Stmicroelectronics S.r.l.

Roberto Cardu

Massimiliano Picca

Cristian Porta

Lorenzo Trevisan

Roberto Antonio Canegallo

Mauro Scandiuzzo

Alberto Pagani

Luca Perugini

Eleonora Franchi Scarselli

Salvatore Valerio Cani

A driving module of a resonant converter receives an enabling signal and a voltage across a switch of a secondary side, and generates a control signal for first and second switches of the secondary side. The driving module cyclically controls switches of a primary full-bridge switching stage and both switches of the secondary side. After a fixed time, the driving module turns off the low-side switch and turns on the high-side switch, waits for a rising edge of the enabling signal, waits for zero current in the secondary side switches, turns off the first switch via the control signal after a variable delay relative to the rising edge of the enabling signal, keeps the second switch on, waits for zero voltage across the first switch, switches back on the first switch via the control signal when the voltage measured across the first switch drops below a variable threshold.

Method for driving a resonant converter, and corresponding converter and computer program product

A resonant converter includes a primary switching circuit including a primary winding and upper and lower switching half-bridge circuits alternately activated during switching cycles of the resonant converter responsive to switching control signals. The switching half-bridge circuits each include a phase node to drive the primary winding. A resonance inductor is coupled to the primary winding. A secondary resonant circuit has a secondary winding magnetically coupled to the primary winding and a resonance capacitor electrically coupled to the secondary winding. A driving circuit generates the switching control signals and senses if a voltage on the phase node of one of the upper and lower switching half-bridge circuits is a negative voltage. The driving circuit adjusts the switching control signals for the switching half-bridge circuit to be activated next switching cycle by a shift time reduced each switching cycle until the negative voltage is less than a negligible under-voltage value.

Method for driving a resonant converter, and corresponding device and computer program product

A resonant converter includes a primary switching circuit with a primary winding and a primary full-bridge switching stage that drives the primary winding. A resonance inductor is in series with the primary winding. A secondary resonant circuit has a secondary winding magnetically coupled to the primary winding and a resonance capacitor electrically connected in parallel with the secondary winding. A secondary rectification stage is electrically connected in parallel to the resonance capacitor. A driving module receives a signal representing the voltage measured across an upper or lower switching half-bridge. The drive module detects a negative voltage in the signal. At each cycle, the drive module anticipates a control signal for control of the switches of the lower or upper switching half-bridge that is to be activated the next switching cycle by a shift time that is reduced cycle until the condition of absence of negative voltage in the signal is satisfied.

A testing apparatus includes a tester and a probe card system that includes a probe card connected to the tester, and an active interposer connected to the probe card and wirelessly coupled with a device to be tested. The active interposer includes pads positioned on its free surface facing the device. The pads are positioned with respect to pads of the device so that each pad of the active interposer faces a pad of the device and is separated therefrom by a dielectric. Each pair of facing pads forms an elementary wireless coupling element which allows a wireless transmission between the active interposer and the device. The active interposer also includes an amplifier circuit configured to amplify wireless signals from the device before forwarding them to the tester. The probe card system includes a transmission element able to transmit a power voltage from the tester to the device.

Active probe card for electrical wafer sort of integrated circuits

An embodiment of communication cell for enabling data communication between an integrated circuit and an electronic unit distinct from the integrated circuit, comprising a contact pad unit, configured for capacitively coupling, in a first operating condition of said communication cell, to the electronic unit for receiving an input signal from said electronic unit, and for ohmically coupling, in a second operating condition of said communication cell, to the electronic unit for receiving the input signal; a receiver device, including signal-amplifying means, coupled between said contact pad unit and said integrated circuit, configured for receiving the input signal and generating an intermediate signal correlated to the input signal; signal-selection means receiving the intermediate signal, the input signal, and providing an output signal which is the intermediate signal during the first operating condition, and the input signal during the second operating condition; and an input stage, connectable between the integrated circuit and the output terminal of the signal-selection means, configured for receiving the output signal and providing the output signal to the integrated circuit.

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Bologna, Italy

Roberto Cardu