The objective of this thesis is to establish an electromagnetic energy conversion mechanism that is suitable for electric power generation from solar thermal energy. Based on the generator design and thorough electromagnetic path design, a tubular linear generator system design will be proposed. The stator armature with three-phase concentrated windings mounted on a slotless structure is targeted to be implemented for this structure of the generator design, and a special designed of two-segmental Halbach permanent magnet array will be installed on the mover to fulfill the desired tubular linear generator construction. From detailed magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) analysis and three-dimensional finite element analyses, the feasibility and applicability of the proposed machine system concepts will be verified. Finally, the steady-state operational characteristic of this generator have been estimated cinfirm the design objectives.

Linear and nonlinear microwave properties of chemical vapor deposition (CVD)-grown graphene are characterized by incorporating a coplanar waveguide (CPW) transmission-line test structure. The intrinsic linear transport properties (S-parameters) of the graphene sample are measured and extracted via a deembedding procedure and then fitted with an equivalent circuit model up to 10 GHz. A statistical uncertainty analysis based on multiple measurements is implemented to esti- mate the error of the extracted graphene linear parameters as well. Nonlinear properties (second- and third-order harmonics as a function of fundamental input power) of the sample are also measured with a fundamental input signal of 1 GHz. Clear harmonics generated from graphene are observed, while no obvious fundamental power saturation is seen. The measured nonlinearity is applied in a graphene patch antenna case study to understand its influence on potential applications in terms of third-order intermodulation levels.

The characterization and modeling of piezoelectric transformers are studied and developed for use in electronic ballasts. By replacing conventional L-C resonant tanks with piezoelectric transformers, inductor-less piezoelectric transformer electronic ballasts have been developed for use in fluorescent lamps. The piezoelectric transformer is a combination of piezoelectric actuators as the primary side and piezoelectric transducers as the secondary side, both of which work in longitudinal or transverse vibration mode. These actuators and transducers are both made of piezoelectric elements, which are composed of electrode plates and piezoelectric ceramic materials. Instead of the magnetic field coupling between the primary and secondary windings in a conventional magnetic core transformer, piezoelectric transformers transfer electrical energy via electro-mechanical coupling that occurs between the primary and secondary piezoelectric elements for isolation and step-up or step-down voltage conversion. Currently, there are three major types of piezoelectric transformers: Rosen, thickness vibration mode, and radial vibration mode, all three of which are used in DC/DC converters or in electronic ballasts for fluorescent lamps. Unlike the other two transformers, the characterization and modeling of the radial vibration mode piezoelectric transformer have not been studied and developed prior to this research work. Based on the piezoelectric and wave equations, the physics-based equivalent circuit model of radial vibration mode piezoelectric transformers is derived and verified through characterization work. Besides the major vibration mode, piezoelectric transformers have many spurious vibration modes in other frequency ranges. An improved multi-branch equivalent circuit is proposed, which more precisely characterizes radial vibration mode piezoelectric transformers to include other spurious vibration modes in wide frequency ranges, as compared with the characterizations achieved by prior circuits. Since the equivalent circuit of piezoelectric transformers is identical to the conventional L-C resonant tank used in electronic ballasts for fluorescent lamps, piezoelectric transformers replace the conventional L-C resonant tank in order to reduce the amount and cost of electronic components for the electronic ballasts. With the inclusion of the radial vibration mode piezoelectric transformer, the design and implementation of inductor-less piezoelectric transformer electronic ballast applications have been completed. / Ph. D.

<p>This thesis investigates simulation of synchronous machines using a novel Magnetic Equivalent Circuit (MEC) model. The proposed model offers sufficient detail richness for design calculations, while still keeping the simulation time acceptably short.</p><p>Different modeling methods and circuit alternatives are considered. The selected approach is a combination of several previous methods added with some new features. A detailed description of the new model is given. The flux derivative is chosen as the magnetic flow variable which enables a description with standard circuit elements. The model is implemented in dq-coordinates to reduce complexity and simulation time. A new method to reflect winding harmonics is introduced.</p><p>Extensive measurements have been made to estimate the traditional dq-model parameters. These in combination with analytical calculations are used to determine the parameters for the new MEC model.</p><p>The model is implemented using the Dymola simulation program. The results are evaluated by comparison with measurements and FEM simulations. Three different operation cases are investigated; synchronous operation, asynchronous start and inverter fed operation. The agreement with measurements and FEM simulations varies, but it is believed that it can be improved by more work on the parameter determination.</p><p>The overall conclusion is that the MEC method is a useful approach for detailed simulation of synchronous machines. It enables proper modeling of magnetic saturation, and promises sufficiently detailed results to enable accurate loss calculations. However, the experience is that the complexity of the circuits should be kept at a reasonable low level. It is believed that the practical problems with model structure, parameter determination and the simulation itself will otherwise be difficult to master.</p>

The objective of this thesis is to report the concept of driving a non-contacting steel plate conveyance system with a DSP-based closed-loop control structure. The lift force of the system is first estimated from the magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) analysis, and the estimation results have been verified through three-dimensional finite element analysis (3-D FEA). Based on the force calculations and the fuzzy control theory, a closed-loop control structure has been designed. Through accurate signal detections, a real-time lift force control of the conveyance system can be realized. Finally, by feeding AC sources with DC bias to the stator windings of the motor, the lift and propulsive forces can be supplied to the steel plate simultaneously.

This dissertation presents two kinds of model extraction approaches, direct extraction and adaptive rational approximation methods, for establishing a novel broadband model, the modified T-equivalent circuit. Both methods skillfully use the simplified and decomposed schemes to dramatically reduce the complexity of modeled parameter extraction procedures and the needed computational efforts. As a result, any two-port microwave passive components or networks can be modeled efficiently using the proposed fully-analytical mathematic extraction formulations. In comparison with other broadband modeling techniques, the modified T-equivalent circuit can be constructed with much less elements. Model with such a compact character attributes the frequency responses of two decomposed circuits having obvious resonances to be identified and utilized for constituting equivalent circuits using only necessary elements. It is worth to note that the modified T-equivalent circuit model can utilize two expandable multilayer resonators to achieve very wide bandwidth but maintain model still in a single-stage equivalent circuit. Several successful modeling examples verified on the LTCC- and organic- embedded type of band-pass filters and inductors, the most crucial passive components to affect the performances of RF communication system, demonstrate the presented model with the superior character of accuracy and broadband indeed.

This thesis focuses on the structures of plated through holes in organic substrate, and discusses the high-frequency electrical characteristics of various plated through hole structures. This thesis consists of four parts. The first part introduces various kinds of vias in multilayer substrate. This content includes substrate drilling processes and capabilities, and discussions on plated through hole structures and their manufacture concerns. The second part focuses on actual measurement of plated through holes, and introduces high-frequency double-side probing technique. The difference from traditional high-frequency coplanar probing measurement is also discussed. The third part focuses on the high-frequency simulation by full-wave software ¡V Ansoft HFSS, and discusses the effects of various excited source and model structures on simulations. Part4 focuses on developing the broadband equivalent circuit model based on the physical structures, and discusses the electrical characterization of different plated through holes, and provides the related design concept.

none

Switched Reluctance Machines (SRMs) are gaining more attention due to their simple and rugged construction, low manufacturing cost, and high-speed operation capability. An electromagnetic model of the machine is needed in the design and analysis processes. The required accuracy level of the model depends mainly on the application. Designing an SRM is an iterative process. Usually, finite element method (FEM) is employed in all design stages, which might require extensive computation burden. The magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) method is an alternative for typical FEM. MEC models require less computational resources and they can help determine the electromagnetic performance with a reasonable accuracy. The conventional MEC method can be challenging when modifying the motor geometry while conducting dynamic analysis with current control. This thesis proposes a reluctance mesh-based MEC model for SRMs that can overcome those challenges. Reluctance mesh-based MEC models are developed for 3-phase 6/4, 6/16, 12/8 SRMs and 4-phase 8/6, 8/10, and 16/12 SRMs. The implemented MEC-based modeling method is validated using FEM and experimental results. Acoustic noise and vibration is one of the shortcomings of an SRM. The radial force density in the airgap should be calculated before analyzing and mitigating acoustic noise and vibration. This thesis proposes a radial force density calculation method for SRMs using the proposed MEC model. Fourier series is used to calculate the harmonics of the radial force density. The results obtained from the MEC model are verified using FEM models. SRM is a promising candidate for electric propulsion systems. In the design process of an SRM, the motor geometry needs to be determined. This thesis applies the proposed MEC technique to the design process of a 3-phase 12/16 SRM for a high lift motor in the NASA Maxwell X-57 electric aircraft. The design is verified using the results computed from FEM. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Electric motors are utilized in our daily life in various applications such as washing machines, refrigerators, air conditioners, fans, vacuum cleaners, blenders, and many other devices and tools. Motors are widely used in residential, industrial, commercial, and transportation applications. Due to the environmental impact of burning fossil fuels, transportation systems are moving into electrified propulsion. Electric motors with lower cost and higher efficiency are on the path to replacing the traditional combustion engines in vehicles. Among the different electric motors available, switched reluctance motor (SRM) is becoming a promising candidate in future electrified transportation systems due to their simple construction. Developing a motor is a time-consuming and costly task. Therefore, it is essential to determine the characteristics of an SRM before manufacturing it. A mathematical framework is proposed in this thesis to address this problem. The proposed framework is capable of determining the characteristics of an SRM accurately.

Distributed power system (DPS) is widely adopted in Power supplies for the telecom, computer and network applications. Constant on-time current mode control and V2 control are widely used as point-of-load (POL) converters and voltage regulators (VR) in DPS systems. Series resonant converters (SRC) are widely used in aerospace systems and LLC resonant converters are widely used as Front-end converters in DPS systems. The technological innovations bring increasing demand for optimizing the dynamic performance of the switching regulators in these applications. There has been a strong desire to develop simple and accurate equivalent circuit models to facilitate the design of these converters. Constant on-time current-mode control has been widely used in POL and VRM converters. For multi-phase application, external ramp is required to improve jittering performance using pulse distribution method. Chapter II analyzes the effect of external ramp on small-signal model of constant on-time current mode control. It is found that external ramp brings additional dynamics by introducing a moving pole and a static zero. Next, a three-terminal switch model is proposed based on non-ideal current source concept, where the non-idealness of the current source is presented by a Re2-Le2 branch. Based on the proposed model, design guidelines are proposed based on either worst case design strategy or auto-tuning strategy. V2 control has advantages of simple implementation and fast transient response and is widely used in industry for POL and VR applications. However, the capacitor voltage sideband effect, which casues the instability problem when ceramic capacitors are employed, also needs to be taken into consideration in modeling. Chapter III proposed a unified equivalent circuit model of V2 control, the model is built based on non-ideal voltage source concept. The model represents capacitor voltage sideband effect with a Re2-Le2 branch, which forms the double pole by resonating with power stage output capacitor. The equivalent circuit model is a complete model and can be used to examine all the transfer functions. Bsed on the unified equivalent circuit model, design guidelines for VR applications and general POL applications are provided in Chapter IV, for both constant on-time V2 control and constant frequency V2 control. For resonant converters, the small-sginal modelling is very challenging as some of the state variables do not have dc components but contain strong switching frequency component and therefore the average concept breaks down. For SRC, the equivalent circuit model proposed by E. Yang in [E26] based on the results by the extended describing function concept is the most successful model. However, the order of the equivalent circuit model is too high and the transfer functions are still derived based on numerical solution instead of analytical solutions. Chapter V proposes a methodology to simplify the fifth-order equivalent circuit of SRC to a third-order equivalent circuit. The proposed equivalent circuit model can be used to explain the beat frequency dynamics: when switching frequency is far away from resonant frequency, beat frequency will occur; when the two frequencies are close, beat frequency will disappear and another double pole which is determined by equivalent inductor and output capacitor will be formed. For the first time, analytical solutions are provided for all the transfer functions which are very helpful for feedback design. LLC resonant converters are widely adopted as front-end converter in distributed power system for the telecom, computer and network applications [F2]. Besides, LLC resonant converters are also very popular in other applications, such as LCD, LED and plasma display in TV and flat panels [F3]-[F6]; iron implanter arc power supply[F7]; solar array simulator in photovoltaic application[F8]; fuel cell applications[F9],and so on. For LLC, no simple equivalent circuit model is available and no analytical expressions of transfer functions are presented. Chapter VI proposes an equivalent circuit model for LLC resonant converter. When Fs ≥ Fo, Lm is clamped by the output voltage and LLC behaves very similar as SRC. As a result, the dynamic behavior is similar as SRC: when switching frequency is larger than resonant frequency, the beat frequency double pole show up and the circuit is third-order; when switching frequency is close to resonant frequency, beat frequency double pole disappear and a new double pole formed by equivalent inductor Le and equivalent output capacitor Cf show up. The circuit reduces to second order. When Fs<Fo, Lm participates in resonance during some time periods and the circuit is essentially a multiresonant structure. An approximated model is proposed where the equivalent resonant inductor is modified to include the effect of Lm. As a result, the double pole will move to a little lower frequency. For the first time, analytical solutions are provided for all the transfer functions which are very helpful for feedback design. In conclusion, the works shown in this dissertation focus on small-signal equivalent circuit modeling for Buck converters with advanced control schemes and also resonant converters. The models are simple and accurate up to very high frequency range (1/2 fsw). / Ph. D.