Patent ID: 8310796

Claim:
A switching circuit for use in a power converter, said switching circuit comprising: an insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) comprising a gate terminal, a collector terminal, and an emitter terminal; a gate drive circuit electrically coupled to said gate terminal and configured to switch said IGBT on and off; and, a temperature drift resistant clamp circuit electrically coupled between said gate terminal and said collector terminal of said IGBT, said temperature drift resistant clamp circuit configured to maintain a voltage at said collector terminal below a threshold voltage and facilitate reducing the effects of temperature on operation of said switching circuit, wherein said temperature drift resistant clamp circuit comprises: at least one zener diode; and, a temperature compensation circuit electrically coupled to said zener diode and comprising at least one thermistor that compensates for a change in a breakdown voltage of said zener diode due to a change in temperature.