A Flexible Loss-Minimizing and Stress-Sharing Switch Cell for Power Converters

A switch cell named split-cell for power converters is proposed. Basically it is composed of two split bridge cells with identical power ratings. Two small resonant inductors are introduced to enable zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) operation of the split-cell. An external snubber capacitor can also be employed to further reduce turn-off losses of all the switches. With flexible and smooth mode-changing operation, the two internal bridge cells can perfectly share the stresses. Simulations and experiments have been conducted. The results have verified the expected performance for the split-cell. The split-cell can be used in high power and high frequency applications to reduce system losses, stresses, and improve reliability.