SHORT CIRCUIT PROTECTION CIRCUIT FOR SEMICONDUCTOR SWITCHING ELEMENT

In a short circuit protection circuit, a first gate resistor is connected between a first output node of a gate driver and a first gate terminal. A first real-time control circuit operates to decrease a potential of the first gate terminal when the first real-time control circuit detects that a short circuit current passes through a first semiconductor switching element. The operation monitoring circuit includes a differential voltage circuit configured to output a potential difference between a potential proportional to a potential difference across the first gate resistor and the potential of a first power supply. The operation monitoring circuit monitors, based on an output of the differential voltage circuit, whether the first real-time control circuit is in operation.