Modeling and Optimal Design of Magnetic Drive for High-Voltage Nanosecond Marx Generator

All-solid-state high-voltage pulse generators are widely used in many applications, such as medical lasers and plasma generators. The rise time is a crucial parameter for the generator. This paper focuses on the modeling and optimal design of Marx pulse generator based on silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs and magnetic drive. First, based on the model of toroidal transformer and the equivalent circuit model of SiC MOSFETs, the electromagnetic transient model of the Marx generator with the magnetic drive is established to analyze the influence of circuit parameters on the rise time. Then, the toroidal transformer with shell-type coil structure is proposed, which has a lower leakage inductance. Furthermore, a leakage inductance model is established for the novel transformer structure, and the optimal design is carried out. Finally, the Marx generator test platform is built to validate the model and optimization method. The test results indicate that the pulse generator proposed in this paper has a pulse rise time of 20 ns under the condition of 2 kV/20 A, which represents a 33.3% increase in performance compared to the proposed Marx generator. © 2025 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan and Wiley Periodicals LLC.