With its unique features, photoconductive semiconductor switch (PCSS) is generally recognized today as a promising power electronic device. However, a major limitation of PCSS is its surprisingly low voltage threshold...With its unique features, photoconductive semiconductor switch (PCSS) is generally recognized today as a promising power electronic device. However, a major limitation of PCSS is its surprisingly low voltage threshold of surface flashover (SF). In this paper, an experimental study of surface flashover of a back-triggered PCSS is presented. The PCSSs with electrode gap of 18 mm are fabricated from liquid encapsulated czochralski (LEC) semi-insulating gallium arsenide (SI-GaAs), and they are either un-coated, or partly coated, or en- tirely coated PCSSs with high-strength transparent insulation. The SF fields of the PCSSs are measured and discussed. According to the experimental results, the high-dielectric-strength coating is efficient in both reducing the gas desorption from semiconductor and increasing the SF field: a well-designed PCSS can resist a voltage up to 20 kV under the repetition frequency of 30 Hz. The physical mechanism of the PCSS SF is analyzed, and the conclusion is made that having a channel structure, the SF is the breakdown of the contaminated dielectric layer at the semiconductor-ambient dielectric interface. The non-uniform distribution of the surface field and the gas desorption due to thermal effects of semiconductor surface currents are key factors causing the SF field reduction.展开更多
基金Project supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China （50837005, 5110 7099）, Foundation of the State Key Laboratory of Electrical Insulation for Power Equip- ment （EIPE09203）.
文摘With its unique features, photoconductive semiconductor switch (PCSS) is generally recognized today as a promising power electronic device. However, a major limitation of PCSS is its surprisingly low voltage threshold of surface flashover (SF). In this paper, an experimental study of surface flashover of a back-triggered PCSS is presented. The PCSSs with electrode gap of 18 mm are fabricated from liquid encapsulated czochralski (LEC) semi-insulating gallium arsenide (SI-GaAs), and they are either un-coated, or partly coated, or en- tirely coated PCSSs with high-strength transparent insulation. The SF fields of the PCSSs are measured and discussed. According to the experimental results, the high-dielectric-strength coating is efficient in both reducing the gas desorption from semiconductor and increasing the SF field: a well-designed PCSS can resist a voltage up to 20 kV under the repetition frequency of 30 Hz. The physical mechanism of the PCSS SF is analyzed, and the conclusion is made that having a channel structure, the SF is the breakdown of the contaminated dielectric layer at the semiconductor-ambient dielectric interface. The non-uniform distribution of the surface field and the gas desorption due to thermal effects of semiconductor surface currents are key factors causing the SF field reduction.
文摘半导体激光二极管触发下砷化镓(Ga As)光导开关工作于雪崩模式,为此设计了异面体结构的Ga As光导开关以提高开关场强。设计的开关芯片厚度为2 mm,电极间隙为3 mm,利用半导体激光二极管对开关进行触发实验。当开关充电电压超过8 k V后,开关输出脉冲幅度显著增强,输出脉冲前沿快于光脉冲,开关开始雪崩工作模式。随着开关电场不断增加,开关输出电压幅值也线性增加,但开关输出波形没有改变。对开关抖动进行测试,其测试结果显示开关偏压对抖动影响很大,随着开关偏压增加,开关抖动减小,当开关偏压升至15 k V时,开关获得最小抖动约500 ps。
