Field Programmable Gate Array Applications

From technical aspect, any computable problem can be solved using an FPGA. It is trivially cleared by the reality that a soft microprocessor can be implemented by FPGA. Their benefit keeps in that they are sometimes notably quicker for a number of applications because of their parallel characteristic and optimality in terms of the number of gates utilized for a particular method.

Specified uses of FPGAs comprise ASIC prototyping, digital signal processing, computer hardware emulation, software-defined radio, medical imaging, bioinformatics, computer vision, speech identification, cryptography, metal detection, radio astronomy and an increasing extent of other areas.

In the beginning, FPGAs started as challengers to CPLDs and contended in an analogous space, that of glue logic for PCBs. As their size, capacity, and speed enhanced, they started to takeover bigger and bigger functions to the point where few are now marketed as complete systems on chips (SoC). Especially with the launch of dedicated multipliers into FPGA architectures in the late 1990s, applications which had conventionally been the only reserve of DSPs started to incorporate FPGAs instead.

One more tendency on the usage of FPGAs is hardware acceleration, where one can use the FPGA to accelerate particular parts of an algorithm and share part of the computation between the FPGA and a general processor.

IC Packages based on Mounting Style

The way how the IC packages mount to a circuit board is one of the primary distinguishable package type characteristics. Mainly there are two mounting types: through-hole (PTH) or surface-mount (SMD or SMT). All packages fall into one of these two mounting types. Usually through-hole packages are bigger in size and much simpler to work with. They are designed especially to be pierced through one side of a board and dredged to the other side.

Surface-mount packages can be small to minuscule in size. They are all intended to be installed on one side of a circuit board and be dredged to the surface. Most of the times, the pins of a SMD package thrust out the side. These also steep to the chip, or are sometimes set out in a matrix on the bottom of the chip. ICs with surface mount packages are not very suitable to assemble with hands. Generally special tools are needed to assist in the process.

The most common through-hole package we meet is DIP, abbreviation for dual in-line package. These small chips have two side-by-side rows of pins prolonging perpendicularly out of a black, rectangular, plastic casing. There is a large diversity of surface-mount package types these days.

Integrated Circuit and Transistor Package Types

Like transistors and computer chips, integrated circuits (ICs) are encased (hermetically sealed) by packages to keep safe the inner chip’s circuitry from tangible impairment and from any kind of defilement like moisture and dust.

Other than these, the IC package also aids with redistributing the Input & output of the chips circuitry to a user-friendly component size for use by its end user, along with allowing a structure more congenial to standardization, allowing a fervent heat course away from the chip, providing safeguard from the likelihood of errors because of alpha particles and other various radiations, and providing a composition that more conveniently allows electrical experiment and burn-in by the chip's maker.

The IC package may also be effective to connect more than one IC both directly to one another utilizing standard interconnection technologies like wire bonding, and indirectly utilizing interconnection pathways available on the package such as those used in hybrid IC packages and multi-chip modules (MCMs).

The packages also make it simpler to install the ICs in different types of equipment, as every package comprises leads which may be either plugged into corresponding sockets or plugged into mounting frames. Various types of materials are used to manufacture IC packages.

IC Packages

IC (Integrated Circuit) means an assemblage of electronic components such as resistors, transistors, capacitors, etc. All these are crammed into a very small chip and attached with each other to acquire a common objective.

The IC package is what encases the die of integrated circuit and extends it out into a device we can more conveniently attach to. Every external connection on the die is linked via a very small piece of gold wire to a pad or pin on the packaging. The silver, extruding terminals on an IC are the pins. These pins carry out the work to link to different components of a circuit. These are of highest significance to us whereas they are what will go on to connect to the remaining elements and wires in a circuit.

Every IC is polarized and each is pin is distinctive in case of both position and operation. For this reason, it is necessary for the package to have some way to impart which pin is which. For most ICs, a dot or a notch (in some cases, both or sometimes anyone of them) designates the first pin. If you can recognize the first pin, the rest of the pin numbers increase according to the sequence as you move counter-clockwise around the chip.

Definition of IC Package Types

There are numerous varieties of IC packages, each of which has distinctive measures, mounting styles, and/or pin- enumerations. These packages are batched into three major categories: Dual In-line Packages, Grid Arrays and Chip Carriers. Each package, regardless of the category has a body style that scales with pin count. The number of pins determines the physical dimension of the package, the name of the package does not.

1.  Dual In-line Packages [DIP], or Dual In-Line [DIL] packages are packages with two rows of leads on two sides of the package. DIP ICs may be through-hole [PDIP or CERDIP] or SMT package [SOJ or SOIC].

2.  Quad Flat Packs or Chip Carriers are square packages [or nearly square], with leads on all four sides
    Chip Carriers, as in PLCCs and other variants are strictly Surface Mount Technology (SMT).

3.  Grid Arrays are those type packages that have their pins arranged in a grid.
    The pin grid may consist of Leads, pads, or solder balls on an area array.
    The through hole variant is called a PGA, while the SMT variant might be called LGA or BGA.

Integrated Circuit Packages

In terms of power consumption, Integrated circuits range from mW (or microwatts) to hundreds of Watts with the number of electrical connections to the next level packaging ranging from eight to more than 1,000. With this wide extent of fascinating packaging to take into account, it is not surprising that any easy generalizations will always find out anomalies.

For allowing convenient handling and assembly onto printed circuit boards and for keeping safe the devices from any possible damage, integrated circuits are implanted to protective packages. There are a huge number of various types of packages are available. Some of these types have ascertained measurements and endurances which are registered with trade industry associations like Pro Electron and JEDEC. Just one or two manufacturers might make the other types which are proprietary designations. Prior to testing and shipping devices to the customers, integrated circuit packaging is the final assembly method.

Sometimes especially processed integrated circuit dies are made for straight connections to a substrate in the absence of an in-between header or carrier. The IC is attached to a substrate by solder bumps in flip chip systems. In beam-lead technology, the metal coated pads are solidified and expanded for allowing external connections to the circuit.

Integrated Circuit Design

IC design or Integrated Circuit design is a sub-category of electronic engineering, encircling the specific logic and circuit design techniques needed to design integrated circuits, or ICs. ICs comprise small-scale electronic components such as resistors, transistors, capacitors, etc. fabricated into an electrical grid on a monolithic semiconductor.

Digital and analog IC designs are the two wide categories of IC design. Components like microprocessors, FPGAs, different memories (such as: RAM, ROM, and flash) and digital ASICs are produced by digital IC design. Digital design’s main focusing points are logical rightness, ensuring maximum circuit density, and placing circuits to ensure efficient routing of clock and timing signals. Power IC design and RF IC design are the fields in which Analog IC design has specialism. Analog IC design is used in the design of phase locked loops, op-amps, oscillators, linear regulators and active filters. Analog design bothers about the physics of the semiconductor devices like resistance, gain, power dissipation and matching. Integrity of analog signal amplification and filtering is generally critical and for this reason, analog integrated circuits use comparatively bigger area active devices than digital IC designs and commonly not so much dense in circuitry.

History of Field-Programmable Gate Array

PROM and PLD (Programmable Logic Devices) are the two fields which FPGA industry germinated from. Both of these had the course of action of being programmed in groups in a factory of in the field (in case of the field programmable). Nevertheless, programmable logic was permanently connected within logic gates.

At the last of 1980s, Steve Casselman proposed for an experiment to build a computer which would apply six lacs reprogrammable gates. This experiment was funded by the Naval Surface Warfare Center. A patent concerned to the system was issued in 1992 after a successful test by Casselman.

Patents were awarded to David W. Page and LuVerne R. Peterson in 1985 in which many of the industry's foundational concepts and technologies for programmable logic arrays, gates, and logic blocks were established.

In 1983, Altera was established and brought the industry’s maiden reprogrammable logic device in 1984 – the EP300–which had a extra feature of quartz window in the package which allowed users to shine an ultra-violet lamp on the die to erase the EPROM cells that held the device configuration.

The XC2064- the first commercially viable field-programmable gate array invented in 1985 by Xilinx co-founders Ross Freeman and Bernard Vonderschmitt.

Self-healing Electronics is Coming With Extended Life and for Reducing Waste

A total chip or even the entire device can collapse, if just one very small circuit within an integrated chip stops working or fails. Wouldn’t it be fantastic, if it could repair itself, and repair itself so quickly that the user never realized there was a fault?

A self-healing system has been developed by a team of engineers from University of Illinois. It is capable of reinstating electrical conductivity to a faulty circuit in less time than it takes to flicker. Aerospace engineering professor Scott White and materials science and engineering professor Nancy Sottos are the leaders of this team of researchers. They disclosed their results in the journal Advanced Materials.

"It simplifies the system," said chemistry professor Jeffrey Moore, a co-writer of the paper. "Rather than having to build in redundancies or to build in a sensory diagnostics system, this material is designed to take care of the problem itself."

Now-a-days manufacturers are putting as much density onto a chip as possible because electronic devices are evolving to execute more advanced tasks. Because of this kind of density, reliability is compromised. For example, failure stemming from unstable temperature cycles as the device operates or exhausts. The entire device can be shut down because of a failure at any point.

"In general there's not much avenue for manual repair," Sottos said. "Sometimes you just can't get to the inside. In a multilayer integrated circuit, there's no opening it up. Normally you just replace the whole chip. It's true for a battery too. You can't pull a battery apart and try to find the source of the failure."

Except some significant applications – like instruments or vehicles for space or military functions where electrical failures cannot be replaced or repaired, most other consumer devices are intended to be replaced with some frequency, adding to electronic waste issues.

In the past, a system for self-healing polymer materials was developed by the Illinois team and they opted to adapt their technique for conductive systems. They disseminated very small microcapsules which are tiny as 10 microns in diameter, on top of a gold line acting as a circuit. When a cleft inseminates, the microcapsules break open and release the liquid metal contained inside. To reinstate electrical flow, the liquid metal fills up the gap in the circuit.

"What's really cool about this paper is it's the first example of taking the microcapsule-based healing approach and applying it to a new function," White said. "Everything prior to this has been on structural repair. This is on conductivity restoration. It shows the concept translates to other things as well."

Because of the immediate filling of the crack by the liquid metal, the current flow is interrupted for mere microseconds by a failure. It is attested by the researchers that 90% of their samples healed to 99 percent of initial conductivity, even with a small amount of microcapsules.

Being localized and autonomous are the other advantages of the self-repairing system. Only those microcapsules are opened, which are intercepted by crack, so repair only takes place at the point of damage. In addition to that, no human interference or diagnostics is needed, which is a blessing for those applications where accessing a cleft for repair is not possible, such as a battery, or searching for the source of a failure is very difficult, such as an air- or spacecraft.

Home Diagnostic Tests Could Be Enabled By Microfluidic Integrated Circuit

Microfluidic integrated circuits have been originated by the researchers of University of Michigan as a technique to make simple lab-on-a-chip devices that could offer faster, low-cost and more portable medical tests.

These microfluidic circuits control the flowing of fluid through their devices without directions from outside systems. This process is similar to the computer chips where electronic circuits intelligently route the flow of electricity without external controls

A paper on the technology is recently disclosed online in Nature Physics.

A microfluidic device, or lab-on-a-chip, combines more than one laboratory operations onto one chip only centimeters in size. The devices make allowance for the researchers to experiment with very small sample sizes, and also to perform multiple experiments on the same material at the same time. They can be cut out to simulate the human body more nearly than the Petri dish does. They could lead to on-the-spot home tests for illnesses, food contaminants and toxic gases are major among other advances.

"In most microfluidic devices today, there are essentially little fingers or pressure forces that open and close each individual valve to route fluid through the device during experiments. That is, there is an extra layer of control machinery that is required to manipulate the current in the fluidic circuit," said Shu Takayama, the principal investigator on the project. Takayama is an associate professor in the U-M Department of Biomedical Engineering.

That's same to how electronic circuits were manipulated a century before. Then, with the improvement of the integrated circuit, the "thinking" became embedded in the chip itself -- a technical step forward that enabled personal computers, Takayama said.

"We have literally made a microfluidic integrated circuit," said Bobak Mosadegh, a doctoral student in Takayama's lab who is first writer of the paper.

The outer controls that power today's microfluidic devices may be inconvenient. Every valve on a chip (and there could be dozens of them) needs its individual electromechanical push from an off-chip actuator or pump. This has made it hard to shrink microfluidic systems to palm- or fingertip-sized diagnostic devices.

The Takayama lab's innovation is a step in this direction. His research group has devised a strategy to produce the fluidic counterparts of key electrical components including transistors, diodes, resistors and capacitors, and to efficiently network these components to automatically regulate fluid flow within the device.

Because of the use of conventional techniques in the making of these components, they are suitable for all other microfluidic components such as mixers, filters and cell culture chambers.

"We've made a versatile control system," Mosadegh said. "We envision that this technology will become a platform for researchers and companies in the microfluidics field to develop sophisticated self-controlled microfluidic devices that automatically process biofluids such as blood and pharmaceuticals for diagnostics or other applications.

"Just as the integrated circuit brought the digital information processing power of computers to the people, we envision our microfluidic analog will be able to do the same for cellular and biochemical information."

The university is pursuing patent protection for the intellectual property, and is seeking commercialization partners to help bring the technology to market.

Wafer-Scale Graphene Integrated Circuit

It is alleged by the scientists of IBM research that they have reached a milestone in forming a building block for the subsequent wireless devices. In a paper disclosed in the journal Science, IBM researchist made public the maiden integrated circuit built from wafer-size graphene, and revealed a broadband frequency mixer functioning at frequencies up to 10 gigahertz (10 billion cycles per second).

Aimed at wireless communications, this analog integrated circuit based on graphene would make better recent wireless devices and beckons to the possibility for a new set of applications. Among the conventional frequencies of present, transceiver and cell phone signals could be advanced, possibly allowing phones to function where they can't today while, at much higher frequencies, military and medical personnel could see covert weapons or operate medical imaging without the similar radiation riskiness of X-rays.

Graphene is the narrowest electronic material which is composed of a single layer of carbon atoms packed in a honeycomb formation, possesses exceptional electrical, mechanical, optical and thermal characteristics that could make it not so much costly and use less power in mobile electronics like smart phones.

In spite of noteworthy scientific advancement in the comprehension of this unprecedented material and the demonstration of high-performance graphene-based devices, the difficulty of combining graphene transistors with other components on an individual chip had not been cognized up to now, majorly because of the deficient adherence of graphene with metals and oxides and the need of dependable fabrication schemes to generate formative circuits and devices.

This latest integrated circuit is composed of a graphene transistor and a set of two inductors compactly built-in on a silicon carbide (SiC) wafer, surpasses these design obstacles by advancing wafer-scale fabrication methods that keep up the standard of graphene and, at the same time, make allowance for its consolidation to other elements in an intricate circuitry.

In this presentation, thermal annealing of SiC wafers synthesized graphene to comprise stable graphene layers on the surface of SiC. Four layers of metal and two layers of oxide are needed by the fabrication of graphene circuits to make top-gated graphene transistor, interconnects and on-chip inductors.

The circuit functions as a broadband frequency mixer, which generates output signals with varied frequencies (aggregate and difference) of the input signals. Mixers are considered as basic elements of various electronic communication systems. This graphene integrated circuit has been presented as capable of frequency mixing up to 10 GHz and fantastic thermal stability up to 125°C.

The fabrication scheme demonstrated can also be used in other types of graphene materials, including chemical vapor deposited (CVD) graphene films synthesized on metal films, and are also suitable for optical lithography for minimized cost and throughput. In the past, the team has demonstrated stand-alone graphene transistors with a cut-off frequency as high as 100 GHz and 155 GHz for epitaxial and CVD graphene, for a gate length of 240 and 40 nm, respectively.

http://uscomponent.com/, the official website of Young & New Century LLC has been retailing IGBT power transistor modules since 2001. We just sell new and original electronic parts and we provide 90 days warranty with each part.

FPGA Design and Programming

A schematic design or a hardware description language (HDL) is provided by the user to define the behavior of the FPGA. The HDL form should be used to work with huge structures because it is feasible to exactly specify them by numbers rather than having to draw every piece manually. On the other hand, simpler visualization of a design is the main advantage of schematic entry.

Then, utilizing an electronic design automation tool, a technology-mapped netlist is created. The netlist can then be fitted to the real FPGA architecture using a method called place-and-route, usually executed by the FPGA Company’s proprietary place-and-route software. The user will validate the map, place and route results via timing analysis, simulation, and other verification methodologies. Once the design and validation process is done, the binary file generated (also using the FPGA company's proprietary software) is used to (re)configure the FPGA. This file is shifted to the FPGA/CPLD via a serial interface (JTAG) or to an external memory device.

VHDL and Verilog are the most common HDLs, though in order to minimize the complexity of designing in HDLs, which are in comparison to the equiponderant to the assembly languages, there are steps to increase the abstractiveness level through the introduction of substitute languages. For targeting and programming FPGA hardware, an FPGA add-in module is available to National Instruments' LabVIEW graphical programming language (sometimes referred to as "G").

Applications of FPGA

From technical aspect, any computable problem can be solved using an FPGA or Field Programmable Gate Array Applications. It is trivially cleared by the reality that a soft microprocessor can be implemented by FPGA. Their benefit keeps in that they are sometimes notably quicker for a number of applications because of their parallel characteristic and optimality in terms of the number of gates utilized for a particular method.

Specified uses of FPGAs comprise ASIC prototyping, digital signal processing, computer hardware emulation, software-defined radio, medical imaging, bioinformatics, computer vision, speech identification, cryptography, metal detection, radio astronomy and an increasing extent of other areas.

In the beginning, FPGAs started as challengers to CPLDs and contended in an analogous space, that of glue logic for PCBs. As their size, capacity, and speed enhanced, they started to takeover bigger and bigger functions to the point where few are now marketed as complete systems on chips (SoC). Especially with the launch of dedicated multipliers into FPGA architectures in the late 1990s, applications which had conventionally been the only reserve of DSPs started to incorporate FPGAs instead.

One more tendency on the usage of FPGAs is hardware acceleration, where one can use the FPGA to accelerate particular parts of an algorithm and share part of the computation between the FPGA and a general processor.

Definition of FPGA

A genre of integrated circuit which is intended to be configured by a designer or the customer is called FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array). It is entitled as “field-programmable” because FPGAs are configured after manufacturing. Usually a Hardware Description Language (HDL) is used to specify FPGA configuration which is analogous to that utilized in an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). (Circuit diagrams were used in the past to specify the configuration, as they were for ASICs, but this is progressively uncommon.)

FPGAs comprise a layout of programmable logic blocks and a hierarchy of reconfigurable interconnects that allow the blocks to be "wired together", like different logic gates that can be inter-wired in various configurations. It is possible to configure logic blocks to execute complex combinational functions, or just uncomplicated logic gates like “AND” and “XOR”. In most FPGAs, logic blocks also comprehend memory elements, which can be simple flip-flops or more completed blocks of memory.

For implementing complex digital computations, contemporaneous field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) have huge resources of logic gates and RAM blocks. It turns into a challenge to confirm accurate timing of valid data within setup time and hold time because FPGA designs employ very fast I/Os and bidirectional data buses.

Usage of IGBT in CNC Machines

The simple definition of plasma cutting is cutting steel and other metals of different thicknesses (or sometimes other materials) using a plasma torch. When doing this, an inactive gas (in some cases, compressed air) is turned into plasma by blowing it at extreme speed out of a nozzle; at the same time an electrical arc is forged through that gas from the nozzle to the metal being cut. The plasma is sufficiently heated to melt the metal in the process of cutting.

The Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) versus the Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor (MOSFET) has been a controversial subject ever since the IGBT technology came into being in the 1980's. CNC plasma cutting machines were initially using MOSFETs as transistor. But the usage of IGBTs (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor) is now grown notably in this field. IGBTs are deployed in plasma cutting technology to provide more commercial plasma cutting equipment. With assimilated MOSFETs, if one of the transistors actuates out of time, it can cause collapse of one quarter of the inverter. A later discovery, IGBTs, is not as subject to this failure mode. IGBT technology for welding applications has certainly proved to more effectively handle the rigorous demands the high duty cycle welders as it offers higher voltage capacities and heat tolerances than the earlier MOSFET.

CNC machines with IGBTs are swift. Preheating is not needed, so the torch can start cutting without delay. With speeds up to 500 IPM, it can contend with laser cutters based on the type of part. These cutters are multipurpose, competent for piercing, complicated cutting and beveling in one process. These can effectively cut any electrically conductive metal up to 6" thick. Accurate cutting is one of the characteristics of CNC plasma cutters. These machines are paired with highly advanced software and high precision components; the want for costly secondary operations is dispelled. The torch head is computer controlled and can do clean, sharp cuts. Solid integration between the cutting torch and software results in excellent manufacture, high cut quality, fewer dross and high superiority edges. An IGBT based CNC engine may appear complicated, the CNC (computer numerically controlled) software takes most of the guess work out of cutting. With an ultra modern package, even a first time worker is doughty of creating amazing outcome. The machines are safe too, almost all systems offer a downdraft or exhaust system to pull out the smoke away from the operator.

The IGBT plasma cutters are better suited for professional environments. These take up a different method to start the pilot arc. Many IGBT plasma metal cutters often deploy high frequency starting technology, high voltage circuit just for the starting process while others use Pilot Arc starting technology, where the torch enables a constant arc without touching the workpiece.

CNC plasma cutting sector has been improved notably in recent years. In the past, CNC machine’s cutting tables were horizontal, but nowadays vertical CNC plasma cutting machines are available providing enhanced flexibility, swift operation and utmost safety.

IGBT and it’s Use in X-Ray Machines

The role of X-ray machines is indispensable in the field of medical diagnostics. Electromagnetic radiations with a wavelength of 0.1 to 100 angstroms are called.X-rays. Hard X-rays with wavelengths of 0.1 to 1 angstroms have penetration abilities that make them competent for producing images of the inner parts of human bodies. Today X-rays are usually generated by using the X-ray tube developed by William Coolidge, although X-rays were first discovered by Wilhelm Roentgen in 1895. In the Coolidge tube, a high voltage is used to accelerate electrons emitted from a filament to gain high energy. The electron beam is guided to a target, usually tungsten, to excite the X-rays. The X-ray machine power supply must operate at very high voltages (20-150 kV) while supplying sufficient current to generate the X-ray beam needed to produce images.

The input AC voltage is corrected and fed to a high-frequency PWM resonant inverter that is based upon IGBTs. This allows using a high-frequency transformer to create the very high voltages needed for the X-ray tube operation while keeping the size and weight small. The output of the high-frequency transformer is rectified to generate the desired DC voltage for the X-ray tube. The dynamic response of the X-ray power supply must be fast and its DC output voltage must reach steady-state in a short time to prevent noise and defects in the X-ray image. These requirements can be met by using an IGBT based PWM resonant inverter.

A 48kW resonated converter involves four power modules, per module contains two paralleled IGBTs and antiparallel diodes. They are arranged in a half-bridge or push-pull configuration depending on the input, at 400Vac or 200Vac. At highest power, peak load current is 550A at 50 kHz, or 275A per module for 48kW out. The generator is zero-voltage switched to create a continuous series resonant output current that's transformer-isolated —stepped up and rectified to the desired output level. The output voltage is regulated by a DSP-based frequency-modulated controller, with dual loop feedback on resonant current and load kV.

For an extent of output power, the system operates from 48 kHz up to 68 kHz with a resonant LC shunt across the load transformer. With fundamental series resonance at 48 kHz, the shunt resonates at 68 kHz. At low frequencies, the generator operates close to resonance, with high power throughput. As frequency rises, the impedance increases —the load being shorted by the resonant shunt. The power is zero at 68 kHz.

Least size is significant for ultra-modern X-ray equipments. In this variant of the converter, the four ZVS modules with their compactly packed IGBT and FRED chips need just ¼ of the surface area previously used. Consolidation and separation of the drivers, and ZVS logic circuitry farther curtail the footprint. Mechanical integrity & noise immunity are improved because control signals have less distance to travel.

Founded in 2001, at Houston in Texas, Young & New Century LLC has been supplying IGBT power transistor modules. We have a team for Quality Control like no other. This means that we know properly about what to do in order to make sure that the quality of all the parts we’re selling is high. We sell new and original electronic parts only with a warranty period of 30 days. Our stock is carefully handled and held to the utmost standards, and housed in a regulable environment warehousing facility. Our company is specialist in selling electronic components of different manufacturers for a complete extent of your industrial applications. Please take a look at our website http://uscomponent.com. You can send us a Request For Quote (RFQ) anytime via this website for the part you need. You can send your RFQ via an email also to Sales@uscomponent.com.

Story of Integrated Circuits

Integrated circuits (ICs) are considered as a foundation of present-day electronics. They are the cornerstones of most circuits. These are the omnipresent tiny black “chips” which come into view on just about every circuit board. If you are not some kind of insane, analog electronics wizard, perhaps you will have at least one IC in each electronics project you set up, so it is vital to understand them, inside and out.

A collection of electronic components like capacitors, resistors, transistors- all crammed into a small chip, and linked with each other to attain a common goal is called an IC. These come in various sorts and varieties: single-circuit logic gates, voltage regulators, microcontrollers, op amps, microprocessors, 555 timers, motor controllers, FPGAs… the list does not end.

We can visualize the tiny black chips by thinking about integrated circuits. But what does the black box contain? The actual “substance” to an integrated circuit is a complicated layer of semiconductor wafers, copper, and other materials, which interlinks to create resistors, transistors and various components in a circuit. The trimmed and well-formed amalgamation of these wafers is known as die.

The integrated chip itself is small and because of this the wafers of semiconductor and layers of copper it consists of are extremely thin. The interconnections between the layers are immensely complex. A die of an integrated chip is the circuit in its tiniest allowable form, too tiny to solder or connect to. The die is packaged, which makes our job of connecting to the IC effortless. The IC package turns the delicate, tiny die, into the black chip we’re all familiar with. The small and delicate die is turned into the black chip (which is familiar to all) by the IC package.

The integrated circuit die is encapsulated by the package and this package splays the die out into a device we can more conveniently connect to. Every outward connection on the die is linked via a small piece of gold wire to a pad or pin on the package. Pins are the silver, releasing terminals on an IC, which go on to attach to other parts of a circuit. Pins are what will go on to connect to the rest of the components and wires in a circuit. For this reason, these are most important to us.

There are numerous varieties of packages. Each of them has distinctive dimensions, mounting-types, and/or pin-counts. Majority of them are DIP, QDIP, SQP, PDIP, SOP, QFP, PLCC, SW, SQL, DPAK, SIP, SOS, TSOP, FDIP, TO3, TO2205, SOT23, SOT223, PENTAWATT and many more.

Each pin of an IC is unique in the cases of both location and function and all ICS are polarized. This means the package has to have some way to convey which pin is which. Maximum ICs use either a dot or a notch to specify which pin is the first pin. (Sometimes both, sometimes one or the other).

Once you know where the first pin is, the remaining pin numbers increase sequentially as you move counter-clockwise around the chip.

Usage of IGBT in Electric and Hybrid Vehicles

The rapidly-growing and diversified automotive industry is the largest in the world because of an extensive range in customer preferences for comfort, design and technology. At present, for commuting, transportation of merchandise, recreation and shopping purposes, gasoline powered cars are still preferred in our society. But we all know it well that gasoline powered vehicles provoke acute environmental pollution during the time of consuming declining fossil fuel provision. Expansion of hybrid-electric and electric vehicles is a resolution to this problem. The worldwide goals to reduce fuel depletion & emissions, with pioneering attempts in developing electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), bring significant technological challenges.

The IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor) has a vital influence on the transportation sector in all over the world. It allowed the introduction of dependable & cost effective electronic ignitions systems that have enhanced gasoline fuel efficacy by at least 10 percent. They have also been major elements in the improvement of mass transit systems and the deployment of electric and hybrid electric vehicles.

IGBT is playing the prime role in the new era of hybrid and electric vehicles. All hybrid-electric and electric cars that have been introduced into the market so far have relied upon IGBT-based motor drives. In new powertrain generations such as EVs and HEVs, IGBTs play the key role in order to drive the electric motor or store the energy. IGBTs run at very high frequencies and under high power which makes them vulnerable to thermal problems. Thermal characterization helps to optimize the IGBTs layout, structure and mounting to optimize its performance.

Mass transit systems within cities must depend on buses, trams, and underground trains. To lessen urban pollution, gasoline powered buses are being replaced with electric buses in many cities. All of these below requirements were met by using the IGBT-based motor drive in control system for the electric transit bus: (a) wide range of speed including high operating speed; (b) large startup torque for good acceleration; (c) high efficiency; and (d) regenerative braking to increase utilization of batteries. In Europe and Japan, electric tram transit systems have been modernized by using IGBT-based motor drives. According to AEG-Westinghouse Transport Systeme, Germany, the low floor concept is becoming a standard customer prerequisite. This has been enabled by today’s IGBT modules.

After all we can say, the availability of IGBTs has been diametrical to the advancement of the hybrid vehicles and to the expansion of the charging substructure for the electric vehicles. IGBTs will carry on playing a significant part in the availableness of expense reducing technology for the whole hybrid and electric vehicle business.

Being established in Houston, TX, Young & New Century LLC has been selling IGBT power transistor modules since 2001. We are specialist in selling electronic components of various manufacturers for entire extent of your commercial & industrial applications. Please take a look at our official website www.uscomponent.com. You can send us a Request For Quote (RFQ) for your required part via this website. You can send your RFQ via an email also to Sales@uscomponent.com.

IGBT and its Usage in Motor Control

The IGBT, Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor, is a switching transistor that is driven by voltage applied to the gate terminal. Device structure and operation are identical to those of an Insulated Gate Field Effect Transistor, generally known as a MOSFET. The primary dissimilarity between the two device types is that the IGBT uses conductivity modulation to reduce on-state conduction losses which MOSFET does not do.

IGBT is a device that integrates the voltage feature of a bipolar transistor (collector – emitter) and the drive feature of a MOSFET. The key reason behind the flourishing popularity of IGBT is its superiority at high speed switching applications. This device is well-known for integrating high efficiency and fast switching. It is mainly used as an electronic switch in many modern appliances: variable-frequency drives (VFDs), electric cars, trains, variable speed refrigerators, air-conditioners and even stereo systems with switching amplifiers. Today we will discuss about usage of IGBT in motorcontrol.

Advancements of highly capable motor drives are very essential for industrial applications. Satisfactory dynamic speed command tracking and load regulating response are two must needs, for a high performance motor drive system. DC motors excel in terms of speed control for acceleration and deceleration. The power supply of a DC motor joins right away to the field of the motor which approves for accurate voltage control, and is required for pace and torque control applications. Because of their simpleness, ease of application, dependability and auspicious cost, DC drives have long been a mainstay of industrial applications. Because of low horsepower ratings, DC drives are usually less costly in comparison with AC drive systems. DC motors are being used as adjustable speed machines traditionally and an extensive extent of options has developed for this intention.

To obtain sufficient levels of power handling capability, especially in motor control applications those demand multiple drive elements, power integrated circuits have been developed using hybrid constructions of the distinct transistors. Hybrid techniques have been necessary and useful due to the power handling limitations of monolithic power integrated circuit technology. Power integrated circuit design has often been limited by the absence of power packages that provide the low thermal impedance and high performance switching necessary for reliable operation. The switching elements of these modules, which may be Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs) or various forms of thyristors, “chop” low-frequency (e.g., 60 Hz or dc) voltages /currents at the input / output port into high-frequency square wave pulses of variable width (20 to 200 ms).

The silicon GTO was the only available power semiconductor switching device until the 1990s. It had power conducting ability compatible for motor control applications. The ratings of IGBTs had adequately developed in the 1990s. It overcame one Megawatt which allowed entrance of the IGBT into the traction market. The availableness of the IGBT made allowance for notable advancements in the motor drive technology due to exclusion of snubber circuits and an raise in the operating frequency of the inverter circuit employed to transfer power to the motors.

IGBTs and Solar Inverters

IGBTs are excellent choices for use in solar inverters where voltage from a solar panel array on a residential or commercial building is converted from direct current to alternating current at a specific voltage output and frequency. IGBTs, like MOSFETS, use voltage rather than current as a means of control, with current applied across their gates being typically very low.

IGBTs are a type of bipolar junction transistor or BJT which have a semiconductor gate structure composed of metal oxide. BJTs have a higher current capability compared to MOSFETs. The speed at which an IGBT turns off is determined by how rapid the minority carrier recombines. The turn off time has an inverse relationship with the voltage drop or VCEON. This means that IGBTs with inherently rapid turn off times have a higher voltage drop and vice versa. Ultra fast IGBTs do switch off much faster than standard IGBTs, even if the IGBTs have the same dimensions and are basically manufactured the same way. The exact combination of speed and voltage drop is determined by adjusting the minority carrier recombination rate this in turn controls the turn off time.

Four switches are typically employed in a solar inverter. Two of the switches are high side IGBTs, while the other two are low side IGBTs. Solar inverters of this type produce a sinusoidal wave form and single phase alternating current. The frequency and voltage depend on the specific use required. In a household solar array system, the inverter will normally deliver voltage and frequency similar or the same as that provided by the mains electricity provider as it will be used to power household appliances that are designed to use mains power.

Inverters for installation in a residential capacity are usually linked to the power grid. These installations usually provide power to the grid when there is a surplus with tariff benefits depending on the location and provider. To enable this feature, the solar inverter is required to pulse width modulate the IGBTs above 20kHZ. The modulation frequency is normally around 50 to 60 Hz. This sort of pulse width modulation means that the two outut indicators can be maintained relatively small in size and they will also have the benefit of suppressing harmonics effectively.

This sort of solar inverter has switching speeds much higher than can be heard by the human ear so they remain basically noiseless.

To keep the power dissipation as low as possible, pulse width modulation is restricted to the two high side IGBTs while the low side IGBTs are commutated at 50 to 60kHz.

Integrated Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBT) Performance Reaches New Levels

IGBTs (Integrated Gate Bipolar Transistors) have now been around for 30 years or so and have played a very useful role in their capacity as a key component in power switches, particularly at high voltages. However, the use of IGBTs has been eclipsed somewhat by power MOSFETs for applications where the switching frequency is at the high end of the power spectrum – greater than 100 kHz. However, that has now changed. IGBT research and development has come up with improvements in IGBT design which mean that these components are now able to handle the frequency range and temperatures which are being demanded by more and more applications.

The new IGBT design is an extremely thin IGBT, fabricated on a wafer structure, which is reported to have a blocking voltage of 650 volts. It is designed for DC to DC conversions of up to 200 kHz. These ultra rapid operating IGBTs are now more than a match for their competitors in the high end semiconductor market.

The superiority of SJ MOSFETS challenged by new version IGBTs

Up to the recent development phase of these ultra thin wafer IGBTs, superjunction (SJ) MOSFETS have been the semiconductor of choice for those applications requiring tolerance to both high temperature and high switching frequency. SJ MOSFETS have actually had a better performance record for these sorts of applications than conventional power MOSFETS as well as IGBTs which have lagged behind in performance. The new IGBT design is touted as matching the performance level of SJ MOSFETS in terms of switching capacity but the main advantage is that the manufacturing process is simpler, making these components much more competitively priced compared to their competitors. Another comparison between the new IGBTs and SJ MOSFETS gives the IGBTs a clear lead in terms of their Tjmax, which is 175oC, compared to that of the SJ MOSFETS at 150oC.

IGBT structure improvements

The key improvement of these IGBTs is their fabrication process. They are fabricated on an extremely thin wafer of around 70μm using a punch through structure. This design permits the components to incorporate a collector which is only lightly doped. This means that they have less stored charge and consequently much improved switching performance – as has already been mentioned. They are rated up to 200 kHz, which is a doubling of the performance of their predecessors.

One of the inherent problems inherent in older style IGBTs was the fact that electron irradiation or metal doping was used to enhance switching speed. The design has the in-built problem that as the operating temperature increases, the current tends to leak. This limitation has meant that IGBT have had a limited usage role when the Tjmax has been above anything like 150oC. The improvements in design have meant that temperatures up to 175oC and beyond are now tolerated.

At this temperature the leakage of current is very much reduced compared to older style GBT designs. The new style IGBTs have a noticeably higher cell density which has a knock on effect on various other component properties. The lower voltage drop also accompanies a smaller gate capacitance. This combination means that the minimal internal gate resistance still means that the components are capable of the reported doubling of switching speed.

What Is IGBT Based Power Inverters?

IGBTs or integrated gate bipolar transistors are the component of choice where high switching speeds and high voltage are required in a device such as a power inverter. Inverters convert direct current to alternating current at a specific voltage and frequency. Power converters can be of very small size – mobile phones have miniature power converters in their circuits – but may be of much larger size and deal with hundreds of mega watts of power. In a power converter, the voltage and current typically control the overall power rating, whereas in an electronic device, these two parameters carry the signal or information in the device.

Power inverters work with the help of a component such as an IGBT or a MOSFET or BJT. These are all switching devices that turn the power on or off at a specific speed and voltage range. In some applications, commutated thyristors are used rather than semiconductors.

The best type of power inverter should have a sinusoidal waveform, but in practice most are not sinusoidal and they tend to contain a specific set of harmonics.

Low and medium power inverters can use a non sinusoidal waveform, such as a square or semi- square waveform, and perform quite satisfactorily, but when the voltage increases, sinusoidal waveform inverters are to be preferred. Power inverters with adjustable alternating current frequency capacity can be designed by using control circuitry which varies the turn on and turn off ties of the IGBTs or other switching components in the circuitry. The switching method of these high speed power semiconductor devices can determine the harmonics of the resulting output voltage.

The input into the power inverter is typically a rectifier producing DC if the application is an industrial one, but the initial voltage may be coming from a variety of different sources, including fuel cells, solar cells or even a battery. The rectifier involves a DC link. The network frequency is at first rectified and then finally inverted back to AC at an adjustable frequency. This sort of rectification can be achieved by using thyristor converter circuits or standard diodes. The inversion itself is carried out by standard circuitry.

An example of a typical power inverter in which the switching components are IGBTs is a single phase Unipolar inverter. This type of inverter typically consists of a bridge form with four IGBTs which are bidirectional. In this example, the circuit’s input voltage is in the region of 220V which is being fed in by the rectifier unit. The AC output is achieved by triggering the four IGBTs in a prescribed sequence. Two of the IGBTs are at first switched on by triggering the IGBT gates. Current flows from the positive side of the IGBTs to the negative. The second half of the cycle reverses the direction of the current.

Characteristics of Integrated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT)

IGBTs or integrated gate bipolar transistors to give them their full name are semiconductor components with highly specific uses. They are similar in a way to power transistors but have significant differences in the way they are controlled. Power transistors are controlled by the amount of current flowing across their base in contrast to IGBTs which are controlled by the voltage applied to their gate. The characteristics of the IGBT make them more of a combination of a power transistor and a MOSFET (metal-oxide semiconductor field effect transistor).

The IGBT is most commonly used in applications where high frequency power switching is needed. One of the reasons why the IGBT works well for this purpose is that only a tiny amount of current is needed applied to its gate. The current is only very small because of high impedance at the control gate. IGNTs are not only able to be switched much more rapidly than other types of semiconductor but they also have other desirable characteristics, especially the fact that they can be used at high voltages.

High power, high frequency devices work by turning the current on and off rapidly with the help of a switching device. Apart from IGBTs, other switching components include MOSFETS and bipolar transistors. An oscillating device is used to control the IGBT or other type of switch.

One common application of IGBTs is in a high voltage electric motor. The voltage used by the motor is converted from DC to AC with the IGBT controlling the frequency at which the AC is provided. There are three different types of motors which may have IGBTs incorporated into their control device. These are,

A three phase induction type motor

A three phase brushless motor with sinusoidal BEMF

A three phase brushless motor with trapezoidal BEMF

The motor drive may be either of a sinewave or squarewave type. Sinewaves are preferred where RF interference might be a nuisance, although squarewave drives are actually the more efficient of the two. Of the three motor types, the first one, the induction motor tends to have a sinewave type drive, although there are high and low pulses in any wave phase noticeable.

The other two types of motor use magnets instead of rotors that are found in induction motors. These motor types are somewhat more expensive than induction motors, but more efficient. The main difference between the two types of brushless motor is the type of wave produced by their drives: some are trapezoidal, others are sinewave. In all these motors, there are three phases involved and six transistors. MOSFETs tend to be the preferred choice at lower voltages, say 200 volts or less, but for higher voltages, the IGBTs are preferred. IGBTs can handle voltages of up to 1200 volts.

Applications of IGBT

Now-a-days the IGBT (Insulated Gate BipolarTransistor) is extensively applied in the transportation, renewable power generation, consumer, aircraft, medical, industrial and financial sectors all worldwide. As a result, billions of people from around the globe are enjoying enhanced comfort, convenience, and quality of life. IGBTs are known for their fantastic efficiency and speedy switching characteristics. These qualities make IGBTs very suitable for applications where saving energy and protecting the environment are very important. IGBTs are being used in almost all sectors of our economy because there isn’t any exact alternative available which can be used in place IGBT and can offer same advantages.

Over the last 20 years, the cumulative influence of the advanced capability of IGBT-powered applications has been an aggregate worth savings of $ 2.7 Trillion for U.S. consumers and $ 15.8 Trillion for consumers all over the world. On the other hand, the developed efficiency generated by IGBT-powered applications has propagated a cumulative lessening in carbon dioxide emissions by 35 Trillion pounds in the United States and 78 Trillion pounds worldwide during the last 20 years. So, the IGBT has already had a key impact to make a sustainable world-wide society with advanced living standards along with alleviating the environmental impact.

After its conception in the early 1980s, the applications for IGBTs have been incessantly spreading. It has already had a great impact on: the transportation sector, the consumer sector, automation sector, industrial sector, medical sector, aerospace sector, marine sector, defense sector; financial sector, power transmission and distribution sector, renewable energy power generation sector and many other sectors of the economy.

What would happen if all the IGBT were removed from the applications that they serve today?” The answer is quite revealing: Our new solar and wind based renewable energy sources would not be able to deliver power to the grid because the inverters would stop functioning. Our gasoline power cars would stop running because the electronic ignition systems would no longer function. Our hybrid electric and electric cars would stop running because the inverters used to deliver power from the batteries to the motors would no longer function. Our electric mass-transit systems would come to a standstill because the inverters used to deliver power from the power-grid to the motors would no longer function. Our air-conditioning systems in homes and offices would stop working because the inverters used to deliver power from the utility company to the heat-pumps and compressors would no longer function. Our refrigerators and vending machines would no longer function making the delivery and storage of perishable products impossible. Our factories would come to a grinding halt because the numerical controls use to run the robots would cease to function. Our new low-energy compact fluorescent bulbs would stop functioning limiting our activities to the daytime. Our portable defibrillators recently deployed in emergency vehicles, on-board airplanes, and in office buildings would no longer be operational putting over 100,000 people at the risk of death from cardiac failure.

In one statement, the quality of life in our society would be greatly deteriorated if the IGBT is no longer available. It’s a blessing of modern science.