Design, analysis and simulation of magnetic biased inductors with saturation-gap

Permanent magnet biasing, is a known technique for increasing the energy storage capability of inductors operating in DC applications. The opposing flux introduced by a permanent magnet will extend the saturation flux limit of a given magnetic material. When full biasing of the core is achieved, the effective saturation current limit of a given inductor is doubled. This results in a smaller requirement in number of turns and area cross-section, allowing for smaller and/or more efficient inductors. By adding some switching elements, the benefits of biased inductors can also be used in AC applications. This paper presents a review of the scientific literature on biased hybrid inductors and the evolution of the used magnets and cores configurations. A recently developed biasing configuration, the saturation-gap, will also be analyzed and the design parameter will be identified using finite element software. The simulation results will be compared with empirical laboratory measurements on physical units.