Bootstrap power supply circuit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10601302-B1
Application number	US-201916375729-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Apr 4, 2019
Priority date	Apr 4, 2019
Publication date	Mar 24, 2020
Grant date	Mar 24, 2020

Abstract

A GaN half bridge circuit is disclosed. The circuit includes a bootstrap power supply voltage generator is configured to supply a first power voltage and includes a switch node. The circuit also includes a bootstrap transistor, a bootstrap transistor drive circuit, and a bootstrap capacitor connected to the switch node and to the bootstrap transistor. The bootstrap capacitor is configured to supply the first power voltage while the voltage at the switch node is equal to the second switch node voltage, the bootstrap transistor is configured to electrically connect the bootstrap capacitor to a power node at a second power voltage while the voltage at the switch node is equal to the first switch node voltage, and the bootstrap power supply voltage generator does not include a separate diode in parallel with the drain and source of the bootstrap transistor.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A GaN half bridge circuit, comprising:
a GaN bootstrap power supply voltage generator configured to supply a first power voltage, the bootstrap power supply voltage generator comprising:
a switch node, wherein a voltage at the switch node changes between first and second switch node voltages;
a bootstrap transistor comprising a gate;
a bootstrap transistor drive circuit configured to control the voltage at a gate of the bootstrap transistor; and
a bootstrap capacitor connected to the switch node and to the bootstrap transistor, wherein the bootstrap capacitor is configured to supply the first power voltage while the voltage at the switch node is equal to the second switch node voltage, wherein the bootstrap transistor is configured to electrically connect the bootstrap capacitor to a power node at a second power voltage while the voltage at the switch node is equal to the first switch node voltage, and wherein the bootstrap transistor drive circuit is configured to electrically connect the gate of the bootstrap transistor to the power node while the voltage at the switch node is equal to the first switch node voltage,

wherein the bootstrap power supply voltage generator does not include a diode in parallel with a drain and a source of the bootstrap transistor.

2. The GaN half bridge circuit of claim 1 , further comprising:
a first power switch connected to the switch node and configured to selectively electrically connect the switch node to a first power source according to one or more control signals; and
a first power switch driver, configured to control a conductivity state of the first power switch based on the one or more control signals.

3. The GaN half bridge circuit of claim 2 , wherein the bootstrap capacitor is configured to supply the first power voltage to the first power switch driver.

4. The GaN half bridge circuit of claim 3 , further comprising:
a second power switch connected to the switch node and configured to selectively electrically connect the switch node to a second power terminal according to the one or more control signals; and
a second power switch driver, configured to control a conductivity state of the second power switch based on the one or more control signals.

5. The GaN half bridge circuit of claim 4 , wherein the bootstrap transistor drive circuit comprises:
a logic circuit;
a high voltage generation circuit configured to generate a high voltage; and
a driver circuit, comprising a drive high circuit and a drive low circuit,
wherein the logic circuit is configured to receive first and second signals and to generate a control signal for the drive high circuit and for the drive low circuit based on the first and second signals, wherein the driver circuit is configured to drive the bootstrap transistor with the high voltage or a low voltage in response to the control signal from the logic circuit, wherein the high voltage is greater than the low voltage, wherein the first signal causes the second power switch to be conductive, wherein the bootstrap transistor drive circuit is configured to cause the bootstrap transistor to become conductive while the second power switch is conductive, and wherein the bootstrap transistor drive circuit is configured to cause the bootstrap transistor to become nonconductive while the second power switch is conductive.

6. The GaN half bridge circuit of claim 4 , wherein the bootstrap transistor drive circuit is configured to drive the bootstrap transistor in response to first and second signals from the second power switch driver, and wherein the first signal is a delayed version of the second signal.

7. The GaN half bridge circuit of claim 1 , wherein the bootstrap power supply voltage generator does not include a parasitic diode in parallel with the drain and source of the bootstrap transistor.

8. The GaN half bridge circuit of claim 1 , wherein the bootstrap transistor drive circuit is configured to conditionally cause the bootstrap transistor to conduct current from a substantially fixed voltage power supply to the bootstrap capacitor while the voltage at a connection between the bootstrap capacitor and the bootstrap transistor is less than the voltage at the substantially fixed voltage power supply by causing the voltage at the of the bootstrap transistor to be greater than the voltage of the substantially fixed voltage power supply by an amount greater than a threshold voltage of the bootstrap transistor, and wherein the bootstrap transistor is configured to conditionally conduct current from the substantially fixed voltage power supply to the bootstrap capacitor while the voltage at the connection between the bootstrap capacitor and the bootstrap transistor is less than the voltage at the substantially fixed voltage power supply by an amount greater than the threshold voltage of the bootstrap transistor by causing the voltage at the gate of the bootstrap transistor to be substantially equal to the voltage of the substantially fixed voltage power supply.

9. A GaN bootstrap power supply voltage generator circuit configured to supply a first power voltage, the bootstrap power supply voltage generator comprising:
a switch node, wherein a voltage at the switch node changes between first and second switch node voltages;
a bootstrap transistor comprising a gate;
a bootstrap transistor drive circuit configured to control the voltage at the gate of the bootstrap transistor; and
a bootstrap capacitor connected to the switch node and to the bootstrap transistor, wherein the bootstrap capacitor is configured to supply the first power voltage while the voltage at the switch node is equal to the second switch node voltage, and wherein the bootstrap transistor is configured to electrically connect the bootstrap capacitor to a substantially fixed voltage power supply at a second power voltage while the voltage at the switch node is equal to the first switch node voltage,
wherein the bootstrap transistor drive circuit is configured to conditionally cause the bootstrap transistor to conduct current from the substantially fixed voltage power supply to the bootstrap capacitor while the voltage at a connection between the bootstrap capacitor and the bootstrap transistor is less than the voltage at the substantially fixed voltage power supply by causing the voltage at a gate terminal of the bootstrap transistor to be greater than the voltage of the substantially fixed voltage power supply by an amount greater than a threshold voltage of the bootstrap transistor, and wherein the bootstrap transistor drive circuit is configured to conditionally conduct current from the substantially fixed voltage power supply to the bootstrap capacitor while the voltage at the connection between the bootstrap capacitor and the bootstrap transistor is less than the voltage at the substantially fixed voltage power supply by an amount greater than the threshold voltage of the bootstrap transistor by causing the voltage at the gate of the bootstrap transistor to be substantially equal to the voltage of the substantially fixed voltage power supply.

10. The GaN bootstrap power supply voltage generator circuit of claim 9 , further comprising:
a first power switch connected to the switch node and configured to selectively electrically connect the switch node to a first power source according to one or more control signals; and
a first power switch driver, configured to control a conductivity state of the first power switch based on the one or more control signals.

11. The GaN bootstrap power supply voltage generator circuit of claim 10 , wherein the bootstrap capacitor is configured to supply the first power voltage to the first power sw

Assignees

• Navitas Semiconductor Inc

Inventors

• Sharma Santosh
• Kinzer Daniel Marvin

Classifications

• H03K2217/0081

  Power supply means, e.g. to the switch driver · CPC title

• H02M3/158

  including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load · CPC title

• H03K17/08122 Primary

  in field-effect transistor switches · CPC title

• H03K2217/0063

  High side switches, i.e. the higher potential [DC] or life wire [AC] being directly connected to the switch and not via the load · CPC title

• H03K2217/0072

  Low side switches, i.e. the lower potential [DC] or neutral wire [AC] being directly connected to the switch and not via the load · CPC title