Power Switches and Overview of Basic Power Converters

This chapter presents the basic principles and characteristics of the main power switches Furthermore, an overview of the principal power an electronics converter is furnished, highlighting the main characteristics for each type of topology. Semiconductor power devices are the center piece of the power electronics converters. Before dealing specifically with pulse-width modulation (PWM) converters processing alternating current (ac) voltage this chapter considers a large variety of power conversion possibilities. The converters studied in this chapter include dc-dc, dc-ac, ac-dc, and ac-ac converters, as well as voltage-, and current-source converters. The chapter presents the ideal characteristics of the major power switches available in the market, highlighting their static and dynamic features. It shows the real characteristics of such semiconductor devices, sorted in terms of dynamic characteristics. The chapter describes basic power electronics converters.