Smart MOSFETs combine power and protection

SGS-THOMSON Microelectronics, the world's number one supplier of smart power devices, has expanded its OMNIFET family of intelligent power MOSFETs with the introduction of more than 15 new devices, including the VNH100N04 which can handle currents of 100A. OMNIFETs are rugged power MOSFETs with integrated user-transparent clamping and protection circuits, allowing OMNIFETs to be housed in standard three-pin packages and used as drop-in replacements for conventional power MOSFETs without the cost and reliability penalties incurred when the protection functions are implemented externally.

OMNIFETs are built with SGS-THOMSON's proprietary VIPower M0 process, a vertical smartpower technology that allows a rugged power stage to be combined with on-chip analog and digital circuitry. The vertical structure of the output stage enables very high current densities to be achieved and the devices feature unrivalled ruggedness and energy handling capability thanks to active clamping of the gate-drain voltage to below the avalanche threshold.

Although pin-compatible with conventional power MOSFETs - they can even be driven by analogue signals - OMNIFETs include an overvoltage clamp circuit, short-circuit protection, ESD protection, overtemperature protection and internal current limiting, eliminating the need for external protection circuitry and making the protection function cheaper, more compact, more reliable and easier to design. This means that designers can now include protection functions in applications where formerly it was not possible due to constraints of board space or cost (of both components and assembly).

OMNIFETs can also be driven with logic-level signals, with a slight increase in RDS(on), and some devices provide load status feedback through the input (gate) pin, allowing easy integration with logic and microprocessor controlled systems and real-time control of the load.

Supplied in a range of 3-pin and multi-pin standard packages - including TO-220, TO-218 and surface-mounting DPAK and PowerSO-10 (TM) packages, the OMNIFET family now includes devices with output voltage clamp ratings from 40V to 70V and current ratings (of internal current limit) from 5A to 100A, thereby addressing a wide range of applications where cost-effective and reliable power switching is required.

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