Control a large array of high-power LEDs with a GPIO pin

Question

I have an array of about 10x10 high-power LEDs driven by a ~200w LED driver.
I want to turn on/off the whole array using 3V3 logic with a single GPIO pin on some controller.
The 10x10 array consists of 10 parallel branches, each with 10 LEDs in series.

I connected a MOSFET in the following manner:

where the MOSFET source goes to ground, the drain goes to the LED cathode in each of the 10 parallel branches, and the gate goes to a GPIO pin on a controller.

I can turn on the LED array by setting the gate to about 2.7 volts, but then it doesn't turn off when the gate goes back to 0 volts.
Further, the MOSFET gets so hot that the solder on the drain melts and the MOSFET gets disconnected (and then the LEDS turn off).
(Note: I'm currently using a bench power supply at the gate, for testing; not the GPIO pin yet.)

I'd now like to try a downscaled LED array, say 5x8, with a ~100W LED driver.

How can I accomplish the desired outcome (for the downscaled array)?
Is the answer to use a beefier MOSFET to control the entire array, or a more complicated circuit?

(The LED driver is something like this, but I'd like an answer that works independently of the driver brand. Ideally the answer would only depend on things like the driver voltage and current and LED array configuration.)

Answer 1

The chosen MOSFET is more than enough to accomplish the task, although it would be nice to know the driver voltage. There is no need for a "beefier" device.

The bench testing failure is due to mistreatment of the gate. A floating gate can easily be damaged by ESD. The gate voltage maximum is |15|V. Use a voltage dividing low pass filter to connect to the bench supply, possibly with transient suppression like a 10V Zener diode. At least a 10k to 100k resistor from gate to source will help. Use static dissipative techniques including wrist straps tp equalize charge differential between body-bench circuit.

To select a decent VGSon, use Figures 11 and 14 from the data sheet.

Figure 11 shows that at 15A drain current, 2.7V VGS should work but leaves little headroom. Any voltage above 3.0V is desirable. The higher VGS, the lower RDSon.

The Miller plateau in Figure 14 indicates a VGS of 3V will easily turn the device on.

This FET has a very high input capacitance (Ciss in the datasheet). Use a resistor in series with the gate to limit the drive current. Use diodes to protect the micro.

^{simulate this circuit – Schematic created using CircuitLab}