DISCHARGE PROTECTION CIRCUIT AND METHOD FOR OPERATING A DISCHARGE PROTECTION CIRCUIT

• US 20200136382A1
• Filed: 10/31/2018
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Inventors: Delshadpour, Siamak, Quax, Guido Wouter Willem, Christiaans, Peter
• Granted Patent: US 11,296,499 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/0248 for electrical or thermal protection, e.g. electrostatic discharge [ESD] protection
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/0251 for MOS devices
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6485 Electrostatic discharge protection in general H05F1/00, for electric apparatus H05K9/0067
• CPC Class Codes: H02H 9/046 responsive to excess voltage appearing at terminals of integrated circuits protection by specific structural integration design H01L27/0248

Abstract

Embodiments of a method, a circuit and a system are disclosed. In an embodiment, a discharge protection circuit is disclosed. The discharge protection circuit includes a switch having a capacitive coupling between a gate and a drain of the switch, wherein the capacitive coupling facilitates a capacitively coupled current. The discharge protection circuit further includes a gate network including at least the gate of the switch, a gate control element and a resistor connected to the gate and the gate control element. In addition, the discharge protection circuit includes an electrostatic discharge rail that connects to a diode that is coupled to the gate and the resistor, wherein the capacitive coupling facilitates sinking of at least a part of an electrostatic discharge current via the gate network.

Claims

1. A discharge protection circuit, comprising:

a switch having a capacitive coupling between a gate and a drain of the switch, wherein the capacitive coupling facilitates a capacitively coupled current;

a gate network comprising at least the gate of the switch, a gate control element and a resistor connected to the gate and the gate control element; and

an electrostatic discharge rail that connects to a diode that is coupled to the gate and the resistor, wherein the capacitive coupling facilitates sinking of at least a part of an electrostatic discharge current via the gate network.

2. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the gate network comprises an AC-triggered electrostatic discharge protection element that sinks the capacitively coupled current.

3. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the gate network comprises a DC-triggered electrostatic discharge protection element that sinks the capacitively coupled current.

4. The circuit of claim 1 further comprising an indirect clamping of a source side of the switch.

5. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the switch comprises an MOS device.

6. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the electrostatic discharge rail comprises a shared rail that is shareable by at least one other circuit.

7. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the capacitive coupling comprises at least one capacitor.

8. A method of operating a discharge protection circuit, comprising:

producing a capacitively coupled current utilizing a capacitive coupling of a switch configured with the capacitive coupling between a gate and a drain of the switch, and

sinking at least a part of an electrostatic discharge current via a gate network comprising at least the gate of the switch, a gate control element and a resistor connected to the gate and the gate control element, wherein the electrostatic discharge current is facilitated by an electrostatic discharge rail that connects to a diode coupled to the gate and the resistor.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the gate network comprises an AC-triggered electrostatic discharge protection element that sinks the capacitively coupled current.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the gate network comprises a DC-triggered electrostatic discharge protection element that sinks the capacitively coupled current.

11. The method of claim 8 further comprising an indirect clamping of a source side of the switch.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein the switch comprises an MOS device.

13. The method of claim 8 wherein the electrostatic discharge rail comprises a shared rail that is shareable by at least one other circuit.

14. The method of claim 8 wherein the capacitive coupling comprises at least one capacitor.

15. A discharge protection system, comprising:

a circuit comprising a switch that includes at least one transistor, wherein the switch comprises a capacitive coupling between a gate and a drain of the at least one transistor, wherein the capacitive coupling facilitates a capacitively coupled current;

a gate network comprising at least the gate of the at least one transistor, a gate control element and a resistor connected to the gate and the gate control element; and

an electrostatic discharge rail that connects to at least one diode coupled to the gate and the resistor, wherein the capacitive coupling facilitates sinking of at least a part of an electrostatic discharge current via the gate network.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the gate network comprises an electrostatic discharge protection element that sinks the capacitively coupled current.

17. The system of claim 15 further comprising an indirect clamping of a source side of the at least one transistor comprising an MOS device.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein the MOS device comprises at least one of an HV (High Voltage) MOS device and an LV (Low Voltage) MOS device.

19. The system of claim 17 wherein the MOS device comprises a plurality of MOS devices in a back-to-back arrangement, wherein the plurality of MOS devices comprises at least two MOS devices configured in the back-to-back arrangement.

20. The system of claim 15 wherein the electrostatic discharge rail comprises a shared rail that is shareable by at least one other circuit and wherein the capacitive coupling comprises at least one capacitor.