Search Results (6)

This paper introduces a novel topology called the dual-path step-down converter with auxiliary switches to minimize voltage stress and enable wide voltage conversion ranges. The proposed dual-path step-down converter with auxiliary switches, which uses an inductor and flying capacitor as power conversion components, helps to reduce the voltage stress on the power switches. By adding auxiliary switches, the proposed topology achieves the same voltage conversion ratio range as that of a conventional buck converter. Additionally, soft-start technology is incorporated to reduce the initial inrush current. Furthermore, this paper introduces a system-level design procedure for DC-DC converters. Designed for low-power applications with lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, the proposed converter steps down the battery voltage to 1.2 V. With a 380 nH inductor and a 5 µF output capacitor, the converter attains a peak efficiency of 90% under the conditions of 2.7 V to 1.2 V conversion. Full article

Grid-connected inverters (GCI) are commonly used in PV system applications to generate a regulated AC current to feed into the grid. Transformerless inverters are the most advanced inverters that are used in industry, which provide efficiency with smaller size and lower cost. This paper proposes a grid-connected single-phase transformerless inverter with the technology of common ground and the virtual DC bus concept. In this topology, the grid neutral is connected directly to the PV ground, which generates a constant common mode voltage (CMV), thus leading to the elimination of the leakage current caused by the PV array’s parasitic capacitance. The proposed inverter has a buck–boost circuit with a flying capacitor to generate the DC bus for a negative power cycle, four switches, and two diodes. A unipolar sinusoidal pulse width modulation (SPWM) technique is used which reduces the output filter requirements. In addition, only one switch carries the load current during the active states of both the negative and positive power cycle, thus minimizing the conduction losses. One more advantage presented in the proposed inverter is its ability to charge the flying capacitor during all operation states due to the existence of the buck–boost circuit. Design and theoretical calculations were conducted in this paper to optimize the losses. Moreover, the PSIM simulation was used to validate the proposed topology inverter, verify the performance by showing leakage current elimination, and achieve unipolar voltage in the output bus. The simulation results show a peak efficiency of 98.57% for a 2 kW inverter, which agrees with the theoretical calculations. Full article

Fly-buck converter is a multi-output converter with the structure of a synchronous buck converter structure on the primary side and a flyback converter structure on the secondary side, and can be utilized in various applications due to its many advantages. In terms of control, the primary side of the fly-buck converter has the same structure as a synchronous buck converter, allowing the constant-on-time (COT) control to be applied to the fly-buck converter. However, due to the inherent energy transfer principle, the primary-side output voltage regulation of COT controlled fly-buck converters may be poor, which can deteriorate the overall converter performance. Therefore, the primary output capacitor must be carefully designed to improve the voltage regulation characteristics. In this paper, a theoretical analysis of the output voltage regulation in COT controlled fly-buck converter is conducted, and based on this, a design guideline for the primary output capacitor considering the output voltage regulation is presented. The validity of the analysis and design guidelines was verified using a 5 W prototype of the COT controlled fly-buck converter for telecommunication auxiliary power supply. Full article

This paper presents a study of the nonlinear dynamic behavior a flying capacitor four-level three-cell DC-DC buck converter. Its stability analysis is performed and its stability boundaries is determined in the multi-dimensional paramertic space. First, the switched model of the converter is presented. Then, a discrete-time controller for the converter is proposed. The controller is is responsible for both balancing the flying capacitor voltages from one hand and for output current regulation. Simulation results from the switched model of the converter under the proposed controller are presented. The results show that the system may undergo bifurcation phenomena and period doubling route to chaos when some system parameters are varied. One-dimensional bifurcation diagrams are computed and used to explore the possible dynamical behavior of the system. By using Floquet theory and Filippov method to derive the monodromy matrix, the bifurcation behavior observed in the converter is accurately predicted. Based on justified and realistic approximations of the system state variables waveforms, simple and accurate expressions for these steady-state values and the monodromy matrix are derived and validated. The simple expression of the steady-state operation and the monodromy matrix allow to analytically predict the onset of instability in the system and the stability region in the parametric space is determined. Numerical simulations from the exact switched model validate the theoretical predictions. Full article

Although the capacity of a battery with a small form factor is extremely low, demand for long usage time of Internet of Things (IoT) products is increasing. Owing to this limitation of the battery, power management integrated circuits (PMICs) are used for extending the battery usage time with high efficiency. In particular, since IoT devices are mostly in the sleep mode in the idle state, PMICs should achieve high efficiency for ultralight loads in the sleep mode as well as for heavy loads in the active mode. In this paper, an accurate bang-bang zero-current detector (to prevent a reverse inductor current) and a triple-mode switched inductor-capacitor dc-dc buck converter with a reusable flying capacitor are presented; these techniques can maintain high efficiency over a wide load current range. The proposed buck converter was fabricated in a 0.18-μm 1P4M CMOS process. A power conversion efficiency exceeding 85% was achieved in the load range of 100 µA to 300 mA. Full article

The interleaved buck converter with an extended duty cycle is analyzed in terms of unexplored parasitic switching states that diminish the switch utilization and its safety due to high-magnitude charging and discharging currents. The analysis explains the origin of the states and their effects and demonstrates their correlation with the existing voltage ripple on flying capacitors. The article further demonstrates that the voltage ripple can no longer be arbitrarily chosen as parasitic states emerge whenever the ripple exceeds an identified critical value being equal to the twofold voltage drop on the diode. A simple design criterion for flying capacitance is proposed. For a limited set of battery-powered DC–DC converters, a solution permitting the use of smaller capacitance by adding an extra switch is proposed. The derived findings are verified using experimental and simulation results. Full article