Breakdown voltage

AC voltage is the line frequency of the mains. The impulse breakdown voltage is simulating lightning strikes,
and usually uses a 1.2 microsecond rise for the wave to
reach 90% amplitude then drops back down to 50% amplitude after 50 microseconds.[2]
Two technical standards governing performing these tests
are ASTM D1816 and ASTM D3300 published by
ASTM.[3]

2 Gases and vacuum

Main article: Gas discharge
In standard conditions at atmospheric pressure, air serves
as an excellent insulator, requiring the application of a
High voltage dielectric breakdown within a block of plexiglas
signicant voltage before breaking down (e.g. lightning).
In partial vacuum, this breakdown potential may decrease
The breakdown voltage of an insulator is the minimum
to an extent that two uninsulated surfaces with diervoltage that causes a portion of an insulator to become
ent potentials might induce the electrical breakdown of
electrically conductive.
the surrounding gas. This may damage an apparatus, as
For diodes, the breakdown voltage is the minimum re- breakdown is analogous to a short circuit.
verse voltage that makes the diode conduct in reverse.
In a gas, the breakdown voltage can be determined by
Some devices (such as TRIACs) also have a forward
Paschens Law.
breakdown voltage.
The breakdown voltage in a partial vacuum is represented
as[4][5]

Solids
[6]

Breakdown voltage is a characteristic of an insulator that

denes the maximum voltage dierence that can be applied across the material before the insulator collapses
and conducts. In solid insulating materials, this usually
creates a weakened path within the material by creating
permanent molecular or physical changes by the sudden
current. Within rareed gases found in certain types of
lamps, breakdown voltage is also sometimes called the
striking voltage.[1]

Vb =

Bpd
ln Apdln(ln(1+ 1se ))

where Vb is the breakdown potential in volts DC, A and B

are constants that depend on the surrounding gas, p represents the pressure of the surrounding gas, d represents
the distance in centimetres between the electrodes, and
se represents the Secondary Electron Emission Coecient.
A detailed derivation and some background information
is given in the article about Paschens law.

The breakdown voltage of a material is not a denite

value because it is a form of failure and there is a statistical probability whether the material will fail at a given
voltage. When a value is given it is usually the mean
breakdown voltage of a large sample. Another term is
also withstand voltage where the probability of failure at
a given voltage is so low it is considered, when designing
insulation, that the material will not fail at this voltage.

3 Diodes and other semiconductors

Breakdown voltage is a parameter of a diode that denes the largest reverse voltage that can be applied withTwo dierent breakdown voltage measurements of a ma- out causing an exponential increase in the current in the
terial are the AC and impulse breakdown voltages. The diode. As long as the current is limited, exceeding the
1

5 SEE ALSO
i
Breakdown

Reverse

Forward

vbr
vd

Diode I-V diagram

breakdown voltage of a diode does no harm to the diode.

In fact, Zener diodes are essentially just heavily doped
normal diodes that exploit the breakdown voltage of a
diode to provide regulation of voltage levels.

References

[1] J. M. Meek and J. D. Craggs, Electrical Breakdown of

Gases, John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, 1978.
[2] Emelyanov, A.A., Izv. Vyssh. Uchebn. Zaved., Fiz.,
1989, no. 4, p. 103.
[3] Kalyatskii, I.I., Kassirov, G.M., and Smirnov, G.V., Prib.
Tekh. Eksp., 1974, no. 4, p. 84.
[4] G. Cuttone, C. Marchetta, L. Torrisi, G. Della Mea, A.
Quaranta, V. Rigato and S. Zandolin, Surface Treatment
of HV Electrodes for Superconducting Cyclotron Beam
Extraction, IEEE. Trans. DEI, Vol. 4, pp. 218<223,
1997.
[5] H. Moscicka-Grzesiak, H. Gruszka and M. Stroinski, Inuence of Electrode Curvature on Predischarge Phenomena and Electric Strength at 50 Hz of a Vacuum
[6] R. V. Latham, High Voltage Vacuum Insulation: Basic concepts and technological practice, Academic Press,
London, 1995.

See also
Dielectric strength
Electrical breakdown
Avalanche breakdown
Avalanche diode
Paschens law - variation of Breakdown voltage of
gas related to pressure
Electrical treeing
Lichtenberg gure

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