Slew Rate Control of High-Voltage SiC MOSFETs using Gate Resistance vs. Intermediate Voltage Level

High-voltage silicon carbide (SiC) power devices offer a variety of benefits for power electronic systems including high power density, reliability at high temperature, and low losses. However, fast switching results in high dv/dt and di/dt that interact with parasitics and generate electromagnetic interference (EMI) as well as voltage overshoot. The multi-level turn-off (MLTO) active gate driver is proposed as a solution to address the EMI issues by actively balancing the switching speed and power losses. This paper provides a comparison between the MLTO and the conventional turn-off (CTO) drivers and gives guidance for optimizing the design for the MLTO driver. The comparison is carried out through analyzing the switching model of SiC MOSFET under MLTO and CTO. Additionally, the experimental double pulse tests (DPTs) are performed to compare the performance of the two drivers.