News - Component Test

Device Capacitance Analyzer for Power Circuit Design

15 August 2014 – Agilent Technologies / Keysight Technologies introduced the industry’s first power device capacitance analyzer that automatically characterizes power device junction capacitances using real operating voltages. With the increasing use of power devices fabricated from emerging materials like SiC and GaN, switching power supplies are now operating at increasingly higher frequencies. As a result, accurate device capacitance characterization is more important than ever.

With its ability to accurately and automatically evaluate all input, output and reverse transfer power device capacitance at high bias voltages, Agilent’s B1507A Power Device Capacitance Analyzer is well equipped to address this task.

The B1507A provides a complete solution for measuring and evaluating all parameters for high-frequency switching power supplies. Measurement capabilities include three terminal capacitances (Ciss, Coss and Crss) with high-voltage bias (+/-3 kV), gate resistance, and accurate leakage current and breakdown voltage by complementing curve-tracer-type test equipment that evaluates only coarse IV characteristics.

A uniquely designed intuitive graphical user interface makes it easy for even a novice user to automatically measure all capacitances under a wide range of operating voltages. Such capabilities make the B1507A ideal for helping power electronics circuit designers select the optimal devices for their power electronic circuits and for power electronics manufacturers maximizing product value and performance by revealing detailed device characteristics.

“Power devices used in power electronics circuits play a critical role in meeting industry requirements for low power loss and high switching frequency,” said Masaki Yamamoto, general manager of Agilent’s Hachioji Semiconductor Test Division. “However, until now no suitable solution has existed for fully evaluating their capacitance over a wide range of operating voltages. The B1507A promises to fill this gap by providing complete capacitance evaluation for power devices in a reliable and automated manner.”

Some of the key features of the B1507A include:

• easy to use, fully automated measurement of transistor input, output and reverse transfer capacitances (Ciss, Coss, Crss, Cies, Coes, Cres) at high bias voltages, independent terminal capacitances (Cgs, Cgd, Cds, Cge, Cgc, Cce), and capacitances for normally-on devices, such as SiC JFET or GaN FET;
• internal gate resistance (Rg) measurement;
• continuous capacitance measurement as the gate voltage varies from negative to positive;
• support for a complete workflow of capacitance evaluation that includes the ability to easily and accurately switch back and forth between leakage current and capacitance measurements without having to do any recabling; and
• support for basic IV characterization, including breakdown voltage and threshold voltage.

The Agilent B1507A Power Device Capacitance Analyzer is available now.

www.agilent.com/

www.keysight.com/