Power integrations SCALE-1 User manual

AN-1501
Application Note
www.power.com/igbt-driver Page 1
Handling Instructions for SCALE™-1 and SCALE™-2 Gate
Drivers
Scope
This Application Note defines the requirements for handling the high-power SCALE™-1 and SCALE™-2
products (gate driver cores, plug-and-play gate drivers) from Power Integrations in terms of:
•Storage conditions
•Soldering instructions for gate driver core products
•Mechanical handling
•ESD handling
•Guideline for Return Material Analysis - RMA
The information given here applies to all customers, distributors and suppliers receiving high-power products
from Power Integrations.
Content
Scope..............................................................................................................................................1
Content...........................................................................................................................................1
Storage Conditions.........................................................................................................................2
Soldering Instructions for Driver Core Products............................................................................3
Reflow Soldering..................................................................................................................3
Wave Soldering ...................................................................................................................3
Selective Soldering...............................................................................................................3
Manual Soldering.................................................................................................................4
Mechanical Handling......................................................................................................................4
Insertion of Gate Driver Cores into the Carrier PCB.................................................................4
ESD Handling..................................................................................................................................6
EPA (Electrostatic Protected Area).........................................................................................6
Guideline for Return Material Analysis - RMA................................................................................6
Legal Disclaimer.............................................................................................................................7
Manufacturer..................................................................................................................................7
Power Integrations Worldwide High Power Customer Support Locations....................................8

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Application Note
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Storage Conditions
Power Integrations products mentioned in this Application Note must be stored and shipped according to the
environmental conditions specified in Table 1.
Material
Measures
Ambient
Atmosphere
Ambient Conditions
[Temp. / RH]
Max. Storage
Time
[Months]
Non-dry pack*1
Original packaging
Air
25°C ± 10°C /
10% - 45%
24
Dry pack*2
Packed, evacuated,
desiccant*4,
Humidity Indicator Card
(HIC), sealed moisture
barrier bag,
ESD protection
Air
25°C ± 10°C / < 85%
36
Dry pack*3
Packed, evacuated,
desiccant,
Humidity Indicator Card
(HIC), sealed moisture
barrier bag,
ESD protection
Nitrogen
25°C ± 10°C / < 85%
>48
Table 1Environmental conditions and lifetime during storage and transportation
Legend:*1 - Low-pollution atmosphere and packaging
*2 - Valid for single packed drivers
*3 - Valid for single packed trays and stored in a nitrogen atmosphere
*4 - Number of desiccant units to be calculated according to JEDEC Standard 033
Products must be processed before the end of the maximum storage time.
Processing after the expiring date can increase the risk of non-processability or malfunction.
If the original packaging is damaged, opened and not stored in the ambient conditions specified in Table 1,
the products must be processed within 168 hours.

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Application Note
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Soldering Instructions for Driver Core Products
Power Integrations gate driver cores can be soldered with the following techniques, which are defined for
different process conditions.
Reflow Soldering
Reflow soldering of drivers is not permitted.
Wave Soldering
Selective Soldering
Name
Leaded
Lead-Free
Flux
25 weight % rosin,
75 weight % isopropanol
25 weight % rosin,
75 weight % isopropanol
Solder alloy
Sn63Pb37
Sn96.5Ag3.0Cu0.5
Flux amount
The fluxing is determined as per the requirement of the board area and the
solder joint size.
Pot temperature
280…300°C
PCB top-side temperature
100…125°C
Nozzle dragging rate
2…8mm/s3
Point soldering time
3…5s4
1…depending on the length of the wave soldering machine
2…depending on the thermal mass and components on the board when it reaches the solder pot
3…depending on the solder joint size
The solder nozzle should be selected depending on the surface area of the solder joint.
4…depending on the size of the solder joint
Parameter
Leaded
Lead-Free
Flux
25 weight % rosin,
75 weight % isopropanol
25 weight % rosin,
75 weight % isopropanol
Solder alloy
Sn63Pb37
Sn96.5Ag3.0Cu0.5
Flux amount
Depending on the PCB size and assembly complexity, the flux is determined to
obtain maximum solder on the top side of the PCB with minimal flux residues on
the bottom.
Pot temperature
250°C
255°C
Preheating rate
3…4K/s1
PCB top-side temperature
90…110°C2
Dipping/dwelling time
3…5s
Solder pot contact width
20mm
Cooling-down rate
5K/s

AN-1501
Application Note
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Manual Soldering
Name
Leaded
Lead-Free
Solder iron temperature
320°C
340°C (SAC305)
Maximum solder time
3-4s
It is recommended to use lead-free solder EF2210, SAC305 alloy. However, other solder types may also be
used.
Mechanical Handling
The correct handling of mechanical gate drivers is based on two fundamental principles:
1) No excessive mechanical force must be applied to transformers.
2) No excessive mechanical force causing bending (reflected to IPC-T-650) must be applied to PCBs.
The root causes of possible driver failure mentioned above may appear during mounting and later during
operation. If the carrier PCB on which the driver core is placed is large, there is a risk of driver PCB bending
referred to the carrier PCB. These phenomena can be seen during vibrations tests where momentary
displacement between driver core and carrier PCB can be observed. Therefore if significant vibrations are
foreseeable, it is necessary to mechanically stabilize the driver.
Insertion of Gate Driver Cores into the Carrier PCB
It is recommended that no large steady-state or temporary mechanical force be applied to the transformers or
terminals of the gate core drivers. Applying excessive mechanical force to the transformer bends the PCB and
considerably stresses the transformer solder joints, leading to potential pre-damage. This increases the
probability of cracks at the transformer solder points and other assembled SMD components, especially
ceramic capacitors and resistors.
The transformer may be held by hand during removal or insertion from/into the packaging or assembly to
carrier PCB, but the PCB should be free from bending.
Fig. 1 illustrates the correct removal and assembly of the driver core. If mechanical force applied to
transformer causes PCB bending or excessive mechanical stress to the solder joints, the force must be shifted
directly to the corresponding terminals of the driver PCB.
Fig. 1Not recommended (left) and recommended (right) ways of handling Power Integrations gate driver
cores during assembly (body plan of a driver)
Transformer
Transformer

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The IPC-T-650 standard gives general guidance for PCB handling and recommends that PCBs with surface
mount components are not exposed to bending or twisting of more than 0.5% in relation to their length and
width. Fig. 2shows the gate driver core 2SC0435T as an example. It has dimensions (length and width) of
57.15mm by 51.56mm. The maximum permissible bending due to forces applied to the PCB would be 0.29mm
and 0.26mm respectively.
Fig. 2Dimensions of a standard Power Integrations gate driver core
In case of Plug-and-Play drivers which are screw-fitted to a power module, it is important to adjust the height
of the distance bolts properly. This will increase the driver’s vibration withstand capability and avoid PCB
bending. Fig. 3 illustrates the correct usage of the bolts.
Fig. 3Correct (A) and wrong (B and C) fixing of Power Integrations gate drivers
PCB
IGBT Module
Distance
bolt
A
B
C

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ESD Handling
EPA (Electrostatic Protected Area)
In order to ensure a safe ESD environment in which the work on electronics components or subassemblies
such as printed circuit boards is carried out, an ESD protected area or EPA must be set up and correctly used
every time Power Integrations’ high-power SCALE™-1 and SCALE™-2 products are handled or processed. An
EPA or ESD PA (ESD Protected Area) is designed to minimize the generation and retention of ESD. It allows
the level of failures during production and later in life to be kept to a minimum.
Guideline for Return Material Analysis - RMA
The following requirements are necessary to ensure proper RMA process handling:
•Acquire RMA number from the Power Integrations Customer Service Department before return.
•For each RMA case, a “Driver Failure Description Form DFDF” must be completed.
•In the customs documents, a goods value of 1 USD must be specified.
•Returned product must be packed properly and according to ESD rules.
Note that the RMA process is not applicable to:
Prototypes (PRT) and Engineering (ENG) samples
Products that were used or operated beyond specification
Products arrived at customers with transportation damages
Products which arrive at Power Integrations without “Driver Failure Description Form DFDF”
Products without ESD-compliant packaging

AN-1501
Application Note
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Legal Disclaimer
The statements, technical information and recommendations contained herein are believed to be accurate as
of the date hereof. All parameters, numbers, values and other technical data included in the technical
information were calculated and determined to our best knowledge in accordance with the relevant technical
norms (if any). They may base on assumptions or operational conditions that do not necessarily apply in
general. We exclude any representation or warranty, express or implied, in relation to the accuracy or
completeness of the statements, technical information and recommendations contained herein. No
responsibility is accepted for the accuracy or sufficiency of any of the statements, technical information,
recommendations or opinions communicated and any liability for any direct, indirect or consequential loss or
damage suffered by any person arising therefrom is expressly disclaimed.
Manufacturer
Power Integrations Switzerland GmbH
Johann-Renfer-Strasse 15
2504 Biel-Bienne, Switzerland
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email [e-mail]
Website www.power.com/igbt-driver
2015 Power Integrations Switzerland GmbH. All rights reserved.
We reserve the right to make any technical modifications without prior notice. Version 1.0 from 2016-04-14

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Application Note
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Power Integrations Worldwide High Power Customer Support Locations
World Headquarters
5245 Hellyer Avenue
San Jose, CA 95138 | USA
Main [phone]
Customer Service:
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email [e-mail]
Switzerland (Biel)
Johann-Renfer-Strasse 15
2504 Biel-Bienne | Switzerland
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email [e-mail]
Germany (Ense)
HellwegForum 1
59469 Ense | Germany
Phone [phone]
Email [e-mail]
China (Shanghai)
Rm 2410, Charity Plaza, No. 88
North Caoxi Road
Shanghai, PRC 200030
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email [e-mail]
China (Shenzhen)
17/F, Hivac Building, No 2,
Keji South 8th Road,
Nanshan District
Shenzhen | China, 518057
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Hotline [phone]
Email [e-mail]
UK (Cambridge)
Westbrook Centre, Block 5,
2nd Floor Milton Road
Cambridge CB4 1YG
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
India (Bangalore)
#1, 14th Main Road
Vasanthanagar
Bangalore 560052 | India
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email [e-mail]
Japan (Kanagawa)
Kosei Dai-3 Bldg., 2-12-11, Shin-
Yokohama, Kohoku-ku, Yokohama-shi,
Kanagawa 222-0033 | Japan
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email [e-mail]
Korea (Seoul)
RM 602, 6FL
Korea City Air Terminal B/D, 159-6
Samsung-Dong, Kangnam-Gu
Seoul 135-728 | Korea
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email [e-mail]
Taiwan (Taipei)
5F, No. 318, Nei Hu Rd., Sec. 1
Nei Hu Dist.
Taipei 11493 | Taiwan R.O.C.
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email [e-mail]