A review of soft-switched DC-AC converters

Soft-switching techniques have recently been applied in the design of DC-AC power converters, in order to achieve better performance, higher efficiency and higher power density. A substantial number of new topologies for different applications has been developed, however the amount of work that has been done in this field is not widely known. This paper is an attempt to classify the soft-switched DC-AC topologies in a simple and generic way. The topology classifications are based on the location of the resonant network (load, inverter bridge, and bus), the characteristic of switching waveforms (zero-voltage switching or zero-current switching), and the type of resonance (series or parallel), operating principles, performance, and design limitations are discussed. Some possible industrial applications of soft-switched DC-AC power converters are also addressed.