The invention relates to a circuit assembly for protecting a unit to be operated from a supply network against overvoltage, comprising an input having a first and a second input connection, which are connected to the supply network, an output having a first and a second output connection, to which the unit to be protected can be connected, and a protection circuit, which is provided between the first and the second input connections in order to limit the voltage present at the first and the second input connections. According to the invention, the protection circuit has a power semiconductor, in particular an IGBT, wherein a series circuit consisting of a diac, i.e., a bidirectional electrode, and a Zener element is connected between the collector and the gate of the power semiconductor, wherein the sum of the Zener voltage and the diac voltage results in a clamping voltage for the power semiconductor, which lies above the voltage of the supply network and defines the protection level.

A switching device 1 includes a SiC semiconductor chip 11 which has a gate pad 14, a source pad 13 and a drain pad 12 and in which on-off control is performed between the source and the drain by applying a drive voltage between the gate and the source in a state where a potential difference is applied between the source and the drain, a sense source terminal 4 electrically connected to the source pad 13 for applying the drive voltage, and an external resistance (source wire 16) that is interposed in a current path between the sense source terminal 4 and the source pad 13, is separated from sense source terminal 4, and has a predetermined size.

A method for driving a topological semiconductor switch for a power electronics system, wherein the topological semiconductor switch is split into at least two groups of power semiconductors, wherein, when an active short circuit is identified, switchover from the power semiconductor which conducts the short circuit first to the other power semiconductor takes place.

The invention relates to a device for controlling a plurality of semiconductor circuit breakers by means of driver voltages for the synchronous operation of a plurality of loads in the high-voltage range, where the driver voltages can be provided by a transformer. According to the invention, the driver voltages for the semiconductor circuit breakers are tapped from a single secondary winding of the transformer, where electronic voltage level converter circuits are provided to obtain the driver voltages from the secondary winding of the transformer at the required magnitude.

A control device for controlling a power semiconductor component which includes at least two voltage-controlled power semiconductor devices which are electrically connected in parallel and which have each a control connection is disclosed. The control device includes a driver element which can be used to set electrical voltages at the control connections of the power semiconductor devices. The control device includes a measuring unit configured to capture electrical currents which flow through the power semiconductor devices. The driver element is configured to set a level and/or a temporal profile of the electrical voltages on the basis of the electrical currents.

Disclosed herein are switching or other active FET configurations that implement a main-auxiliary branch design. Such designs include a circuit assembly for performing a switching function that includes a branch including a main path in parallel with an auxiliary path. The circuit assembly also includes a first gate bias network connected to the main path. The circuit assembly also includes a second gate bias network connected to the auxiliary path, the second gate bias network configured to improve linearity of the switching function.

A switching circuit includes: a drive power supply; a first transistor and a second transistor; a drive signal source; and a drive circuit. Each of the first transistor and the second transistor includes: a drain electrode and a source electrode in which a main current flows when a corresponding one of the first transistor and the second transistor is ON; a first source terminal for passing the main current; and a second source terminal. Here, the first source terminal is connected to the source electrode at an impedance lower than an impedance of the second source terminal.

A method for controlling a plurality of series connected switch modules each including at least two parallel connected electronic switches, the method includes the step of, in response to failure of any electronic switch of one or more switch modules, turning on any non-faulty electronic switch of one or more faulty switch modules when the electronic switches of other non-faculty switch modules are controlled to be turned on.

A circuit for selecting between a primary power source and a back-up power source is provided in one embodiment. The circuit includes a first port configured to be coupled to a primary power source, a second port configured to be coupled to a back-up power source, a third port configured to be coupled to provide power to a load. The circuit also includes first and second power field effect transistors (FET) coupled between the second port and the third port, a third power FET coupled between the first port and the third port, and a dual ideal diode-OR controller coupled between the second and third power FETs to selectively turn on and off the second and third power FETs. The circuit further includes an opto-isolator coupled to a control input of the first power FET and a controller, coupled to the opto-isolator, that selectively turns on and off the opto-isolator.

A parallel driving device that drives parallel-connected semiconductor elements includes a control unit and a gate driving circuit. The control unit detects a temperature difference between the semiconductor elements on the basis of detected values by temperature sensors that detect temperatures of the individual semiconductor elements. The control unit generates a control signal for changing the timing at which to turn on a first semiconductor element specified from the semiconductor elements on the basis of the temperature difference. The gate driving circuit generates a first driving signal for driving the semiconductor elements, and generates a second driving signal that is the first driving signal delayed on the basis of the control signal, and applies the second driving signal to the first semiconductor element.