Analysis and Design of a Three-Level LLC Series Resonant Converter for High- and Wide-Input-Voltage Applications

In this paper, the analysis and design of a three-level LLC series resonant converter (TL LLC SRC) for high- and wide-input-voltage applications is presented. The TL LLC SRC discussed in this paper consists of two half-bridge LLC SRCs in series, sharing a resonant inductor and a transformer. Its main advantages are that the voltage across each switch is clamped at half of the input voltage and that voltage balance is achieved. Thus, it is suitable for high-input-voltage applications. Moreover, due to its simple driving signals, the additional circulating current of the conventional TL LLC SRCs does not appear in the converter, and a simpler driving circuitry is allowed to be designed. With this converter, the operation principles, the gain of the LLC resonant tank, and the zero-voltage-switching condition under wide input voltage variation are analyzed. Both the current and voltage stresses over different design factors of the resonant tank are discussed as well. Based on the results of these analyses, a design example is provided and its validity is confirmed by an experiment involving a prototype converter with an input of 400-600 V and an output of 48 V/20 A. In addition, a family of TL LLC SRCs with double-resonant tanks for high-input-voltage applications is introduced. While this paper deals with a TL LLC SRC, the analysis results can be applied to other TL LLC SRCs for wide-input-voltage applications.