Gate Drivers and NexFET Power Blocks deliver 700 W of power

Designers can double the power density in space-constrained motor drives.

Texas Instruments (TI) (NASDAQ:TXN) today introduced two new device families that help reduce size and weight in motor drive applications. When used together, DRV832x brushless DC (BLDC) gate drivers and CSD88584/99 NexFET™ Power Blocks require as little as 511 mm², half the board space of competing solutions.

The DRV832x BLDC gate drivers feature a smart gate-drive architecture that eliminates up to 24 components traditionally used to set the gate drive current while enabling designers to easily adjust field-effect transistor (FET) switching to optimize power loss and electromagnetic compliance. The CSD88584Q5DC and CSD88599Q5DC power blocks leverage two FETs in a unique stacked-die configuration, which doubles power density and minimizes the FET resistance and parasitic inductances typically found in side-by-side FET configurations.

Benefits of using a CSD88584/99 and DRV832x device together

• Maximum power density: The combined solution delivers 700 W of motor power without a heat sink, providing 50 percent higher current than conventional solutions without increasing the footprint.
• High peak current: As demonstrated by the 18-volt BLDC reference design, the smart gate driver and power block are capable of driving a peak current of up to 160 A for more than 1 second.
• Optimal system protection: The combination enables shorter trace lengths and actively prevents unintended FET turn-on, while also providing undervoltage, overcurrent and thermal protection.
• Superior thermal performance: The CSD88584Q5DC and CSD88599Q5DC power blocks come in TI's DualCool™ thermally enhanced package, which enables designers to apply a heat sink to the top of the device to decrease thermal impedance and increase the amount of power dissipated to maintain safe operating temperatures for the board and end application.
• Clean switching: The power blocks' switch-node clip helps eliminate parasitic inductance between high- and low-side FETs. Additionally, the DRV832x gate driver's passive component integration minimizes board traces.

Tools and support to jump-start design

In addition to the 18-volt BLDC motor reference design, engineers can search for other motor reference designs that use the power blocks and gate drivers to help solve their system design challenges. The three-phase smart gate-driver evaluation module (EVM) allows designers to drive a 15-A, three-phase BLDC motor using the DRV8323R gate driver, CSD88599Q5DC power block and MSP430F5529 microcontroller LaunchPad™ development kit. The EVM is available from the TI store for US$99.00.

Package, availability and pricing

The new DRV832x BLDC smart gate drivers offer peripheral and interface options for engineers to select the best device for their design: with or without an integrated buck regulator or three integrated current-shunt amplifiers. Each device option is available in a hardware or serial interface and comes in quad flat no-lead (QFN) packaging. The CSD88584/99 power blocks come in DualCool small outline no-lead (SON) packaging, with 40- or 60-V breakdown voltage (BVDSS) choices. All devices are available now, priced and packaged as listed in the table below.

Product          Price U.S. dollars for 1,000-unit quantities                  Package size                           Key features

DRV8320                           $1.41                                                  5-mm-by-5-mm                          Smart gate drive

DRV8320R                         $2.01                                                  6-mm-by-6-mm                     Integrated buck regulator          

DRV8323                            $1.60                                                 6-mm-by-6-mm               Integrated current-shunt amplifiers

DRV8323R                         $2.19                                                  7-mm-by-7-mm            Integrated buck regulator and current-shunt

                                                                                                                                                   amplifiers

CSD88584Q5DC                 $2.24                                                 5-mm-by-6-mm           40-V BVDSS, 0.68-mΩ typical on-resistance

CSD88599Q5DC                 $2.50                                                 5-mm-by-6-mm           60-V BVDSS, 1.7-mΩ typical on-resistance