Renesas Electronics to Release Intelligent Power Device for IGBT Drive with Micro-Isolator for Reduced System Footprint and High Reliability

TOKYO, Japan, April 25, 2013 — Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723), a premier supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions, today announced the development of the R2A25110KSP intelligent power device of isolated IGBT driver for use in electric and hybrid vehicle power inverters. Incorporating newly developed Micro-Isolator isolation technology exclusive to Renesas Electronics, the R2A25110KSP makes it possible to build more highly reliable and compact systems for today’s demanding automotive applications.

Inverters that drive the electric motors in electric and hybrid vehicles comprise a power module employing motor drive elements such as IGBTs and a control circuit block with electrical isolation between the low-voltage drive electronics and the high-voltage power electronics. The market growth of power inverters has driven power modules to become even more compact to reduce size, weight and overall cost of the system. Demand is growing for solutions that integrate the isolation elements and IGBT driver circuits to enable an even greater reduction in power module size to meet the ever-increasing push for lower cost and higher performance.

Renesas Electronics has developed the R2A25110KSP in response to this market demand.

Key features of the new R2A25110KSP

(1) Single-package solution incorporating isolation technology and high capable IGBT driver for smaller printed circuit board (PCB) footprint

The R2A25110KSP has a built-in isolation feature called “Micro-Isolator,” an isolated signal transmission technology exclusive to Renesas that uses a coreless transformer configuration. Designed for automotive applications with severe ambient temperature conditions, this device has a rated channel temperature of 150°C (max.). The R2A25110KSP delivers fast switching capacity with low dispersion (meaning that the range of characteristic values is narrow), for improved efficiency in motor drive applications. In addition, capability of IGBT drive is two to four times better than that of comparable products (impedance in on state: 1.0 Ω max.), allowing direct IGBT drive without external transistors. This reduction in external components makes it possible to decrease the PCB footprint area and use a more compact inverter control board design.

(2) Complete over-current and over-temperature protection, even when driving parallel IGBTs, for enhanced superior system reliability

IGBT devices are used in parallel as drive elements in inverter systems. In many HEV/EV applications, two IGBT devices are connected in parallel to drive a large capacity motor. Therefore, the inverter system should detect both the IGBT abnormal conditions such as over-current and/or over-temperature and avoid them. Conventional isolated IGBT drivers, however, have only one over-current protection and/or one over-temperature protection; this requires larger circuit board area.

The R2A25110KSP integrates both methods, enabling protection for both IGBTs without increasing circuit area.

(3) IGBT chip temperature monitor for enhanced system reliability

The IGBT chip temperature monitor circuit monitors the temperature of both IGBTs continuously and also feeds back the higher one to the MCU via Micro-Isolator. The temperature can be calculated from the duty ratio of the pulse.

Other functions that are integrated include active Miller clamp and soft turn-off. The active Miller clamp prevents false turn-on when an IGBT is in off state, and the soft turn-off function turns off the IGBT gradually when an abnormal state such as over-current occurs. This IGBT turn-off function can avoid an over-voltage spike across the IGBT caused by lead and wire inductances. These features result in a higher performance-to-cost ratio in terms of smaller system footprint, better performance and improved system reliability.

Renesas is working to strengthen its product lineup in the field of three-phase motors for automotive applications. The company is expanding its active sales efforts for total solutions combining components such as MCUs and power devices.

Renesas is also moving forward with the planning and development of additional “micro-isolated” future products that meet the isolation requirements of automotive systems while additionally integrating other functionality.

Pricing and Availability

The first samples of the R2A25110KSP in 38-pin SSOP package will start at the end of April 2013, priced at US$5 per unit. Mass production is scheduled to start in the first half of 2015 at a level of 1 million units per month.

Sample shipments of the R2A25112KSP intelligent power device for isolated IGBT driver in a 20-pin SSOP package are scheduled to start in December of this year.

Please refer to the separate sheet for the specifications of the R2A25110KSP.

(Remarks)
All product names and service names that appear in this press release are all trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

About Renesas Electronics Corporation

Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723) delivers trusted embedded design innovation with complete semiconductor solutions that enable billions of connected, intelligent devices to enhance the way people work and live. A global leader in microcontrollers, analog, power and SoC products, Renesas provides comprehensive solutions for a broad range of automotive, industrial, infrastructure, and IoT applications that help shape a limitless future. Learn more at renesas.com. Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

The content in the press release, including, but not limited to, product prices and specifications, is based on the information as of the date indicated on the document, but may be subject to change without prior notice.