US 12,015,394 B2
Fast turn-on protection of a cascode switch
Rajko Duvnjak, Kanata (CA)
Assigned to POWER INTEGRATIONS, INC., San Jose, CA (US)
Appl. No. 18/254,947
Filed by Power Integrations, Inc., San Jose, CA (US)
PCT Filed Dec. 1, 2021, PCT No. PCT/US2021/061418
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date May 30, 2023,
PCT Pub. No. WO2022/140029, PCT Pub. Date Jun. 30, 2022.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/129,086, filed on Dec. 22, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0344425 A1, Oct. 26, 2023
Int. Cl. H03K 17/082 (2006.01)
CPC H03K 17/0822 (2013.01) [H03K 2217/94047 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A power converter comprising:
a cascode circuit including a depletion mode field effect transistor and an enhancement mode field effect transistor electrically coupled in cascode, the cascode circuit configured to provide a cascode node voltage; and
an overcurrent detection circuit configured to detect a period when the cascode node voltage gradually decreases and to indicate an overcurrent fault when the period exceeds a threshold time duration.