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Driving Power MOSFETs in High-Current, Switch Mode Regulators

Author: Abid Hussain, QG

Microchip Technology, Inc.
QGS QGD QOD

DRIVING THE MOSFET

VGS, Gate-to-Source
The low on-resistance and high current carrying capability of power

Voltage (V)
MOSFETs make them preferred switching devices in SMPS power
supply design. However, designing with these devices is not as
straightforward as with their bipolar counterparts.

Unlike bipolar transistors, power MOSFETs have a considerable

gate capacitance that must be charged beyond the threshold
voltage, VGS(TH), to achieve turn-on. The gate driver must provide
VGS(TH)
a high enough output current to charge the equivalent gate capaci-
tance, CEI, within the time required by the system design.

HOW MUCH GATE CURRENT? QG, Total Gate Charge (nC)

The most common error in calculating gate current is confusing the

FIGURE 1: Gate charge characteristics.
MOSFET input capacitance, CISS, for CEI and applying the
equation....
In equation form:
I = C(dv/dt)
QG = (CEI)(VGS)
to calculate the required peak gate current. CEI is actually much
higher, and must be derived from the MOSFET manufacturer’s and
total gate charge, QG, specifications.
IG = QG/t(transition)
The total gate charge, QG, that must be dispensed into the
equivalent gate capacitance of the MOSFET to achieve turn-on is where:
given as: QG is the total gate charge, as defined above
CEI is the equivalent gate capacitance
QG = QGS + QGD + QOD VGS is the gate-to-source voltage
IG is the gate current required to turn the
where: MOSFET on in time period t(transition)
QG is the total gate charge t(transition) is the desired transition time
QGS is the gate-to-source charge
QGD is the gate-to-drain Miller charge For example:
QOD is the “overdrive charge” after charging Given: N-Channel MOSFET
the Miller capacitance. VGS = 10V
t (transistion) = 25nsec
The curve of Figure 1 is typical of those supplied by MOSFET
manufacturers. Notice that in order to achieve strong turn-on, a VGS Find: Gate drive current, IG.
well above that required to charge CEI (and well above VGS(TH)) is
required. The equivalent gate capacitance is determined by divid- From the MOSFET manufacturer’s specifications, QG = 50nC at
ing a given VGS into the corresponding total gate charge. The VGS = 10V. Using IG = QG/t(transition):
required gate drive current (for a transition within a specified time)
is determined by dividing the total gate charge by the desired IG = QG/t(transition) = 50 x 10-9/25 x 10-9 = 2.0A
transition time.

© 2001 Microchip Technology, Inc. DS00786A-page 1

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Table 1 is a guideline for matching various Microchip MOSFET drivers to Industry-standard HEXFETs.

Rise Fall Rising Falling Input

Time @ Time @ Edge Edge Protected
Drive Output Number Rated Rated Rated Prop. Prop. Latch- to 5V
Device Current and Type Load Load Load Delay Delay Up Below
No. (Peak) Inverting Non-Invert. (pF) (nsec) (nsec) (nsec) (nsec) Proof Gnd Rail
TC1410 0.5A Single 500 25 25 30 30 Yes Yes
TC1410N 0.5A Single 500 25 25 30 30 Yes Yes
TC1411 1.0A Single 1000 25 25 30 30 Yes Yes
TC1411N 1.0A Single 1000 25 25 30 30 Yes Yes
TC1426 1.2A Dual 1000 23 17 36 43 Yes No
TC1427 1.2A Dual 1000 23 17 36 43 Yes No
TC1428 1.2A Single Single 1000 23 17 36 43 Yes No
TC4467 1.2A — Quad NAND — 470 15 15 40 40 Yes Yes
TC4468 1.2A — Quad AND — 470 15 15 40 40 Yes Yes
TC4469 1.2A — Quad AND with INV— 470 15 15 40 40 Yes Yes
TC4426 1.5A Dual 1000 19 19 20 40 Yes Yes
TC4426A 1.5A Dual 1000 25 25 30 30 Yes Yes
TC4427 1.5A Dual 1000 19 19 20 40 Yes Yes
TC4427A 1.5A Dual 1000 25 25 30 30 Yes Yes
TC4428 1.5A Single Single 1000 19 19 20 40 Yes Yes
TC4428A 1.5A Single Single 1000 25 25 30 30 Yes Yes
TC1412 2.0A Single 1000 18 18 35 35 Yes Yes
TC1412N 2.0A Single 1000 18 18 35 35 Yes Yes
TC1413 3.0A Single 1800 20 20 35 35 Yes Yes
TC1413N 3.0A Single 1800 20 20 35 35 Yes Yes
TC4423 3.0A Dual 1800 23 25 33 38 Yes Yes
TC4424 3.0A Dual 1800 23 25 33 38 Yes Yes
TC4425 3.0A Single Single 1800 23 25 33 38 Yes Yes
TC4420 6.0A Single 2500 25 25 55 55 Yes Yes
TC4429 6.0A Single 2500 25 25 55 55 Yes Yes
TC4421 9.0A Single 10000 60 60 30 33 Yes Yes
TC4422 9.0A Single 10000 60 60 30 33 Yes Yes

TABLE 1a: Selecting MOSFET drivers.

Note: Typical values for TA = 25°C.

DS00786A-page 2 © 2001 Microchip Technology, Inc.

 AN22
MOSFET Die Size CEI of MOSFET Suggested Driver Family Faster
Size (mm) (pF) (@ 12V) Rise/Fall Times
Hex 0 0.89 x 1.09 400 TC1426/4426/4469
Hex 1 1.75 x 2.41 750 TC1426/4426/4469
Hex 2 3.40 x 2.21 1500 TC1426/4426/4469 TC4423
Hex 3 4.44 x 2.79 3000 TC1426/4426 TC4423
Hex 4 7.04 x 4.32 6000 TC4423 TC4429
Hex 5 6.45 x 6.45 12,000 TC4423 TC4429
Hex 6 283 x 321 mil 15,000 TC4429/4420 TC4421/4422
Hex 7 283 x 348 mil 16,000 TC4429/4420 TC4421/4422
Parallel Modules Various Up to 48,000 TC4421/4422
TABLE 1b: MOSFET die size vs. suggested drive family.

WHY DEDICATED MOSFET DRIVERS? 2. The propagational delay times through the driver must be
short (and matched for higher speed designs) to ensure
Traditional SMPS controllers have on-board drivers suitable for
symmetrical turn-on and turn-off delays of both the high side
some applications. Typically, these drivers have peak output
and low side MOSFET.
currents of 1A or less, limiting their scope of applications. In
addition, the heat generated in these drivers causes the on-chip
The TC4427A for example, has rising and falling edge propagation
reference voltage to change.
delay times matched to within 2nsec (see Figure 2). These delays
track each other with both voltage and temperature. Microchip’s
The need for “smarter” power supplies are forcing SMPS control-
2nsec skew is among the best available (competing devices have
lers to grow in sophistication. Many newer SMPS controllers are
skews at least 4 times larger; drivers integrated on board the SMPS
fabricated in smaller geometry CMOS process technologies, pre-
controller are worse yet).
cluding the use of high voltage (i.e. voltages greater than 12V). In
such cases, the external MOSFET driver also acts as a level shifter,
These concerns (and related cost and reliability concerns) usually
translating TTL-compatible levels to MOSFET drive voltages. A
point in the direction of an external, dedicated driver, as opposed
device like the TC4427A for example, furnishes a rail-to-rail output
to an integrated or external discrete component driver solution.
voltage swing (from a maximum VDD of 18V) from an input swing
of VIL = 0.8V and VIH = 2.4V.
TYPICAL APPLICATIONS
Latch-up immunity is another consideration. Latch-up immunity is Portable Computer Supply
particularly important in that the driven MOSFETs typically drive
inductive circuits that generate significant “kickback” currents. One common application that exploits the design benefits of
MOSFET drivers like the TC4427 can withstand as much as 0.5A dedicated MOSFET drivers is a switching power supply for por-
of reverse output current without damage or upset. table systems, such as those found in notebook computer applica-
tions. The circuit topology of a high efficiency, synchronous buck
Protection against shoot-through current is still another consider- converter is shown in Figure 3. It accepts an input voltage range
ation, especially in higher speed SMPS designs. Shoot through of 5V to 30V to accommodate AC/DC adapters (14V to 30V) or a
currents are usually caused by excessively long driver rise, fall or battery supply (7.2V to 10.8V).
propagational delay times; causing both the high side and low side
MOSFETs to be on for a brief instant. Current “shoots through” The TC1411N acts as a low side driver, and is powered from a +5V
(hence the name) from the supply input to ground, significantly supply to minimize turn-off delay due to gate "overdrive charge."
degrading the overall supply efficiency. The use of dedicated The high side driver in Figure 3 is a TC4431, which has a peak
MOSFET drivers minimizes this problem in two ways: output current of 1.5A. The TC1411N has a peak output current
capability of 1A. They can drive MOSFETs capable of 10A continu-
1. MOSFET gate drive rise and fall times must be symmetrical, ous drain current in 30nsec.
and as short as possible. A driver like the TC4427 has a
specified tR and tF of approximately 19nsec into a 1000pF
load. A higher peak output current driver may be selected to
achieve more aggressive rise and fall times if so desired.

© 2001 Microchip Technology, Inc. DS00786A-page 3

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Desktop PC Power Supply
Desktop power supplies also benefit from the use of dedicated MOSFET drivers (Figure 4). The synchronous stepdown converter shown
is common for CPUs requiring greater than 6A of DC current. It also accommodates custom voltages not accommodated by the current
“silver box” supplies. Efficiency is not as large a concern, since this supply is line-powered.

The topology shown is simpler than that of Figure 3. The TC4428A serves as a high-side/low-side driver powered from the same VDD.
N-Channel MOSFETs are used to save cost. The TC4428A has sufficient output current to drive a 10A (continuous drain current) MOSFET
active in 25nsec.

SUMMARY
Power MOSFETs are desirable as switching elements in SMPS designs because of their low on-resistance and high current
carrying capability.

Using dedicated MOSFET drivers results in a more optimized SMPS design. Drivers integrated on-board the SMPS controller are
advantageous only for low sophistication, low output power designs. External drivers fashioned from discrete active and passive
components have neither the repeatable high performance, nor the low cost of a dedicated monolithic driver circuit. Dedicated drivers like
those offered by Microchip feature fast rise, fall and delay times, and are available in a wide variety of topologies to suit virtually every
application.

B A B
5V
Input: 10mA fast CMOS drive
VIH = 2V into10pF typical input capacitance -
VIL = 1V 5nsec rise/fall
A B A
GND
2nsec (typ.) 2nsec (typ.)

A B A
12V
Competitor Driver Output:
Td2 22nsec 1000pF load, Td2 22nsec
(typ.) (typ.)
25nsec rise/fall (typ.)
B A A B
GND
Overlap (assuming Overlap (assuming 6V
6V threshold) 9nsec typ. threshold) 9nsec typ.
Td1 16nsec Td1 16nsec
(typ.) (typ.)

A B A
12V
TC4426A Output:
Td2 30nsec 1000pF load, Td2 30nsec
(typ.) (typ.)
25nsec rise/fall (typ.)
B A A B
GND
Overlap (assuming Overlap (assuming 6V
6V threshold) 2nsec typ. threshold) 2nsec typ.
Td1 30nsec Td1 30nsec
(typ.) (typ.)

Figure 2: Matched delay times of the TC4426A reduce overlap times resulting in reduced shoot-through currents.

DS00786A-page 4 © 2001 Microchip Technology, Inc.

 AN22

+5V/+3V VDD (5V – 30V)

TTL PWM TC4431

Signal P-Channel
OUT H MOSFET

Inductor
PWM VOUT
Controller +5V (CPU VCC)

N-Channel +
TTL PWM TC1411N MOSFET Output
Signal Schottky – Capacitance
OUT L Diode
FB

Figure 3: Portable CPU power supply.

VDD1 (+12V) VDD (+5V)

+5V/+3V

TTL PWM
Signal N-Channel
OUT H
MOSFET
Inductor
PWM VOUT
Controller TC4428A

N-Channel
TTL PWM MOSFET + Output
Signal Schottky – Capacitor
OUT L
Diode
FB

Figure 4: Desktop CPU power supply.

© 2001 Microchip Technology, Inc. DS00786A-page 5

AN22

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