Photoconductive switch design and applications

Author

Howson, P.A. ; Miller, R. ; Ryder, D.M.

Author_Institution

Brighton Polytech., UK

fYear

1990

fDate

3-6 Jun 1990

Firstpage

461

Lastpage

464

Abstract

The material physics, design, and applications of photoconductive switch devices are described. The characteristics of several photoconductive materials and advantages over conventional semiconductor switch types are detailed. Possible applications for this technology are indicated. Two circuits that demonstrate the analog and pulse capabilities of photoconductive switch devices are detailed: a high-voltage, low-frequency generator and an impulse waveform generator. It is concluded that photoconductive switch devices offer definite advantages over conventional methods of generating extremely fast high-voltage electrical pulses, but further advances are required in the field of lasers before this technology can be applied on a day-to-day basis

Keywords

photoconducting devices; pulse generators; semiconductor switches; design; high-voltage electrical pulses; impulse waveform generator; low-frequency generator; material physics; photoconductive switch devices; pulse capabilities; Optical pulse generation; Photoconducting devices; Photoconducting materials; Photoconductivity; Physics; Pulse circuits; Semiconductor materials; Signal generators; Switches; Switching circuits;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Electrical Insulation, 1990., Conference Record of the 1990 IEEE International Symposium on

Conference_Location

Toronto, Ont.

ISSN

1089-084X

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/ELINSL.1990.109796

Filename

109796