A compact high-voltage pulse generator based on pulse transformerwith closed magnetic core

• Published in: Review of scientific instruments 2010-03, Vol.81 (3), p.033302-033302-7
• Main Authors: Zhang, Yu, Liu, Jinliang, Cheng, Xinbing, Bai, Guoqiang, Zhang, Hongbo, Feng, Jiahuai, Liang, Bo
• Format: Article
• ISSN: 0034-6748; 1089-7623
• DOI: 10.1063/1.3321494

A compact high-voltage nanosecond pulse generator, based on a pulse transformer with a closed magnetic core, is presented in this paper. The pulse generator consists of a miniaturized pulse transformer, a curled parallel strip pulse forming line (PFL), a spark gap, and a matched load. The innovative design is characterized by the compact structure of the transformer and the curled strip PFL. A new structure of transformer windings was designed to keep good insulation and decrease distributed capacitance between turns of windings. A three-copper-strip structure was adopted to avoid asymmetric coupling of the curled strip PFL. When the 31   μ F primary capacitor is charged to 2 kV, the pulse transformer can charge the PFL to 165 kV, and the 3.5   Ω matched load can deliver a high-voltage pulse with a duration of 9 ns, amplitude of 84 kV, and rise time of 5.1 ns. When the load is changed to 50   Ω , the output peak voltage of the generator can be 165 kV, the full width at half maximum is 68 ns, and the rise time is 6.5 ns.