600V SOI Gate Driver IC with advanced level shifter concepts for medium and high power applications

An advanced level shifter topology allows any desired reference voltage drop between the primary side and the secondary sides of a high voltage IC (HVIC), including negative voltages caused by parasitic elements. This makes the HVICs suitable for medium and high power applications. For integration into latch-up free SOI technology the advanced level shifter topology is preferable. The capabilities of the level shifters are demonstrated in an experimental 7-channel 600V gate driver IC. It is demonstrated that the circuit remains operational for negative reference voltages down to -45V (bottom channel) and -20V (top channel) respectively.