Development of high step-up converter based on electric double-layer capacitors for DC plasma power supply

Abstract

Summary form only given. A various power supplies for generating the plasma have been studied for decades. DC supply based on electric double-layer capacitor (EDLC) banks was studied and developed in this paper. EDLC has many advantages such as high power density, high speed charging/discharging characteristics1. Although EDLC is suitable for pulsed power applications as prime power, voltage rating of EDLC is so low that it has been rarely used. We proposed the high step-up converter to generate the high voltage DC-pulse from prime power using EDLCs. Supplying the stable voltage and current is an important part in DC plasma process. In previous pulsed power system, intermediate energy storage and pulse forming line are required for compression and shaping of the pulse2. Proposed converter is able to perform the compression and shaping without them. This idea needs two important abilities; one is that the converter should have a high voltage gain. Another is that the converter could cope with rapidly decreasing input voltage. In this paper, we proposed the idea and defined the system using high step-up converter. Also, the converter was verified with simulation. Proposed system and idea will promote the fusion works combining pulsed power and power electronics. Also, the developed power supplies are able to provide proper power to various plasma applications3.