Understanding Power Testing Applications for Today’s Automobiles ELECTRIC/HYBRID MOTORS

Introduction The pursuit of more energy –efficient vehicles such as vehicles that run on alternative fuels, and hybrid and all-electric vehicles is driving technological advances in high power semiconductors, battery technology, battery charging, and drivetrain systems. These technological advances are leading to new components and systems that are being integrated into the automobiles of today and tomorrow. Designing, characterizing, and testing these components and systems requires instrumentation capable of making precise measurements over a wide dynamic range and under a wide range of conditions....

_jDrevjous_J next Testing New, High Power Semiconductor Devices, Components, and Modules The onset of advanced electronic technologies and hybrid/electric vehicles has resulted in the design of more efficient semiconductor devices and integrated circuits. Power semiconductor devices are used as switches, control devices, and sources of power in applications such as motor control, voltage regulation, and power conversion. These devices offer lower leakage, lower ON resistance, or both, creating new and increasingly demanding requirements for test and measurements. Test instrumentation must now...

_jDrevjous_J next Complete Solutions for Power Device Characterization in Automotive Applications Characterizing and testing today's high power semiconductor devices and components is placing a high demand on test equipment. Device design engineers need equipment that can support them throughout the complete lifecycle of a power device. Today, high power characterization systems are available in two main forms — complete turnkey systems and building blocks that must be configured by the user and completed with good software. Turnkey systems can be set up and running quickly, but they can be quite...

_jDrevjous_J next Characterizing Device ON- and OFF-State: Testing the ON-resistance (RDS(on)) A MOSFET in power converters is used as a high speed switch, where the conducting channel between drain and source is either ON (i.e., very low resistance) or OFF (i.e., very low leakage.) The ON and OFF states are controlled by the voltage on the gate contact. ON-resistance is the key determinant of the conduction loss of the power MOSFET. Test challenges include: ■ Pulse testing capability, including pulse verification ■ Precise low voltage measurements ■ Low inductance, low resistance cables Measuring...

_jDrevjous_J next Unmatched Performance for Characterizing and Testing High Power, High Current Components The Model 2651A High Power/High Current System SourceMeter® Instrument simplifies characterizing today's challenging high power electronics with unprecedented power, precision, speed, flexibility, and ease of use. It combines a highly flexible, four quadrant voltage and current source/load with precision voltage and current meters. ON-resistance is the key determinant of the conduction loss of the power MOSFET. Test challenges include: ■ Source or sink 2,000W of pulsed power (±40V, ±50A),...

_jDrevjous_J next Characterizing Device ON- and OFF-State: Off-State Characterization For an adequate understanding of all overall product efficiency, the impact of the device on the overall circuit when the device is turned off must be investigated, as well. Two primary DC tests are performed when the device is off: breakdown voltages and leakage currents. Breakdown Voltages A device's OFF-state breakdown voltage determines the maximum voltage that can be applied to it. The primary withstand voltage of interest to power management product designers is the breakdown voltage between drain and...

Characterize and Test High Voltage Components and Power Semiconductors The Model 2657A High Power/High Voltage System SourceMeter® Instrument adds high voltage to Keithley’s SourceMeter SMU instruments family of high speed, precision source measurement units. n Source or sink up to 3000V @ 20mA or 1500V @ 120mA to capture important parametric data that other equipment can’t n 1fA (femtoamp) current measurement resolution for measuring the low leakage requirements of nextgeneration devices n Power semiconductor device characterization and testing n Characterization of GaN, SiC, and other compound...

_jDrevjous_J next Verifying Battery Performance The heart of the electric vehicle and hybrid system is the battery. Batteries need to have a high energy density, light weight, high capacity to maximize travel distance between charges, reliability, and competitive costs. Today, NiMH and Li-ion batteries are the battery technologies of choice with EV and hybrid automotive manufacturers. Extensive research is going into new battery technologies and battery construction. Since the battery power also impacts vehicle starting, acceleration, and mileage, battery performance characterization is essential...

_jDrevjous_J next SMU Instruments - One, Tightly-Integrated Solution for l-V Testing of Batteries Keithley's source measure unit (SMU) instruments provide a fully-integrated, four-quadrant, all-in-one solution for testing of batteries. Keithley SMUs are electronic loads for characterizing battery discharge. SMUs can either source current or source voltage for charging batteries and analyzing the batteries charge cycle. Keithley has an extensive range of SMUs with the following range of capabilities: ■ Source and measure up to 3kV or 50A pulse, with best-in-class low current resolution ■ Precision...

_jDrevjous_J next Verifying External Charging Performance Charging stations must convert AC line power to DC voltage and current to charge the battery. To supply sufficient power at the appropriate rate to single or multiple automotive batteries, electric vehicle charging stations are effectively power supplies that operate from single phase or 3-phase AC power sources. These supplies must be as efficient as possible. Testing charging station performance requires analysis of: ■ Current harmonics compliance with IEC Standard IEC61000-3-2, Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) ■ Standby or idle power...