US20150155769A1 - Method of di/dt current sensing - Google Patents
Method of di/dt current sensing Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20150155769A1 US20150155769A1 US14/614,457 US201514614457A US2015155769A1 US 20150155769 A1 US20150155769 A1 US 20150155769A1 US 201514614457 A US201514614457 A US 201514614457A US 2015155769 A1 US2015155769 A1 US 2015155769A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- conductive loop
- loop
- integrated circuit
- circuit
- current
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Images
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01R—MEASURING ELECTRIC VARIABLES; MEASURING MAGNETIC VARIABLES
- G01R15/00—Details of measuring arrangements of the types provided for in groups G01R17/00 - G01R29/00, G01R33/00 - G01R33/26 or G01R35/00
- G01R15/14—Adaptations providing voltage or current isolation, e.g. for high-voltage or high-current networks
- G01R15/18—Adaptations providing voltage or current isolation, e.g. for high-voltage or high-current networks using inductive devices, e.g. transformers
- G01R15/181—Adaptations providing voltage or current isolation, e.g. for high-voltage or high-current networks using inductive devices, e.g. transformers using coils without a magnetic core, e.g. Rogowski coils
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
- H02M—APPARATUS FOR CONVERSION BETWEEN AC AND AC, BETWEEN AC AND DC, OR BETWEEN DC AND DC, AND FOR USE WITH MAINS OR SIMILAR POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; CONVERSION OF DC OR AC INPUT POWER INTO SURGE OUTPUT POWER; CONTROL OR REGULATION THEREOF
- H02M1/00—Details of apparatus for conversion
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01R—MEASURING ELECTRIC VARIABLES; MEASURING MAGNETIC VARIABLES
- G01R19/00—Arrangements for measuring currents or voltages or for indicating presence or sign thereof
- G01R19/0092—Arrangements for measuring currents or voltages or for indicating presence or sign thereof measuring current only
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01F—MAGNETS; INDUCTANCES; TRANSFORMERS; SELECTION OF MATERIALS FOR THEIR MAGNETIC PROPERTIES
- H01F19/00—Fixed transformers or mutual inductances of the signal type
- H01F19/04—Transformers or mutual inductances suitable for handling frequencies considerably beyond the audio range
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
- H01L2924/0001—Technical content checked by a classifier
- H01L2924/0002—Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
- H02M—APPARATUS FOR CONVERSION BETWEEN AC AND AC, BETWEEN AC AND DC, OR BETWEEN DC AND DC, AND FOR USE WITH MAINS OR SIMILAR POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; CONVERSION OF DC OR AC INPUT POWER INTO SURGE OUTPUT POWER; CONTROL OR REGULATION THEREOF
- H02M1/00—Details of apparatus for conversion
- H02M1/0003—Details of control, feedback or regulation circuits
- H02M1/0009—Devices or circuits for detecting current in a converter
-
- H02M2001/0009—
Definitions
- Sensing current in a circuit typically involves the use of resistive elements.
- Sense resistors increase resistance and lower efficiency.
- An inductor can be used to sense the current instead of a sense resistor.
- the drain-to-source on resistance of a MOSFET metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor
- Each of these conventional current sensing techniques require the current sensing signal generated by the sensing element to be routed back to a controller which manages one or more current related functions of the circuit. For example, when implementing current dependent operations in a driver stage of a power circuit, some means must be provided for sensing the current and communicating information about the sensed current back to the circuit. With discrete circuits, this typically involves providing additional feedback traces for connecting the sense device to the circuit and for feeding back the sensed current levels to the controller. All of these additional feedback traces must be carefully routed e.g. on a printed circuit board or within a multi-layer package to ensure normal circuit operation is not adversely affected by the current feedback mechanism, thus complicating the design of the board or package. Also, sensed current signals are usually very small in magnitude and can be rendered unreliable under certain noise conditions.
- the circuit comprises a power circuit and a current sensing circuit.
- the power circuit has a main current loop.
- the current sensing circuit is spaced apart from and electrically decoupled from the power circuit.
- the current sensing circuit is operable to generate a voltage proportional to an electromagnetic field generated responsive to a current change in the main current loop of the power circuit and generate a current information signal based on the voltage.
- the current information signal describes the current in the main current loop.
- the method comprises generating an electromagnetic field by the power circuit responsive to a current change in the main current loop of the power circuit and generating a voltage by the current sensing circuit that is proportional to the electromagnetic field.
- the method further includes generating a current information signal by the current sensing circuit based on the voltage, the current information signal describing the current in the main current loop.
- the package comprises a power circuit and a conductive loop.
- the power circuit includes a plurality of transistors which form part of a main current loop of the power circuit.
- the plurality of transistors is arranged in one or more layers of the integrated circuit package.
- the conductive loop is electrically decoupled from the plurality of transistors.
- the conductive loop is spaced apart from the plurality of transistors and in close enough proximity to at least part of the main current loop so that the conductive loop is operable to generate a voltage proportional to an electromagnetic field generated responsive to a change in current in the main current loop.
- a first external terminal can be coupled to one end of the conductive loop and a second external terminal can be coupled to the other end of the conductive loop for providing connection points for the conductive loop at an external surface of the integrated circuit package.
- the method comprises arranging the power circuit including the plurality of transistors which form part of the main current loop of the power circuit in one or more layers of the integrated circuit package and arranging the conductive loop so that the loop is electrically decoupled from and spaced apart from the plurality of transistors.
- the conductive loop is arranged in close enough proximity to at least part of the main current loop so that the conductive loop is operable to generate a voltage proportional to an electromagnetic field generated responsive to a change in current in the main current loop.
- FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a circuit including a power circuit and a current sensing circuit electromagnetically coupled to the power circuit.
- FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of the current sensing circuit shown in FIG. 1 .
- FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment of the current sensing circuit shown in FIG. 1 and a waveform diagram associated with the operation of the current sensing circuit.
- FIG. 4 illustrates a top-down plan view of an embodiment of a conductive loop of the current sensing circuit spaced apart from and positioned over at least a portion of the power circuit.
- FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic view of an embodiment of an integrated circuit package including a power circuit and a current sensing circuit electromagnetically coupled to the power circuit.
- FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic view of another embodiment of an integrated circuit package including a power circuit and a current sensing circuit electromagnetically coupled to the power circuit.
- FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a circuit 100 that includes a power circuit 110 and a current sensing circuit 120 electromagnetically coupled to the power circuit 110 .
- the power circuit 110 and current sensing circuit 120 can be integrated on the same or different semiconductor die. Alternatively the current sensing circuit 120 can be part of the package assembly housing the power circuit 110 .
- the power circuit 110 has a main current loop. In some embodiments, a driver 112 is included in the same package as the main current loop of the power circuit 110 .
- the power circuit 110 operates at a high enough power level so that an electromagnetic field, indicated by the curved lines in FIG. 1 , is generated responsive to a phase transition in the main current loop and is strong enough to be sensed by the current sensing circuit 120 .
- the current sensing circuit 120 includes a conductive loop 122 positioned within the electromagnetic field generated by the power circuit 110 .
- the conductive loop 122 can be integrated in the same semiconductor die as the power circuit 110 , or included within or attached to a package housing the power circuit 110 .
- a voltage ⁇ antenna develops across the terminals of the conductive loop 122 that is proportional to the electromagnetic field generated by the power circuit 110 .
- the conductive loop 122 in effect functions as an antenna.
- the voltage produced by the conductive loop 122 corresponds to the current in the main current loop of the power circuit 110 and is sensed by a sense circuit 124 included in or associated with the current sensing circuit 120 .
- the voltage of the conductive loop 122 can be rectified, amplified, smoothed, etc. by the sense circuit 124 to provide a signal v sense that can be processed by an analysis circuit 126 included in or associated with the current sensing circuit 120 .
- the analysis circuit 126 generates a current information signal current_info based on the output of the sense circuit 124 .
- the current information signal describes the current in the main current loop and is provided to a controller 130 .
- the controller 130 manages one or more current dependent operations of the power circuit 110 in response to the current information signal such as operation of the driver 112 .
- the controller 130 can implement current mode control, current monitoring, over-current protection and/or one or more current dependent operation modes at the power circuit 110 .
- the analysis circuit 126 may be included in or associated with the controller 130 instead of the current sensing circuit 120 in some embodiments. According to these embodiments, the output of the sense circuit 124 is provided to the controller 130 which analyses and processes the received signal and takes corresponding action.
- the controller 130 implements one or more current related functions without the current sensing circuit 120 being electrically coupled to the power circuit 110 . That is, the current sensing circuit 120 is spaced apart from and electrically decoupled from the power circuit 110 .
- an electromagnetic field is generated by the power circuit 110 responsive to a current change in the main current loop of the power circuit 110 .
- a voltage proportional to the electromagnetic field develops across the terminals of the conductive loop 122 included in or associated with the current sensing circuit 120 .
- the sense circuit 124 senses the voltage and the analysis circuit 126 generates the current information signal based on the sensed voltage and provides the current information signal to the controller 130 for implementing one or more current dependent operations at the power circuit 110 based on the current information signal.
- FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of the sense circuit 124 included in or associated with the current sensing circuit 120 .
- the sense circuit 124 includes a plurality of diodes D 1 , D 2 , D 3 , D 4 coupled together to form a bridge rectifier 200 .
- the bridge rectifier 200 is coupled to the terminals of the conductive loop 122 and rectifies the voltage electromagnetically induced at the conductive loop 122 .
- the sense circuit 124 also includes a capacitor 210 coupled to the rectifier 200 .
- the capacitor 210 accumulates charge responsive to the rectifier output.
- the voltage across the capacitor 210 is related to the current in the main current loop due to the electromagnetic coupling between the conductive loop 122 of the current sensing circuit 120 and the power circuit 110 .
- the sense circuit 124 further includes a switch device 220 coupled to the capacitor 210 .
- the switch device 220 periodically resets the capacitor 210 responsive to a reset signal e.g. by discharging the capacitor 210 to ground.
- the switch device 220 is actuated so that the capacitor 210 integrates the rectified voltage over a plurality of sampling periods prior to resetting the capacitor 210 so that the sensed voltage is smoothed or averaged over some period of time.
- the magnitude of the voltage induced in the conductive loop 122 of the current sensing circuit 120 is influenced by several factors.
- the transconductance i.e. the ratio of current change at the power circuit 110 to the voltage change at the conductive loop 122 is a function of the current as given by:
- the transconductance is monotone rising and therefore di/dt increases for higher output current levels at the power circuit 110 unless the phase transition at the main current loop is inductively limited by the conductive loop 122 .
- reverse recovery current also increases with output current.
- the voltage induced in the conductive loop 122 is a function of both of these effects.
- the analysis circuit 126 senses the capacitor voltage V c and interprets the sensed voltage to generate the current information signal used by the controller 130 .
- the analysis circuit 126 defines one or more threshold values related to a given sensed voltage signature.
- the analysis circuit 126 translates the sensed capacitor voltage into a current value for the power circuit 110 based on the threshold values.
- the analysis circuit 126 compares the sensed capacitor voltage to the thresholds and generates the current information signal based on which of the thresholds the sensed voltage exceeds.
- the analysis circuit 126 can analyze the sensed capacitor voltage over several sampling periods so that the current information signal provided to the controller 130 is smoothed or averaged over some period of time.
- the analysis circuit 126 can be an analog-to-digital converter, amplifier, trigger circuit or any other circuit suitable for sensing and interpreting the voltage of the sense circuit capacitor 210 .
- the analysis circuit 126 is not shown in FIG. 2 for ease of illustration only.
- FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment of the sense circuit 124 included in or associated with the current sensing circuit 120 .
- the analysis circuit 126 is not shown in FIG. 3 for ease of illustration only.
- the diodes D 1 , D 2 , D 3 , D 4 that form the bridge rectifier 200 are silicon rectifier diodes each of which has a negative forward voltage temperature coefficient. As such, higher temperatures result in a lower forward voltage drop across the diodes D 1 , D 2 , D 3 , D 4 .
- the switch device 220 is implemented as a MOSFET Q 1 . The transconductance of the MOSFET Q 1 decreases as temperature increases.
- the circuit 100 can be tuned so that the decreased communicated voltage by the MOSFET Q 1 is offset by the lower voltage drop of the bridge rectifier 200 .
- tuning can be performed based on the coupling between the current sensing circuit 120 and the power circuit 110 .
- a relatively weak coupling between the power circuit 110 and the conductive loop 122 gives the diodes D 1 , D 2 , D 3 , D 3 more weight. As such, a higher current limit occurs at lower temperatures and a lower current limit occurs at higher temperatures.
- FIG. 3 also illustrates a waveform diagram for the capacitor voltage V c sensed by the sense circuit 124 during different periods of operation.
- the analysis circuit 126 periodically resets the capacitor 210 after every one or more switching cycles by activating the reset signal applied to the gate of the MOSFET Q 1 .
- the capacitor 210 integrates the rectifier output over a plurality of sampling periods prior to being reset when the reset signal applied to the gate of the MOSFET Q 1 is activated once every plurality of sampling periods.
- the capacitor 210 can be reset every sampling period by correspondingly activating the reset signal.
- the charge accumulated by the capacitor 210 depends on the energy harvested during a phase transition at the main current loop of the power circuit 110 .
- the charge accumulated by the capacitor 210 is proportional to the coupling factor k of the conductive loop 122 and yields a voltage across the capacitor 210 as given by:
- L is the inductance of the conductive loop 122 and di/dt is the rate of current change in the main loop of the power circuit 110 .
- the inductance of the conductive loop 122 limits the phase transition in the main current loop of the power circuit 110 as described previously herein, di/dt is fixed and the voltage induced at the conductive loop 122 is attenuated.
- the MOSFET Q 1 or more generally switch device 220 of the sense circuit 124 limits the phase transition in the main current loop of the power circuit 110 .
- di/dt increases responsive to increases in the drain current I D .
- the capacitor 210 of the sense circuit 124 is charged by the conductive loop voltage ⁇ antenna for the duration t as given by:
- v c ( v antenna - 2 ⁇ v Fdiode ) ⁇ ( 1 - ⁇ - t ⁇ ) ( 3 )
- ⁇ Fdiode is the forward voltage of the diodes D 1 , D 2 , D 3 , D 4
- ⁇ is the time constant of the current sensing circuit 120 .
- the time constant ⁇ is a product of the resistive part of the conductive loop 122 , diodes D 1 , D 2 , D 3 , D 4 and capacitor 210 , and the capacitance of the capacitor 210 .
- the time constant ⁇ is preferably chosen so that a significant voltage signal can be obtained. In one embodiment, ⁇ is chosen to be one third of the phase transition period PT period .
- ⁇ is 3.33 ns or less for a phase transition period of 10 ns.
- the resistive components of the sense circuit 124 may have a total resistance R of 1 ⁇ .
- the capacitance of the capacitor 210 in general is given by:
- the analysis circuit 126 senses the voltage V c of the capacitor 210 after a phase node transition as indicated by the Read event shown in FIG. 3 .
- the analysis circuit 126 uses the sensed voltage to generate the current information signal provided to the controller 130 as previously described herein.
- the analysis circuit 126 causes the capacitor 210 to be reset by activating the Reset signal also shown in FIG. 3 .
- the controller 130 manages one or more current dependent operations of the power circuit 110 in response to the information generated by the current sensing circuit 120 .
- FIG. 4 illustrates a top-down plan view of a portion of the power and current sensing circuits 110 , 120 e.g. as integrated together in the same semiconductor die or on the same printed circuit board or package.
- the power circuit 110 includes at least one power MOSFET 400 which forms part of the main current loop of the power circuit 110 .
- the conductive loop 122 of the current sensing circuit 120 is spaced apart from and positioned over at least a portion of the power MOSFET 400 .
- An electromagnetic field generated by the power MOSFET 400 induces a voltage in the conductive loop 122 which is integrated and stored by the capacitor 210 of the sense circuit 124 as previously described herein.
- the capacitor voltage is sensed and interpreted by the analysis circuit 126 which generates one or more logic signals which describe the current in the main current loop of the power circuit 110 , the logic signal(s) being input to the controller 130 which is not shown in FIG. 3 .
- FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of an integrated circuit package 500 that includes the power circuit 110 and the conductive loop 122 of the current sensing circuit 120 .
- the power circuit 110 includes a plurality of transistors 502 , 504 which form part of the main current loop of the power circuit 110 .
- the transistors 502 , 504 are arranged in one or more layers of the integrated circuit package 500 .
- the conductive loop 122 of the current sensing circuit 120 is electrically decoupled from and spaced apart from the transistors 502 , 504 , but in close enough proximity to at least part of the main current loop of the power circuit 110 so that the conductive loop 122 can generate a voltage proportional to the electromagnetic field generated responsive to a change in current in the main current loop.
- the conductive loop 122 is arranged within the integrated circuit package 500 in a different layer of the package 500 than the transistors 502 , 504 .
- the power circuit includes a first MOSFET 502 and a second MOSFET 504 .
- the conductive loop 122 of the current sensing circuit 120 is disposed over the first and second MOSFETs 502 , 504 and an insulator layer 506 is interposed between the conductive loop 122 and the first and second MOSFETs 502 , 504 .
- the first MOSFET 502 is a high-side MOSFET of a power converter circuit such as a synchronous buck converter and the second MOSFET 504 is a low-side MOSFET of the power converter circuit according to an embodiment.
- the MOSFETs 502 , 504 may be integrated on the same die within the package 500 or separate dies as shown in FIG. 5 .
- the integrated circuit package 500 also includes a voltage plane 508 , a reference plane 510 (such as ground) and terminals for providing external connections points to the different components included in the package 500 . Certain portions of the package 500 are not shown in FIG. 5 so that the internal components are readily visible.
- the voltage plane 508 is coupled to the drain 512 of the high-side MOSFET 502 .
- a first gate input terminal 514 is coupled to the gate 516 of the high-side MOSFET 502 and a second gate input terminal 518 is coupled to the gate 520 of the low-side MOSFET 504 for controlling the respective switching states of the MOSFETs 502 , 504 .
- the source 522 of the high-side MOSFET 502 is coupled to the drain 524 of the low-side MOSFET 504 via a voltage output terminal 526 of the package 500 .
- the source 528 of the low-side MOSFET 504 is coupled to the reference plane 510 .
- External connection terminals are provided to the voltage and reference planes 508 , 510 , and are out of view in FIG. 5 .
- One external terminal 530 is coupled to a first end of the conductive loop 122 and another external terminal 532 is coupled to the other end of the conductive loop 122 to provide connection points for the conductive loop 122 at an external surface 534 of the integrated circuit package 500 .
- FIG. 6 illustrates another embodiment of an integrated circuit package 600 that includes the power circuit 110 and the conductive loop 122 of the current sensing circuit 120 .
- FIG. 6 is similar to FIG. 5 , except the conductive loop 122 is attached to the external surface 534 of the integrated circuit package 600 instead of being embedded within the package 500 as shown in FIG. 5 .
- the conductive loop 122 preferably is attached to the external surface 534 of the integrated circuit package 600 positioned closest to the voltage output terminal 526 of the power circuit 110 . This way, the conductive loop 122 is closely coupled in the electromagnetic sense to the power circuit 110 and the magnitude of the voltage induced in the conductive loop 122 is sufficiently large.
- one or more other components of the current sensing circuit 120 can be embedded within and/or attached to the packages 500 , 600 shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 . Otherwise, the external connection terminals 530 , 532 coupled to the ends of the conductive loop 122 provide adequate coupling to the other current sensing circuit components.
Abstract
Description
- This application is a Divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/887,835, filed Sep. 22, 2010, said application incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
- Current sensing is required for many types of circuit operations including current mode control, current monitoring, over-current protection and current dependent operation modes. Sensing current in a circuit typically involves the use of resistive elements. Sense resistors increase resistance and lower efficiency. An inductor can be used to sense the current instead of a sense resistor. In yet another alternative, the drain-to-source on resistance of a MOSFET (metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor) can be measured to determine the amount of current flowing in the circuit.
- Each of these conventional current sensing techniques require the current sensing signal generated by the sensing element to be routed back to a controller which manages one or more current related functions of the circuit. For example, when implementing current dependent operations in a driver stage of a power circuit, some means must be provided for sensing the current and communicating information about the sensed current back to the circuit. With discrete circuits, this typically involves providing additional feedback traces for connecting the sense device to the circuit and for feeding back the sensed current levels to the controller. All of these additional feedback traces must be carefully routed e.g. on a printed circuit board or within a multi-layer package to ensure normal circuit operation is not adversely affected by the current feedback mechanism, thus complicating the design of the board or package. Also, sensed current signals are usually very small in magnitude and can be rendered unreliable under certain noise conditions.
- According to an embodiment of a circuit, the circuit comprises a power circuit and a current sensing circuit. The power circuit has a main current loop. The current sensing circuit is spaced apart from and electrically decoupled from the power circuit. The current sensing circuit is operable to generate a voltage proportional to an electromagnetic field generated responsive to a current change in the main current loop of the power circuit and generate a current information signal based on the voltage. The current information signal describes the current in the main current loop.
- According to a method of operating the circuit, the method comprises generating an electromagnetic field by the power circuit responsive to a current change in the main current loop of the power circuit and generating a voltage by the current sensing circuit that is proportional to the electromagnetic field. The method further includes generating a current information signal by the current sensing circuit based on the voltage, the current information signal describing the current in the main current loop.
- According to an embodiment of an integrated circuit package, the package comprises a power circuit and a conductive loop. The power circuit includes a plurality of transistors which form part of a main current loop of the power circuit. The plurality of transistors is arranged in one or more layers of the integrated circuit package. The conductive loop is electrically decoupled from the plurality of transistors. The conductive loop is spaced apart from the plurality of transistors and in close enough proximity to at least part of the main current loop so that the conductive loop is operable to generate a voltage proportional to an electromagnetic field generated responsive to a change in current in the main current loop. A first external terminal can be coupled to one end of the conductive loop and a second external terminal can be coupled to the other end of the conductive loop for providing connection points for the conductive loop at an external surface of the integrated circuit package.
- According to a method of fabricating the integrated circuit package, the method comprises arranging the power circuit including the plurality of transistors which form part of the main current loop of the power circuit in one or more layers of the integrated circuit package and arranging the conductive loop so that the loop is electrically decoupled from and spaced apart from the plurality of transistors. The conductive loop is arranged in close enough proximity to at least part of the main current loop so that the conductive loop is operable to generate a voltage proportional to an electromagnetic field generated responsive to a change in current in the main current loop.
- Those skilled in the art will recognize additional features and advantages upon reading the following detailed description, and upon viewing the accompanying drawings.
- The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, instead emphasis being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. Moreover, in the figures, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts. In the drawings:
-
FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a circuit including a power circuit and a current sensing circuit electromagnetically coupled to the power circuit. -
FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of the current sensing circuit shown inFIG. 1 . -
FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment of the current sensing circuit shown inFIG. 1 and a waveform diagram associated with the operation of the current sensing circuit. -
FIG. 4 illustrates a top-down plan view of an embodiment of a conductive loop of the current sensing circuit spaced apart from and positioned over at least a portion of the power circuit. -
FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic view of an embodiment of an integrated circuit package including a power circuit and a current sensing circuit electromagnetically coupled to the power circuit. -
FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic view of another embodiment of an integrated circuit package including a power circuit and a current sensing circuit electromagnetically coupled to the power circuit. -
FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of acircuit 100 that includes apower circuit 110 and acurrent sensing circuit 120 electromagnetically coupled to thepower circuit 110. Thepower circuit 110 andcurrent sensing circuit 120 can be integrated on the same or different semiconductor die. Alternatively thecurrent sensing circuit 120 can be part of the package assembly housing thepower circuit 110. Thepower circuit 110 has a main current loop. In some embodiments, adriver 112 is included in the same package as the main current loop of thepower circuit 110. Thepower circuit 110 operates at a high enough power level so that an electromagnetic field, indicated by the curved lines inFIG. 1 , is generated responsive to a phase transition in the main current loop and is strong enough to be sensed by thecurrent sensing circuit 120. Thecurrent sensing circuit 120 includes aconductive loop 122 positioned within the electromagnetic field generated by thepower circuit 110. Theconductive loop 122 can be integrated in the same semiconductor die as thepower circuit 110, or included within or attached to a package housing thepower circuit 110. - A voltage νantenna develops across the terminals of the
conductive loop 122 that is proportional to the electromagnetic field generated by thepower circuit 110. Theconductive loop 122 in effect functions as an antenna. The voltage produced by theconductive loop 122 corresponds to the current in the main current loop of thepower circuit 110 and is sensed by asense circuit 124 included in or associated with thecurrent sensing circuit 120. The voltage of theconductive loop 122 can be rectified, amplified, smoothed, etc. by thesense circuit 124 to provide a signal vsense that can be processed by ananalysis circuit 126 included in or associated with thecurrent sensing circuit 120. - The
analysis circuit 126 generates a current information signal current_info based on the output of thesense circuit 124. The current information signal describes the current in the main current loop and is provided to acontroller 130. Thecontroller 130 manages one or more current dependent operations of thepower circuit 110 in response to the current information signal such as operation of thedriver 112. For example, thecontroller 130 can implement current mode control, current monitoring, over-current protection and/or one or more current dependent operation modes at thepower circuit 110. Theanalysis circuit 126 may be included in or associated with thecontroller 130 instead of thecurrent sensing circuit 120 in some embodiments. According to these embodiments, the output of thesense circuit 124 is provided to thecontroller 130 which analyses and processes the received signal and takes corresponding action. - In either case, the
controller 130 implements one or more current related functions without thecurrent sensing circuit 120 being electrically coupled to thepower circuit 110. That is, thecurrent sensing circuit 120 is spaced apart from and electrically decoupled from thepower circuit 110. During operation of thecircuit 100, an electromagnetic field is generated by thepower circuit 110 responsive to a current change in the main current loop of thepower circuit 110. A voltage proportional to the electromagnetic field develops across the terminals of theconductive loop 122 included in or associated with thecurrent sensing circuit 120. Thesense circuit 124 senses the voltage and theanalysis circuit 126 generates the current information signal based on the sensed voltage and provides the current information signal to thecontroller 130 for implementing one or more current dependent operations at thepower circuit 110 based on the current information signal. -
FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of thesense circuit 124 included in or associated with thecurrent sensing circuit 120. Thesense circuit 124 includes a plurality of diodes D1, D2, D3, D4 coupled together to form abridge rectifier 200. Thebridge rectifier 200 is coupled to the terminals of theconductive loop 122 and rectifies the voltage electromagnetically induced at theconductive loop 122. Thesense circuit 124 also includes acapacitor 210 coupled to therectifier 200. Thecapacitor 210 accumulates charge responsive to the rectifier output. The voltage across thecapacitor 210 is related to the current in the main current loop due to the electromagnetic coupling between theconductive loop 122 of thecurrent sensing circuit 120 and thepower circuit 110. Thesense circuit 124 further includes aswitch device 220 coupled to thecapacitor 210. Theswitch device 220 periodically resets thecapacitor 210 responsive to a reset signal e.g. by discharging thecapacitor 210 to ground. In some embodiments, theswitch device 220 is actuated so that thecapacitor 210 integrates the rectified voltage over a plurality of sampling periods prior to resetting thecapacitor 210 so that the sensed voltage is smoothed or averaged over some period of time. - The magnitude of the voltage induced in the
conductive loop 122 of thecurrent sensing circuit 120 is influenced by several factors. For example, the transconductance i.e. the ratio of current change at thepower circuit 110 to the voltage change at theconductive loop 122 is a function of the current as given by: -
g fs =f(I D) (1) - The transconductance is monotone rising and therefore di/dt increases for higher output current levels at the
power circuit 110 unless the phase transition at the main current loop is inductively limited by theconductive loop 122. In addition, reverse recovery current also increases with output current. The voltage induced in theconductive loop 122 is a function of both of these effects. - The
analysis circuit 126 senses the capacitor voltage Vc and interprets the sensed voltage to generate the current information signal used by thecontroller 130. In one embodiment, theanalysis circuit 126 defines one or more threshold values related to a given sensed voltage signature. Theanalysis circuit 126 translates the sensed capacitor voltage into a current value for thepower circuit 110 based on the threshold values. In one embodiment, theanalysis circuit 126 compares the sensed capacitor voltage to the thresholds and generates the current information signal based on which of the thresholds the sensed voltage exceeds. Theanalysis circuit 126 can analyze the sensed capacitor voltage over several sampling periods so that the current information signal provided to thecontroller 130 is smoothed or averaged over some period of time. Theanalysis circuit 126 can be an analog-to-digital converter, amplifier, trigger circuit or any other circuit suitable for sensing and interpreting the voltage of thesense circuit capacitor 210. Theanalysis circuit 126 is not shown inFIG. 2 for ease of illustration only. -
FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment of thesense circuit 124 included in or associated with thecurrent sensing circuit 120. As withFIG. 2 , theanalysis circuit 126 is not shown inFIG. 3 for ease of illustration only. According to the embodiment shown inFIG. 3 , the diodes D1, D2, D3, D4 that form thebridge rectifier 200 are silicon rectifier diodes each of which has a negative forward voltage temperature coefficient. As such, higher temperatures result in a lower forward voltage drop across the diodes D1, D2, D3, D4. Theswitch device 220 is implemented as a MOSFET Q1. The transconductance of the MOSFET Q1 decreases as temperature increases. Therefore the communicated signal voltage decreases as the temperature of thesense circuit 124 increases. Thecircuit 100 can be tuned so that the decreased communicated voltage by the MOSFET Q1 is offset by the lower voltage drop of thebridge rectifier 200. For example, tuning can be performed based on the coupling between thecurrent sensing circuit 120 and thepower circuit 110. A relatively weak coupling between thepower circuit 110 and theconductive loop 122 gives the diodes D1, D2, D3, D3 more weight. As such, a higher current limit occurs at lower temperatures and a lower current limit occurs at higher temperatures. -
FIG. 3 also illustrates a waveform diagram for the capacitor voltage Vc sensed by thesense circuit 124 during different periods of operation. Theanalysis circuit 126 periodically resets thecapacitor 210 after every one or more switching cycles by activating the reset signal applied to the gate of the MOSFET Q1. Thecapacitor 210 integrates the rectifier output over a plurality of sampling periods prior to being reset when the reset signal applied to the gate of the MOSFET Q1 is activated once every plurality of sampling periods. Alternatively, thecapacitor 210 can be reset every sampling period by correspondingly activating the reset signal. In either case, the charge accumulated by thecapacitor 210 depends on the energy harvested during a phase transition at the main current loop of thepower circuit 110. The charge accumulated by thecapacitor 210 is proportional to the coupling factor k of theconductive loop 122 and yields a voltage across thecapacitor 210 as given by: -
νantenna =k·L·di/dt (2) - where L is the inductance of the
conductive loop 122 and di/dt is the rate of current change in the main loop of thepower circuit 110. - If the inductance of the
conductive loop 122 limits the phase transition in the main current loop of thepower circuit 110 as described previously herein, di/dt is fixed and the voltage induced at theconductive loop 122 is attenuated. In another scenario, the MOSFET Q1 or more generally switchdevice 220 of thesense circuit 124 limits the phase transition in the main current loop of thepower circuit 110. In this scenario, di/dt increases responsive to increases in the drain current ID. Also, gfs=f(ID) is monotone rising also as previously described herein. Thecapacitor 210 of thesense circuit 124 is charged by the conductive loop voltage νantenna for the duration t as given by: -
- where t is the transition time for a phase transition at the main current loop of the
power circuit 110 as shown inFIG. 3 , νFdiode is the forward voltage of the diodes D1, D2, D3, D4, and τ is the time constant of thecurrent sensing circuit 120. The time constant τ is a product of the resistive part of theconductive loop 122, diodes D1, D2, D3, D4 andcapacitor 210, and the capacitance of thecapacitor 210. The time constant τ is preferably chosen so that a significant voltage signal can be obtained. In one embodiment, τ is chosen to be one third of the phase transition period PTperiod. For example, τ is 3.33 ns or less for a phase transition period of 10 ns. Continuing with this purely illustrative example, the resistive components of thesense circuit 124 may have a total resistance R of 1Ω. The capacitance of thecapacitor 210 in general is given by: -
- with C=3.3 nF for this illustrative example.
- The
analysis circuit 126 senses the voltage Vc of thecapacitor 210 after a phase node transition as indicated by the Read event shown inFIG. 3 . Theanalysis circuit 126 uses the sensed voltage to generate the current information signal provided to thecontroller 130 as previously described herein. In addition, theanalysis circuit 126 causes thecapacitor 210 to be reset by activating the Reset signal also shown inFIG. 3 . Thecontroller 130 manages one or more current dependent operations of thepower circuit 110 in response to the information generated by thecurrent sensing circuit 120. -
FIG. 4 illustrates a top-down plan view of a portion of the power andcurrent sensing circuits power circuit 110 includes at least onepower MOSFET 400 which forms part of the main current loop of thepower circuit 110. Theconductive loop 122 of thecurrent sensing circuit 120 is spaced apart from and positioned over at least a portion of thepower MOSFET 400. An electromagnetic field generated by thepower MOSFET 400 induces a voltage in theconductive loop 122 which is integrated and stored by thecapacitor 210 of thesense circuit 124 as previously described herein. The capacitor voltage is sensed and interpreted by theanalysis circuit 126 which generates one or more logic signals which describe the current in the main current loop of thepower circuit 110, the logic signal(s) being input to thecontroller 130 which is not shown inFIG. 3 . -
FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of anintegrated circuit package 500 that includes thepower circuit 110 and theconductive loop 122 of thecurrent sensing circuit 120. Thepower circuit 110 includes a plurality oftransistors power circuit 110. Thetransistors integrated circuit package 500. Theconductive loop 122 of thecurrent sensing circuit 120 is electrically decoupled from and spaced apart from thetransistors power circuit 110 so that theconductive loop 122 can generate a voltage proportional to the electromagnetic field generated responsive to a change in current in the main current loop. Theconductive loop 122 is arranged within the integratedcircuit package 500 in a different layer of thepackage 500 than thetransistors - In one embodiment, the power circuit includes a
first MOSFET 502 and asecond MOSFET 504. Theconductive loop 122 of thecurrent sensing circuit 120 is disposed over the first andsecond MOSFETs insulator layer 506 is interposed between theconductive loop 122 and the first andsecond MOSFETs first MOSFET 502 is a high-side MOSFET of a power converter circuit such as a synchronous buck converter and thesecond MOSFET 504 is a low-side MOSFET of the power converter circuit according to an embodiment. TheMOSFETs package 500 or separate dies as shown inFIG. 5 . - The
integrated circuit package 500 also includes avoltage plane 508, a reference plane 510 (such as ground) and terminals for providing external connections points to the different components included in thepackage 500. Certain portions of thepackage 500 are not shown inFIG. 5 so that the internal components are readily visible. Thevoltage plane 508 is coupled to thedrain 512 of the high-side MOSFET 502. A firstgate input terminal 514 is coupled to thegate 516 of the high-side MOSFET 502 and a secondgate input terminal 518 is coupled to thegate 520 of the low-side MOSFET 504 for controlling the respective switching states of theMOSFETs source 522 of the high-side MOSFET 502 is coupled to thedrain 524 of the low-side MOSFET 504 via avoltage output terminal 526 of thepackage 500. Thesource 528 of the low-side MOSFET 504 is coupled to thereference plane 510. External connection terminals are provided to the voltage andreference planes FIG. 5 . Oneexternal terminal 530 is coupled to a first end of theconductive loop 122 and anotherexternal terminal 532 is coupled to the other end of theconductive loop 122 to provide connection points for theconductive loop 122 at anexternal surface 534 of theintegrated circuit package 500. -
FIG. 6 illustrates another embodiment of anintegrated circuit package 600 that includes thepower circuit 110 and theconductive loop 122 of thecurrent sensing circuit 120.FIG. 6 is similar toFIG. 5 , except theconductive loop 122 is attached to theexternal surface 534 of theintegrated circuit package 600 instead of being embedded within thepackage 500 as shown inFIG. 5 . Theconductive loop 122 preferably is attached to theexternal surface 534 of theintegrated circuit package 600 positioned closest to thevoltage output terminal 526 of thepower circuit 110. This way, theconductive loop 122 is closely coupled in the electromagnetic sense to thepower circuit 110 and the magnitude of the voltage induced in theconductive loop 122 is sufficiently large. Depending on various considerations, one or more other components of thecurrent sensing circuit 120 can be embedded within and/or attached to thepackages FIGS. 5 and 6 . Otherwise, theexternal connection terminals conductive loop 122 provide adequate coupling to the other current sensing circuit components. - Spatially relative terms such as “under”, “below”, “lower”, “over”, “upper” and the like, are used for ease of description to explain the positioning of one element relative to a second element. These terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in addition to different orientations than those depicted in the figures. Further, terms such as “first”, “second”, and the like, are also used to describe various elements, regions, sections, etc. and are also not intended to be limiting. Like terms refer to like elements throughout the description.
- As used herein, the terms “having”, “containing”, “including”, “comprising” and the like are open ended terms that indicate the presence of stated elements or features, but do not preclude additional elements or features. The articles “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural as well as the singular, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
- With the above range of variations and applications in mind, it should be understood that the present invention is not limited by the foregoing description, nor is it limited by the accompanying drawings. Instead, the present invention is limited only by the following claims and their legal equivalents.
Claims (10)
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US14/614,457 US20150155769A1 (en) | 2010-09-22 | 2015-02-05 | Method of di/dt current sensing |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US12/887,835 US8981763B2 (en) | 2010-09-22 | 2010-09-22 | Di/dt current sensing |
US14/614,457 US20150155769A1 (en) | 2010-09-22 | 2015-02-05 | Method of di/dt current sensing |
Related Parent Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US12/887,835 Division US8981763B2 (en) | 2010-09-22 | 2010-09-22 | Di/dt current sensing |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20150155769A1 true US20150155769A1 (en) | 2015-06-04 |
Family
ID=45817170
Family Applications (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US12/887,835 Active 2033-03-03 US8981763B2 (en) | 2010-09-22 | 2010-09-22 | Di/dt current sensing |
US14/614,457 Abandoned US20150155769A1 (en) | 2010-09-22 | 2015-02-05 | Method of di/dt current sensing |
Family Applications Before (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US12/887,835 Active 2033-03-03 US8981763B2 (en) | 2010-09-22 | 2010-09-22 | Di/dt current sensing |
Country Status (3)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (2) | US8981763B2 (en) |
CN (2) | CN104535818A (en) |
DE (1) | DE102011122855B4 (en) |
Families Citing this family (4)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE102014214260B4 (en) | 2014-04-24 | 2023-03-30 | Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V. | Device for switching a semiconductor-based switch and sensor for detecting a rate of change of current at a semiconductor-based switch |
KR101970273B1 (en) * | 2017-05-24 | 2019-04-18 | 포스필 주식회사 | Current measuring apparatus including means of charging and discharging and current measuring method using the same |
US10491096B2 (en) * | 2017-08-22 | 2019-11-26 | General Electric Company | System and method for rapid current sensing and transistor timing control |
TWI790770B (en) * | 2021-10-07 | 2023-01-21 | 宏碁股份有限公司 | Power converter and operation method thereof |
Citations (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20090001962A1 (en) * | 2006-06-30 | 2009-01-01 | Dupuis Timothy J | Current sensor with reset circuit |
US7483248B1 (en) * | 2005-05-19 | 2009-01-27 | Sun Microsystems, Inc. | Method and apparatus for detecting current changes in integrated circuits |
US8304888B2 (en) * | 2009-12-22 | 2012-11-06 | Fairchild Semiconductor Corporation | Integrated circuit package with embedded components |
Family Cites Families (23)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4106095A (en) * | 1977-05-31 | 1978-08-08 | Electronic Data Systems, Inc. | Electrical usage display system |
CN86209922U (en) | 1986-12-01 | 1987-07-29 | 李守旺 | Passive automatic current limiter |
US5006846A (en) * | 1987-11-12 | 1991-04-09 | Granville J Michael | Power transmission line monitoring system |
US5220495A (en) * | 1991-09-18 | 1993-06-15 | S&C Electric Company | Arrangement and method for accurately sensing voltage of a high-impedance source and supplying power to a variable burden |
US5568047A (en) * | 1994-08-10 | 1996-10-22 | General Electric Company | Current sensor and method using differentially generated feedback |
US5565783A (en) * | 1994-09-29 | 1996-10-15 | Pacific Gas And Electric Company | Fault sensor device with radio transceiver |
US5831424A (en) * | 1996-05-01 | 1998-11-03 | Southwest Research Institute | Isolated current sensor |
US6445188B1 (en) * | 1999-04-27 | 2002-09-03 | Tony Lutz | Intelligent, self-monitoring AC power plug |
CN1173611C (en) * | 2000-01-10 | 2004-10-27 | 神达电脑股份有限公司 | Multi-layer printed circuit board |
DE10005183A1 (en) * | 2000-02-05 | 2001-08-09 | Bosch Gmbh Robert | Rectifier arrangement |
CN2566519Y (en) | 2002-08-13 | 2003-08-13 | 飞瑞股份有限公司 | Improved push-pull type boosted circuit |
US6781359B2 (en) * | 2002-09-20 | 2004-08-24 | Allegro Microsystems, Inc. | Integrated current sensor |
CN2676488Y (en) * | 2003-12-03 | 2005-02-02 | 许淑芬 | Soft switching type power switching circuit |
KR20050055066A (en) * | 2004-07-14 | 2005-06-10 | (주)에이티에스네트웍스 | Dc current sensor |
JP4989145B2 (en) * | 2006-07-25 | 2012-08-01 | キヤノン株式会社 | Wide converter lens and imaging device having the same |
KR100836634B1 (en) | 2006-10-24 | 2008-06-10 | 주식회사 한림포스텍 | Non-contact charger available of wireless data and power transmission, charging battery-pack and mobile divice using non-contact charger |
US8269482B2 (en) * | 2007-09-19 | 2012-09-18 | Electro Industries/Gauge Tech | Intelligent electronic device having circuitry for reducing the burden on current transformers |
JP5222542B2 (en) * | 2007-12-07 | 2013-06-26 | 矢崎総業株式会社 | Current sensor |
US8207812B2 (en) * | 2008-01-09 | 2012-06-26 | Siemens Industry, Inc. | System for isolating a medium voltage |
US8330434B2 (en) | 2008-07-25 | 2012-12-11 | Cirrus Logic, Inc. | Power supply that determines energy consumption and outputs a signal indicative of energy consumption |
US20100165585A1 (en) | 2008-12-26 | 2010-07-01 | Megica Corporation | Chip packages with power management integrated circuits and related techniques |
US7852148B2 (en) * | 2009-03-27 | 2010-12-14 | Semiconductor Components Industries, Llc | Method of forming a sensing circuit and structure therefor |
GB2503596B (en) * | 2009-04-16 | 2014-02-26 | Panoramic Power Ltd | Apparatus and methods thereof for power consumption measurement at circuit breaker points |
-
2010
- 2010-09-22 US US12/887,835 patent/US8981763B2/en active Active
-
2011
- 2011-09-19 DE DE102011122855.5A patent/DE102011122855B4/en active Active
- 2011-09-22 CN CN201510001734.6A patent/CN104535818A/en active Pending
- 2011-09-22 CN CN201110348419.2A patent/CN102590579B/en active Active
-
2015
- 2015-02-05 US US14/614,457 patent/US20150155769A1/en not_active Abandoned
Patent Citations (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US7483248B1 (en) * | 2005-05-19 | 2009-01-27 | Sun Microsystems, Inc. | Method and apparatus for detecting current changes in integrated circuits |
US20090001962A1 (en) * | 2006-06-30 | 2009-01-01 | Dupuis Timothy J | Current sensor with reset circuit |
US8304888B2 (en) * | 2009-12-22 | 2012-11-06 | Fairchild Semiconductor Corporation | Integrated circuit package with embedded components |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
DE102011122855B4 (en) | 2022-06-02 |
CN102590579A (en) | 2012-07-18 |
CN102590579B (en) | 2015-02-04 |
CN104535818A (en) | 2015-04-22 |
US8981763B2 (en) | 2015-03-17 |
DE102011122855A1 (en) | 2012-11-08 |
US20120068691A1 (en) | 2012-03-22 |
Similar Documents
Publication | Publication Date | Title |
---|---|---|
US20150155769A1 (en) | Method of di/dt current sensing | |
USRE42307E1 (en) | Thermally compensated current sensing of intrinsic power converter elements | |
US10048296B2 (en) | Detection of current change in an integrated circuit | |
JP3254199B2 (en) | DC-DC converter having inductor current detector and adjustment method thereof | |
US9679885B2 (en) | Integrated protection devices with monitoring of electrical characteristics | |
US7535691B2 (en) | Method and apparatus for an in-rush current limiting circuit | |
US7341052B2 (en) | Power switching control device for electric systems | |
US8040116B2 (en) | Automatically configurable dual regulator type circuits and methods | |
EP2136462A1 (en) | DC-DC Converter | |
US20110205770A1 (en) | Power source controlling semiconductor integrated circuit and insulated direct-current power source device | |
US20070139066A1 (en) | Integrated current sensor package | |
TW200941907A (en) | System and method for improving inductor current sensing accuracy of a DC/DC voltage regulator | |
US20100060254A1 (en) | DC-DC converter | |
US20160085284A1 (en) | Power supply device | |
US9608510B2 (en) | Switching regulator and the method thereof | |
US8791673B2 (en) | Power supply apparatus including a capacitor and a current detector | |
CN111464029B (en) | Current sensing controller for DC-DC converter | |
EP3945324A1 (en) | Transistor package with load current sense modality | |
US7145315B2 (en) | Over-current detection circuit in a switch regulator | |
US20230308091A1 (en) | System and methods for motor drive using gan synchronous rectification | |
JP2006304406A (en) | Semiconductor integrated circuit device, power unit, and electric apparatus | |
JPH0927932A (en) | Power supply circuit for television receiver |
Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AG, GERMANY Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:EJURY, JENS;REEL/FRAME:034994/0850 Effective date: 20150205 |
|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES NORTH AMERICA CORP., CALIFOR Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:EJURY, JENS;REEL/FRAME:036055/0594 Effective date: 20100920 |
|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AMERICAS CORP., CALIFORNIA Free format text: MERGER AND CHANGE OF NAME;ASSIGNORS:INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES NORTH AMERICA CORP.;INTERNATIONAL RECTIFIER CORPORATION;REEL/FRAME:044403/0827 Effective date: 20150929 |
|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AG, GERMANY Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AMERICAS CORP.;REEL/FRAME:044467/0775 Effective date: 20171218 |
|
STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION |