LLC resonant converters have been a popular choice for DC-DC converters due to their high efficiency, high power density, and hold-up capability in power supplies for communication systems, datacenters, consumer electronics, and automobiles. With the rapid development of wide-bandgap devices and novel magnetic materials, the push for higher switching frequencies to achieve higher power densities at lower costs is gaining traction. To demonstrate high efficiency and high power density, the Center for Power Electronics Systems (CPES) at Virginia Tech designed an 800W, 1MHz 400V/12V LLC converter for future datacenters, which could achieve a peak efficiency of 97.6% and a power density of 900 W/in3. However, with the ever-increasing demand for online services, the performance of power delivery must also be simultaneously improved to keep pace with the demand. The focus of this thesis is improving the performance of CPES’ previous 400V/12V LLC converter by investigating different aspects of its design and operation. Ultimately, design guidelines are proposed, and improvements are demonstrated to effectively achieve higher efficiency and higher power density than the previous CPES converter. Multiple aspects of the LLC converter’s design and structure are investigated to further improve its performance, and three main areas are the focus of this thesis. The output-side termination design of the planar transformer is investigated and modeled, and design guidelines for filter capacitor selection are provided for optimal efficiency. Next, the existing shielding technique for matrix transformers, which helps reduce common-mode (CM) noise without compromising on efficiency, is investigated for asymmetry and current-sharing issues, and modifications have been proposed to improve its efficiency. Thirdly, the LLC converter’s switching frequency is optimized to improve its performance over the previous CPES converter. Finally, the hardware results with the proposed improvements are demonstrated, and the converter’s performance is compared with the previous CPES converter as well as other recent proposed solutions. / M.S. / The electricity demand by datacenters has been growing exponentially over the past few decades, especially due to the boom of artificial intelligence in addition to other internet services. This has resulted in a requirement to continually improve the efficiencies of the power delivery from the grid, through the datacenter power architecture, and finally to the loads on the server racks. The overall datacenter power architecture has been improved over time to improve the total efficiency. However, the performance of each stage along the power architecture must be improved to keep in pace with the energy demand. The focus of this thesis is to improve the performance of the 400V/12V DC-DC stage for future datacenters. Previously, the Center for Power Electronics Systems (CPES) at Virginia Tech developed a 1MHz 800W 400V/12V LLC converter with 97.6% peak efficiency and 900W/in3 power density. However, the performance of the converter must be further improved to stay ahead of the competition and keep in pace with the increasing energy demand. Multiple aspects of the LLC converter’s design and structure are investigated to further improve its performance, and three main areas are the focus of this thesis. Firstly, the high-frequency termination design, or how different components are interconnected and arranged, is studied, and a capacitance selection guideline is proposed to maximize the efficiency. Next, the existing shielding technique for matrix transformers, which helps reduce common-mode (CM) noise without compromising on efficiency, is investigated for asymmetry and current-sharing issues, and modifications have been proposed to improve its efficiency. Thirdly, the LLC converter’s switching frequency is optimized to improve its performance over the previous CPES converter. Finally, the hardware results with the proposed improvements are demonstrated, and the converter’s performance is compared with the previous CPES converter as well as other recent proposed solutions.

The growing demand for high voltage, compact pulsed power supplies has gained great attention. It requires power supplies with high power density, low profile and high efficiency. In this thesis, topologies and techniques are investigated to meet and exceed these challenges. Non-isolation type topologies have been used for this application. Due to the high voltage stress of the output, non-isolation topologies will suffer severe loss problems. Extremely low switching frequency will lead to massive magnetic volume. For non-isolation topologies, PWM converters can achieve soft switching to increase switching frequency. However, for this application, due to the large voltage regulation range and high voltage transformer nonidealities, it is difficult to optimize PWM converters. Secondary diode reverse recovery is another significant issue for PWM techniques. Resonant converters can achieve ZCS or ZVS and result in very low switching loss, thus enabling power supplies to operate at high switching frequency. Furthermore, the PRC and LCC resonant converter can fully absorb the leakage inductance and parasitic capacitance. With a capacitive output filter, the secondary diode will achieve natural turn-off and overcome reverse recovery problems. With a three-level structure, low voltage MOSFETs can be applied for this application. Switching frequency is increased to 200 kHz. In this paper, the power factor concept for resonant converters is proposed and analyzed. Based on this concept, a new methodology to measure the performance of resonant converters is presented. The optimal design guideline is provided. A novel constant power factor control is proposed and studied. Based on this control scheme, the performance of the resonant converter will be improved significantly. Design trade-offs are analyzed and studied. The optimal design aiming to increase the power density is investigated. The parallel resonant converter is proven to be the optimum topology for this application. The power density of 31 W/inch3 can be achieved by using the PRC topology with the constant power factor control. / Master of Science

The LLC resonant converter has been widely used as a DC-DC converter due to its high efficiency, high power density and hold-up capability in power supplies for communication systems, computers and consumer electronics. Use of the high-frequency LLC converter has also been increasing in recent years due to its high power density and integrated magnetics, which reduce the total cost. With the fast development of wideband gap devices and novel magnetic materials, the trend of pushing switching frequency higher continues. However, the control characteristics of the LLC resonant converter are much more complex than that of the PWM converter due to the dynamics of the resonant tank. This paper employs state-trajectory analysis to describe and analyze the behavior of the resonant tank. Control methods based on state-trajectory analysis were used to solve the challenges in the control of the LLC resonant converter, including unpredictable dynamics, burst mode for light-load efficiency, soft start-up and short circuit protection. Additionally, digital controllers are gradually taking the place of analog controllers in the control of the LLC resonant converter due to the advantages of the digital controllers over the analog controllers, such as their ability to be flexible and re-configurable, capable of non-linear control, and able to communicate with other controllers. Among the digital controllers, cost-effective microcontrollers (MCU) are preferred for industrial applications. Because of the advantages of the state-trajectory control and the industrial preference in the cost-effective digital controllers, it would be of great benefit to apply state-trajectory control to high-frequency LLC converters with cost-effective digital controllers. This thesis investigates the impact of digital delay on state-trajectory control. Simplified Optimal Trajectory Control (SOTC) for LLC converters is further simplified so that SOTC can be achieved with cost-effective digital controllers. Furthermore, the limitations caused by digital controller are explained in detail, and methods are proposed to apply the SOTC to high frequency LLC converter is proposed. A detailed analysis of fast load transient response, soft start-up, burst mode for light-load efficiency and synchronous rectification (SR) driving is provided. Multi-step SOTC for fast load transient response is proposed to apply cost-effective digital controllers to high-frequency LLC converters; SOTC for soft start-up with only sensing Vo is proposed to minimized the impact of digital delay on state-trajectory control; SOTC for burst mode with multi-step is proposed to eliminate the limitation of minimum off-time caused by digital controllers in constant burst-on time control; a generalized adaptive SR driving method using the ripple counter concept is proposed to significantly reduce controller resource utilization for the SR control of high-frequency LLC converters. The whole control system is demonstrated on a 500kHz 1kW 400V/12V LLC converter with a 60MHz MCU, which integrates all the proposed control methods. / Master of Science

With the rise in demand for renewable energy sources, photovoltaics have become increasingly popular as a means of reducing household dependence on the utility grid for power. But solar panels generate dc electricity, a dc to ac inverter is required to allow the energy to be used by the existing ac electrical distribution. Traditional full bridge inverters are able to accomplish this, but they suffer from many problems such as low efficiency, large size, high cost, and generation of electrical noise, especially common mode noise. Efforts to solve these issues have resulted in improved solutions, but they do not eliminate all of the problems and even exaggerate some of them. Soft switching inverters are able to achieve high efficiency by eliminating the switching losses of the power stage switches. Since this action requires additional components that are large and have additional losses associated with them, these topologies have traditionally been limited to higher power levels. The resonant snubber inverter is a soft switching topology that eliminates many of these problems by taking advantage of the bipolar switching action of the power stage switches. This allows for a significant size reduction in the additional parts and elimination of common mode noise, making it an ideal candidate for lower power levels. Previous attempts to implement the resonant snubber inverter have been hampered by low efficiency due to parasitics of the silicon devices used, but, with recent developments in new semiconductor technologies such as silicon carbide and gallium nitride, these problems can be minimized and possibly eliminated. The goal of this thesis is to design and experimentally verify a design of a resonant snubber inverter that takes advantage of new semiconductor materials to improve efficiency while maintaining minimal additional, parts, simple control, and elimination of common mode noise. A 600 W prototype is built. The performance improvements over previous designs are verified and compared to alternative high efficiency solutions along with a novel control technique for the auxiliary resonant snubber. A standalone and grid tie controller are developed to verify that the auxiliary resonant snubber and new auxiliary control technique does not complicate the closed loop control. / Master of Science

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.

Innovative nano-scale devices have been developed to enhance future circuit design to overcome physical barriers hindering complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology. Among the emerging nanodevices, resonant tunneling diodes (RTDs) have demonstrated promising electronic features due to their high speed switching capability and functional versatility. Great circuit functionality can be achieved through integrating heterostructure field-effect transistors (HFETs) in conjunction with RTDs to modulate effective negative differential resistance (NDR). However, RTDs are intrinsically suitable for implementing threshold logic rather than Boolean logic which has dominated CMOS technology in the past. To fully take advantage of such emerging nanotechnology, efficient design methodologies and design automation tools for threshold logic therefore become essential. In this thesis, we first propose novel programmable logic elements (PLEs) implemented in threshold gates (TGs) and multi-threshold threshold gates (MTTGs) by exploring RTD/ HFET monostable-bistable transition logic element (MOBILE) principles. Our three-input PLE can be configured through five control bits to realize all the three-variable logic functions, which is, to the best of our knowledge, the first single RTD-based structure that provides complete logic implementation. It is also a more efficient reconfigurable circuit element than a general look-up table which requires eight configuration bits for three-variable functions. We further extend the design concept to construct a more versatile four-input PLE. A comprehensive comparison of three- and four-input PLEs provides an insightful view of design tradeoffs between performance and area. We present the mathematical proof of PLE's logic completeness based on Shannon Expansion, as well as the HSPICE simulation results of the programmable and primitive RTD/HFET gates that we have designed. An efficient control bit generating algorithm is developed by using a special encoding scheme to implement any given logic function. In addition, we propose novel techniques of formulating a given threshold logic in conjunctive normal form (CNF) that facilitates efficient SAT-based equivalence checking for threshold logic networks. Three different strategies of CNF generation from threshold logic representations are implemented. Experimental results based on MCNC benchmarks are presented as a complete comparison. Our hybrid algorithm, which takes into account input symmetry as well as input weight order of threshold gates, can efficiently generate CNF formulas in terms of both SAT solving time and CNF generating time. / Master of Science

A steady-state analysis of a Constant-Frequency Parallel-Resonant Converter operating in the Clamped-Mode is performed for the continuous-conduction mode of operation (CCM). Unified closed-form expressions are derived for such circuit characteristics as the control to output, boundary conditions for natural commutation and forced commutation, and stresses on power devices. These characteristics are experimentally verified and simulated by using IO-SPICE. Considerations for practical design are discussed based on hardware operating at 300KHz, with a 300V input, 5V and 300W output. / M.S.

This paper presents a single-stage inverter with variable frequency modulation (VFM) based on LLC resonant converter. And LLC converter is a common topology of dc/dc conversion. LLC resonant converter can achieve high efficiency and soft-switching performance. Since the dc gain curve of the single-resonant LLC converter is flat when the switching frequency is larger than the resonant frequency, namely fs>fr, an additional L-C series resonant branch is paralleled to the original resonant tank to introduce higher-order-harmonic resonant current and a zero-gain point to the gain curve. Higher-order-harmonics help to deliver power and the zero-gain point enlarges the gain range which improves output THD and reduces the switching frequency range. A 1.2 kW prototype is built to demonstrate the performance of the proposed inverter. Zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) and zero-current-switching (ZCS) are achieved on the primary side and secondary side, respectively. And 97.3% efficiency and 2.17% voltage THD are achieved at full load condition, while 97.2% efficiency and 3.2% voltage THD are achieved at half load condition. / M.S. / The inverter is widely used to connect renewable energy into the grid by converting dc to ac waveform, like photovoltaic (PV) technology. Basically, the two-stage topology is usually used. The inverter would consist of two stages working in high frequency, the first stage is dc/dc converter which can regulate the input voltage to the desired bus voltage for the second stage, and the second stage is dc/ac converter. The first stage works at a specific switching frequency, so it can be designed to achieve higher efficiency in dc/dc conversion. The second stage also works at high switching frequency and converts dc to ac commonly by using SPWM which changes the duty cycle ratio in a sinusoidal pattern. The single-stage inverter only has one stage working in high frequency while the second stage works at twice line frequency. The first stage converts dc to rectified ac waveform and the second stage unfolds it to ac. The topology of LLC resonant converter being applied for the first stage of the single-stage inverter has been proposed. This topology uses variable-frequency-modulation (VFM) which varying switching frequency on the primary side to output different voltage levels. And it achieves zero-voltage-switching (ZVS). However, LLC converter can hardly output very low voltage due to the flat voltage gain curve at high frequency. Also, LLC converter only transfers the fundamental harmonic component to the load. If the higher-order harmonic components help transfer power when the switching frequency equals the resonant frequency, the current shape will be more like a square wave and the peak of resonant current can be reduced. This thesis proposes a topology that has two L-C resonant branches in parallel for the resonant tank in the converter. And the paralleled resonant branches produce a zero-gain frequency point into the gain curve so that the gain range is enlarged within the reduced switching frequency range and 3rd harmonic component of the resonant current helps to transfer power so that the rms value of resonant current can also be reduced.

The widespread adoption of photovoltaic (PV) and electric vehicle (EV) technologies is crucial for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. A Multi-Port Converter (MPC) connects multiple PV panels, improving efficiency and reducing costs. In EVs, MPCs extend battery lifespan by adding energy sources, enhancing system quality beyond reliance on Li-ion batteries. This dissertation proposes a Quad-input LLC topology for PV microinverters. It utilizes a single LLC resonant tank and two Y switches configurations. An MPPT control strategy based on Perturb and Observe (P&O) method ensures independent MPPT for each panel. The zero-voltage switching (ZVS) is achieved across all switches for wide input range and load variations. A 500W prototype validates the operation, achieving peak efficiency of 94.3% with individual MPP tracking. Also, a high gain DC-DC converter for hybrid inverter is proposed. The proposed converter can be used in the PV panel level for hybrid inverter where the low voltage of PV must be increased to DC-link voltage. The proposed converter uses two inductors connected either in series or parallel during discharge or charge mode. The designed hybrid system based on this high gain converter has three ports that can be connected to PV, battery, and grid/ac load. In addition, a bidirectional hybrid DC-DC converter (BHDC) is proposed for hybrid energy storage systems in electric vehicles. The converter can connect both batteries and supercapacitors to the DC-link. With a wide voltage-gain range, low voltage stress on power switches, and common ground between low and high voltage ports, the converter achieves zero-voltage switching (ZVS) via synchronous rectification, improving efficiency. A 300W prototype with a 94.8% maximum efficiency in step-up mode and 94.2% in step-down mode was built to validate the wide voltage gain range and voltage control scheme.

This thesis describes a theoretical and experimental investigation of wireless energy transfer between high-Q resonant radiofrequency (RF) oscillators. A model used by Kurs \emph{et al} \cite{Kurs_original} was recast in a form which enabled expression of the results in terms of measurable electrical quantities. This model was tested using circular resonant copper loop antennas at a frequency near 10 MHz. Accurate calculation of the mutual inductance between loops was required in order to predict the loop coupling parameters, and was carried out using a custom-written computer code. Two resonant loop antenna RF oscillators were first used to check that the model predictions were accurate in the two-oscillator case. Based on the success of these tests, the model was extended to the case of three oscillators in two different configurations, the first having two receiving oscillators, and the second having two transmitting oscillators. Model predictions for both configurations were experimentally tested over a range of coil separations and angular inclinations. These experimental tests confirmed the model's applicability in the three-oscillator regime, with significant deviations from the model only being observed when any pair of loops was in very close proximity (i.e. when the separation of loop centers was comparable to the loop diameter). This may have been be due to either nonlinear dielectric losses (due to large amplitude RF electric fields) spoiling the Quality factors Q of the loop antenna resonators, or to increased capacitive coupling between loops at short distances (not included in the current model), or both. Further investigation would be required to definitively establish the origin of the deviation from the model at short distances, but from an engineering point of view accurate modelling of the performance in the "close loop" regime is not critical since the primary purpose of wireless power transfer is to transmit power over a reasonable distance.