Title :
Role of the amplifying gate in the turn-on process of involute structure thyristors
Author :
Sankaran, Venkateswara A. ; Hudgins, Jerry L. ; Portnoy, William M.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Electr. & Comput. Eng., South Carolina Univ., Columbia, SC, USA
fDate :
4/1/1990 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
The switching characteristics of involute thyristors with and without the amplifying gate structure are discussed. The effects of peak gate currents (10-100 A) on the anode current di/dt, switching delay, and energy loss in both types of devices are presented. The performance of the devices without the amplifying gate was far superior than that of the devices with the amplifying gate. A model is presented to explain this difference. Thyristors without the amplifying gate successfully switched anode currents on the order of 12.6 kA, at a di/dt of 100000 A/μs, from an anode voltage of 2 kV on a single-shot basis
Keywords :
amplification; semiconductor switches; thyristors; 10 to 100 A; 12.6 kA; 2 kV; amplifying gate; anode current; anode voltage; energy loss; involute structure thyristors; peak gate currents; single-short switching measurements; switching characteristics; switching delay; turn-on process; Anodes; Delay effects; Electronic equipment testing; Laser radar; Pulse measurements; Pulse modulation; Pulse power systems; Switches; Thyristors; Voltage;
Journal_Title :
Power Electronics, IEEE Transactions on
