HV resonant converter for photomultipliers tube bases

A newly developed parallel resonant DC-DC high-voltage converter for photomultiplier bases is presented. The converter makes use of the leakage inductance and secondary-side stray capacitance of its set-up transformer to form a resonant circuit. A Cockcroft-Walton multiplier then generates high voltage from the intermediate voltage of the transformer secondary. Regulation is closed loop and provides an output that is a multiple of an analog reference voltage. For digital systems, a digital-to-analog converter drives the reference. This design features low power dissipation, low electromagnetic-interference emission, relative ease of remote operation, and the elimination of HV cables