Self-Protecting MOSFETs Deliver Improved Reliability in the Harsh Environment of Automotive Applications
While it’s been said many times before, the automotive electrical environment is tough! As demonstrated in figure 1, the nominal battery voltage of an automobile can vary from -12V DC, under reverse battery condition, to +125V DC due to load transients and inductive field decay. Factor in wide variations in operating temperature, numerous interconnections and an open environment that is subject to possible ESD damage from human interactions, and you have an operating environment that is far more challenging than, for example, that of the consumer market segment.
