Current Source Gate Drive to Reduce Switching Loss for SiC MOSFETs

With conventional voltage source gate drives (VSG), the switching speed of SiC MOSFETs is difficult to increase due to large internal gate resistance, high Miller voltage, and limited gate voltage rating. This paper analyzes the requirement of current source gate drive (CSG) for SiC MOSFETs and proposes a CSG that can improve the switching speed and reduce switching loss. With the introduction of bi-directional switches, the influence of the large internal gate resistance of the SiC MOSFET can be mitigated, and sufficient gate current can be guaranteed throughout the switching transient. Therefore, the switching time and loss is reduced. The CSG can be controlled to be a VSG during steady state so the current of the gate drive is discontinuous and the stored energy of the inductor can be returned to the power supply to reduce gate drive loss. Double pulse tests are conducted for a SiC MOSFET with both conventional VSG and the proposed CSG. Testing results show that the switching loss of the proposed CSG is less than one third of the conventional VSG at full load condition.