Design and Implementation of a High Power Density Three-Level Parallel Resonant Converter for Capacitor Charging Pulsed-Power Supply

This paper describes the design and implementation of a prototype 30-kW (or 30-kJ/s) pulsed-power supply for capacitor charging. The system operates at 200-kHz maximum switching frequency, which is considerably higher than the conventional practice at this power level, leading to smaller passive components. A high power density of 143 W/in³ is achieved with the converter operating at a high ambient temperature of 65°C with 90°C cooling oil, by utilizing various technologies on topology, control, devices, passives, and thermal management. The experimental results demonstrate that the converter meets the performance requirements while achieving a high power density.