv
e V
oltage
Gate
Drive
Voltage
Q1
Qcst
C
VPN
Lo
DRN
With the supply voltage in between 9V to 16V, an internal LDO is designed with the SC1211 to bring the voltage to a lower level for gate drive. An external Ceramic
capacitor(1uF to 4.7uF) connected in between Vreg to
ground is needed to support the LDO. The LDO output is
connected to low gate drive internally, and has to be
connected to high gate drive through an external bootstrap circuit. The LDO output voltage is set at 8.5V. The
manufacture data and bench tested results show that,
for low Rdson FETs run at applied load current, the optimum gate drive voltage is around 8.5V, where the total
power losses of power FETs, including conduction loss
and switching loss, are minimized.
Vout
Q2
+
Qcsb
Co
PGND
Rcs
Ccs
SC1211
Inductor C urrent Signal
The above circuit shows the concept of Combi-SenseTM
technique. An internal totem pole (Qcst, Qcsb) generates
a VPN (Virtual Phase Node) signal. This VPN follows the
DRN (or the Power Phase Node) with the same timing. A
RC network (Rcs and Ccs) is connected between VPN
and Vout. During Q1 turn-on, Qcst turns on as well. The
voltage drop across Q1 and Lo charges Ccs. During Q2
turn-on, Qcsb turns on as well. The voltage drop across
Q2 and Lo discharges Ccs. Both voltage drops are proportional to the inductor current and a resistance equal
to FET’s Rdson plus ESR of the inductor. If the time constant Rcs x Ccs is close to the Lo/Ro of the inductor,
where Ro is given by
Thermal Shut Down
The SC1211 will shut down by pulling both driver outputs low if its junction temperature, Tj, exceeds 155°C.
COMPONENT SELECTION
Switching FFreq
req
uency
or and MOSFET
uency,, Induct
Inductor
MOSFETss
requency
The SC1211 is capable of providing up to 3.5A peak
drive current, and operating up to 1.5MHz PWM frequency
without causing thermal stress on the driver. The selection of switching frequency, together with inductor and
FETs is a trade-off between the cost, size, and thermal
management of a multi-phase voltage regulator. In modern microprocessor applications, these parameters could
be in the range of:
Ro = Rinductor + Rdson _ hs * D + Rdson _ ls * (1 - D)
the signal developed across Ccs will be proportional to
the inductor current, where Ro is the equivalent current
sensing resistance. In the above equation, Rinductor is
ESR of the inductor, Rdson_hs and Rdson_ls are the top
and bottom FET’s Rdson, and D is the duty cycle of the
converter.
Since a perfect timing match down to the nanosecond is
impossible, the VPN totem pole is held in tri-state during
the communtations of DRN in the SC1211. This avoids
errors and offset on the current detection which can be
significant since the timing mismatch is multiplied by the
input voltage. An optional capacitor between VPN and
DRN allows these two nodes to be AC coupled during
the tri-state window, hence yields a perfect timing match.
 2003 Semtech Corp.
Switching Frequency 100kHz to 500kHz per phase
Inductor Value
0.2uH to 2uH
FETs
4m-ohm to 20m-ohm Rdson
20nC to 100nC total gate charge
Bootstrap Circuit
The SC1211 uses an external bootstrap circuit to provide a voltage for the top FET drive. This voltage, referring to the Phase Node, is held up by a bootstrap capaci9
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
Applications Information (Cont.)
tor. The capacitor value can be calculated based on the
total gate charge of the top FET, QTOP, and an allowed
voltage ripple on the capacitor, ∆VBST, in one PWM cycle:
CBST > QTOP/∆VBST
Typically, it is recommended to use a 1uF ceramic capacitor with 25V rating and a commonly available diode
IN4148 for the bootstrap circuit. In addition, a small resistor (one ohm) has to be added in between DRN of the
SC1211 and the Phase Node. The resistor is used to
allievate the stress of the SC1211 from exposing to the
negative spike at the Phase node. A negative spike could
occur at the Phase Node during the top FET turn-off due
to parasitic inductance in the switching loop. The spike
could be minimized with a careful PCB layout. In those
applications with TO-220 package FETs, it is recommended to use a clamping diode on the DRN pin to mitigate the impact of the excessive phase node negative
spike.
3. Locate the components of the bootstrap circuit close
to the SC1211.
SOLDERING CONSIDERA
TION
CONSIDERATION
The exposed die pad of the SC1211 is used for ground
Solder Pad
Solder Mask
Copper
Filters for Supply Power
For VREG pin of the SC1211, it is recommended to use
a 1uF to 4.7uF, 25V rating ceramic capacitor for
decoupling.
LA
Y OUT GUIDELINES
LAY
The switching regulator is a high di/dt power circuit. Its
Printed Circuit Board (PCB) layout is critical. A good layout can achieve an optimum circuit performance while
minimized the component stress, resulting in better system reliability. For a multi-phase voltage regulator, the
SC1211 driver, FETs, inductor, and supply decoupling
capacitors in each phase have to be considered as a
whole during PCB layout. Refer to Semtech SC2643VX/
SC1211 EVB Layout Guideline.
Vias
return and thermal release of the driver. The pad must
be soldered to the ground plane that is further connected
to the system ground in the inner layer through multiple
vias. For better electrical and thermal performance, it is
recommended to use all copper available under the driver
as the ground plane, and place the vias as close as possible to the solder pad. Meanwhile, the vias have to be
masked out to prevent solder leakage during reflow. The
layout arrangement is detailed in the above figure, which
also can be found in the “Land Pattern – Power SOIC-8”
section.
For the SC1211 driver, the following guidelines are typically recommended during PCB layout:
1. Place the SC1211 close to the FETs for shortest gate
drive traces and ground return paths.
2. Connect bypass capacitors as close as possible to
decoupling pins (VREG and VIN) and PGND. The trace
length of the decoupling capacitor on VREG pin should
be no more than 0.2” (5mm).
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SC1211
POWER MANAGEMENT
OutlineDrawing
Drawing- Power
- PowerSOIC-8L
SOIC-8
Outline
Land Pattern - Power SOIC-8
Contact Information
Semtech Corporation
Power Management Products Division
200 Flynn Rd., Camarillo, CA 93012
Phone: (805)498-2111 FAX (805)498-3804
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