A High-Gain, High-Bandwidth, Bidirectional Discrete GaN-Based SyncFET dv/dt Sensor for MHz Power Converters
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1
Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department, University of Mines and Technology, Tarkwa, Ghana
2
Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana
Power Electronics and Drives 2025;10 (45):357-373
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ABSTRACT
This paper presents a high-gain, high-bandwidth discrete dv/dt sensing and control architecture for megahertz gallium nitride (GaN)-
based power converters. In conventional capacitor-only dv/dt sensing, the external sensing capacitor must remain smaller than the
device’s reverse transfer capacitance to avoid loading effects, which inherently limits current gain and yields weak feedback signals.
To overcome this constraint, the proposed approach introduces a synchronous GaN field-effect transistor (SyncFET) configured as a
current amplifier, which boosts the weak capacitor current while preserving high-bandwidth operation. The amplified feedback current
is processed by an active gate driver (AGD), realised with discrete GaN devices, that provides the necessary gain and bandwidth for
precise dv/dt regulation. Together, the SyncFET and AGD form a dual-stage amplification system that enables effective dv/dt control
without large sensor capacitance, high bus voltage or complex IC integration. Simulation and experimental validation in a 24 V, 10 MHz
buck converter demonstrate that the combined SyncFET–AGD circuit reduces turn-on dv/dt from 15 V/ns to 10 V/ns while lowering
switching loss by 16.7% compared with the conventional passive control. These results confirm that the proposed discrete gate-driving
strategy mitigates the limitations of capacitor-only dv/dt sensing, offering dv/dt suppression and enhanced reliability in compact GaN-
based converters.