1200-V IGBT Driver IC with Level-shift Circuit using Multi-chip Composition with High dV/dt Reliability

We studied the problem that occurred when the level-shift circuit of a monolithic IC was applied to that of a multi-chip IC, especially malfunction caused by dV/dt of insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) switching. Using the Simulation Program with Integrated Circuit Emphasis (SPICE), we simulated a level-shift circuit of the sort used for our commercialized 600-V monolithic IC and found that when the maximum rating of the circuit was exceeded, a malfunction occurred based on dV/dt. We developed a new 1200-V level-shift circuit composed of multi-chips and used SPICE and experiment that the developed IC was supplied with DC 900V to confirm that it operated without malfunction when dV/dt was from 0 to 30 kV/μs.