Soft-switching in single-stage AC-DC PWM full-bridge converters

Soft-switching in single-stage AC-DC pulse width modulated (PWM) full-bridge converters is investigated in this paper. This is done by examining an example converter that uses an active auxiliary circuit to help it achieve soft-switching for an extended load range. In the paper, the operation of the example converter is explained in detail, considerations for the design and implementation of the auxiliary circuit components are discussed, and experimental results obtained from a prototype are presented. Conclusions on the usefulness of soft-switching techniques in single-stage PWM full-bridge converters in general are made by comparing the efficiency of the example converter operating with and without the auxiliary circuit.