Evaluation of 10 kV, 80 kA Si SGTO Switching Components for Army Pulsed Power Applications

The U.S. Army Research Lab (ARL) is investigating the switching capabilities of advanced silicon devices for high current pulsed power applications. These solid state switches are intended to replace more traditional vacuum switches. The benefits of these switches are higher dl/dt, peak power levels and current densities, increased reliability and lifetime, and smaller switch volume. The peak current achieved by the device was 83.3 kA, with a 10% to 90% rise time of 3.5 mus while a 0.263 MA²s without failure. The peak power of the device during this test shot was 78.7 MW. ARL is collaborating with Silicon Power Corp. (SPCO) to evaluate super-GTO performance and improve upon switch/buss bar packaging for pulsed power applications