Pooh Bear wrote:
Ignoramus965 wrote:


Don, what are your thoughts on using IGBT's for switching?


Graham replies that they're very good these days.

Mosfets are best at the higher frequencies though.

IGBTs have their own little 'quirks'.

trouble is.... you really have to have been doing this stuff for ages to pick up
the relevant issues. For a beginner, jumping in at the deep end involves a
cliff-like learning curve.
Yeah, like hanging on the cliff while the enemy is strafing you!
Actually, that is being showered by incandescent particles of your
expensive IGBTs, right after the cannon-like bang when they explode!
I know, I've been there. The last inverter design I worked on, I
had two glowing IGBTs shoot past my head on either side. After that,
I took to powering the thing up while crouching under the table with
ear protectors on. Once it survived power-up, I got up and looked at
the picture on the scope with a lot less fear.

I told all this stuff about keeping out of the linear region, etc.
to a guy working on a hybrid electric car drive, but he had to do
it his way! He ended up with a Ford Taurus wagon filled with batteries
almost doing a wheelie inside a garage full of people when the IGBT
popped!

Jon