Noise characteristics of DC-DC boost converters: experimental validation and performance evaluation

The purpose of this paper is to quantify existing random noise in a pulse-width modulated (PWM) switching DC-DC boost converter. A DC-DC boost converter performance under the influence of random noise is studied. We experimentally verify the existence of noise and measure its statistical properties on the operating characteristics of the boost converter. A converter model that captures the effect of these inherent random noises on the overall behavior of a practical converter is presented. Existing disturbances are lumped and modeled as switching time uncertainties. We also propose a performance index quantifying the converter performance. This index is known as mean first passage time (MFPT). Comparison between this stochastic performance index, MFPT, and a deterministic counterpart, critical energy, under the presence of realistic disturbances is presented.