Fast Transient Behavior of Thyristor Switches.
Abstract
The fast transient behavior of thyristor switches above thyristor switches above the recommended di/dt was investigated. Two types of thyristors in compression packages were tested. Both types are fast switching devices, differing principally in their gate-cathode geometries. One type is centered fired, while the other is slightly interdigitated. Two pulse forming networks were designed. The first was a twelve section, equal inductance, equal capacitance, type E PFN, whose output was a 100 microsceond pulse with a rise time of .5 microsecond. The second PFN was a 125 section equal inductance, equal capacitance, type E network whose output is a 10 microsecond pulse with a rise time of 10ns. Twenty devices, ten of each type, were electrically characterized initially. Five of each type switched the 10 microsecond PFN single-shot at step-wise increasing values of di/dt until the maximum available value was reached. The remaining ten devices were repetitively pulsed at a high di/dt, and recharacterized at logarithimic time intervals. Failure analysis consisted of the determination of gross faults by opening the packages and examining the device chip. Additional keywords: Test circuits, Pulsed power technology, Experimental data, Semiconductor switching devices, and Schematic diagrams.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 1985
- Accession Number
- ADA154109
Entities
People
- W. M. Protnoy
Organizations
- Texas Tech University