6A peak drive in a compact SOIC
The MCP1406-E/SN is a single-channel low-side gate driver from Microchip, delivering 6A peak source and sink current from a 4.5V to 18V supply rail. It drives IGBTs, N-channel, and P-channel MOSFETs with a 20 ns typical rise and fall time, making it a fit for fast-switching power stages in DC-DC converters, motor drives, and class-D amplifiers. The inverting input logic thresholds of 0.8V (VIL) and 2.4V (VIH) allow direct interface with 3.3V or 5V PWM controllers without external level translation. The single driver channel is suited for low-side switch topologies where one gate signal controls the main power FET or IGBT.
The 6A peak output current is specified for both source and sink, meaning the driver can charge and discharge the gate capacitance symmetrically. With 20 ns typical rise/fall times, switching losses in the external FET are minimised at moderate frequencies — a 1 nF gate load transitions in roughly 20 ns, supporting switching frequencies into the hundreds of kilohertz.