A NEW MODEL OF BIPOLAR POWER SUPPLIES FOR LNLS STEERING

MAGNETS USING FULL-BRIDGE TOPOLOGY

Cleber Rodrigues, Angelo Romeu Silva
Power Electronics Group – ELP
Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory – LNLS
Rua Giuseppe Máximo Scolfaro, 10.000
Campinas – SP - Brazil
clero@lnls.br

Abstract – This work presents the newest family of
steering magnet bipolar current sources developed at
LNLS, which will be used to replace the old ones. Unlike
previous models, the new 10V/10A power supplies are
fully switchmode type. The topology is based on a full-
bridge converter using PWM unipolar switching. This
paper presents the first results, such as current ripple,
stability and time response.
Since this active-shunt PS worked better than expected,
especially in terms of reliability, tests were performed with
modified units feeding steering magnets. The results were
satisfactory, what have encouraged to adopt the same
topology on the new family of steering magnet PS.
II. DESCRIPTION OF THE NEW MODEL OF POWER
SUPPLIES

Keywords – Bipolar Current Source, Full-bridge, Figure 1 shows the new steering magnet PS assembly and
Power supplies, Unipolar Switching. Figure 2 shows four units in a 3U rack. An external off-the-
shelf 24 V/30 A main PS feeds all units. Auxiliary +15 V /
I. INTRODUCTION -15V voltages also come from an external converter and feed
all units. This topology reduces both cost and size. Moreover,
The Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS), in the case of the main power supply, this solution helps to
located in Campinas-SP, has built and operated the first improve the reliability because it has the capability to feed all
Synchrotron Light Source in the southern hemisphere and the units at their maximum output currents, but the probability
only one in Latin America [1]. this happens is low, because the steering magnets PS usually
The synchrotron radiation is emitted by relativistic operate below their maximum output currents. Both auxiliary
electrons in a bending trajectory and this electron beam and main voltages come from a backplane, where the
needs stay in a stable orbit, with a maximum variation of few steering magnet PS connected to.
micrometers during many hours. A magnetic lattice,
involving hundreds of electromagnets, guarantees the stable
orbit. The steering magnets are part of the magnetic lattice,
and their function is to keep the electron beam as close as
possible to the ideal orbit. The current-source power supplies
(PS) feeding the steering magnets are bipolar with typical
output values of 10V at 10A.
Currently there are three families of PS feeding steering
magnets at LNLS, and they all have a linear regulation stage.
The oldest family was built in 1993, and it demands frequent
maintenance. Also, the regulation stage is completely linear,
leading to low efficiency, and the step-down transformers
operate at line frequency, hence their heavy weight and big
size. Finally, future implantation of fast orbit correction
creates the need for a faster step response, a requirement not
met by these old PS. For the reasons expressed above, it was
taken the decision to substitute the units of this old steering
magnet PS in the electron storage ring for a new model.
In [2] it was reported the replacement of the older family
by the third family, involving 10 units. Despite the fact that
this model had presented some very good results, such as
high stability, high power factor and low ripple, it still had
some problems during fast changes in its reference voltage,
damaging the bipolar transistors of the last regulation stage,
which operate in the linear region. Fig. 1. The new steering magnet power supply module.
On other hand, during this time a new PS model based on
full-bridge topology (therefore, completely switchmode) was The main specifications for the new steering magnet PS
designed, built and installed workin as Active Shunts [3]. are summarized below:

Fig. 2. Rack with 4 power supplies.
1) Maximum Output Voltage and Current: 10 V at 10 A,
bipolar.
2) Output current ripple and stability: better than 100ppm
relative to the output range, i.e. 2 mA. For the ripple
measurement is considered the rms value. The stability is
measured over a 12 hour period with a temperature variation
lower than 1oC.
3) Step Response: faster than 2ms for a 50mA step and to
stay within ±5% of the final value, for a 1Ω/30mH load.
The output current can be adjusted by an external voltage,
from -10 V to +10 V, or by the front keyboard, depending if
the power supply is working respectively in remote or local
mode. The keyboard also allows for choosing which
measurement will be displayed in the front panel (output
current, output current ripple, output voltage or external
reference voltage).
A TTL signal indicates some failures in the PS, and it is
available in the back connector. These failures can be a high
output current ripple or a high error between the output
current and its reference value. Also in the back connector
there are two other digital signals: an input signal to turn the
PS on remotely, and an output signal indicating that the PS
was successfully turned on.
Figure 3 shows a simplified schematic of the power circuit
of this power supply. The topology of this model is based on
full-bridge converter, using PWM unipolar switching [4]. In
this kind of switching, two identical PWM signals shifted by
180o drive each one of the opposite switches related to a
given output polarity (each switch in a side of the full-bridge,
Q1 and Q3, for example). The other pair of switches (Q2 and
Q4) is driven by the complementary signals. The main
advantages are lower output ripple, output frequency is twice
the switching frequency, no discontinuity close to null
values.
The feedback is made by a high precision 4-wires shunt,
whose signal is amplified by an isolated operational
amplifier. The regulation is made by a PI (proportional-
integral) controller. All these components are placed inside
an aluminum box to improve the susceptibility to thermal
drift and noise interference. Figure 4 shows a simplified
schematic of the regulation circuit.
Fig. 3. Simplified schematic of the power supply.
Fig. 4. Simplified regulation circuit.
The switches are very low Ron MOSFETs, and to drive
them were used IR2110 drive. The switching frequency was
adjusted in 40kHz, what gives an output frequency of 80kHz.
The output filter is a Praeg type [5].
When the power supply output is turned-on (what means
the load is connected to the converter across two relay
contacts), it is very important that the current go softly to the
adjusted value. So, when the output is turned-off, the
reference voltage is changed to zero, and there is a 10Ω
resistance that is connected to the output in order to allow the
feedback keeps the output voltage close to zero.
III. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS
Initially one prototype was built and tested. Because the
results were satisfactory, 10 new units were built and tested.
Eight units have just been installed in the Electron Storage
Ring and the first results are been obtained. Some results of
these tests performed both in laboratory as in the Storage
Ring are shown below.
The load used in all laboratory tests was a steering magnet
(26mH/0.3Ω) with a series resistance in order to reach the
nominal load resistance 1.0Ω. This additional series
resistance simulates the maximum cable loss.
Figure 5 shows the output current and voltage ripple for
10A, with a single unit turned-on. The rms value of the
current ripple for all units is lower than 1mA while the peak-
to-peak is close to 2mA (don’t taking in account the
switching frequency peaks). These values are very lower
than the voltage ripple (approximately 1V peak-to-peak) due
to the load inductance. For other output current values the
ripple is the same or even lower.
When others units are turned-on simultaneously, the
output current ripple increase, due to the ground loops caused
by the main and auxiliary power supply which are common
to all units, but also remaining within the specified value
(2mArms). Figure 6 shows the current ripple, for all units
turned-on and adjusted with +10A, in the Electron Storage
Ring, what means with the real load.

Fig. 5. Output Current Ripple (upper trace –Ch1), DC Output
Current (medium trace – Ch2) and Output Voltage Ripple (lower
trace – Ch3).
Fig. 6. Output Current Ripple for 4 units, all with +10A.
The ground loops also cause changes in the average output
current value when other unit is turned-on, turned-off or has
its value modified. Ground connections improvements were
made to keep these changes lower than 1mA, even for a 10A
step in other unit.
Figure 7 and 8 show the output voltage and current during
a transition, respectively from -25mA to +25mA and from
+25mA to -25mA, in order to get the step response of the
power supply. The time to reach 95% of the final value is
close to 1.6ms, in the first situation, and to 1.4ms, in the
second. The results to the same step amplitude but others
output current values are similar and for all units were faster
than 2ms.
Tests were also performed to 500mA and 5A step sizes,
for all units. While the result is basically the same for a
500mA step, for a 5A step the maximum output voltage
becomes important and the time response is greater and
depends of the output current value. But during the normal
operation of the synchrotron source the variations in the
steering magnet current never present a value so high,
normally staying below 50mA.
Fig. 7. Output Current (Ch1) and Voltage (Ch4), and Reference
Voltage (Ch3) during a -25mA to +25mA step.
Fig. 8. Output Current (Ch1) and Voltage (Ch4), and Reference
Voltage (Ch3) during a +25mA to -25mA step.
Figure 9 shows the frequency response of the power
supply for a 200mVpp sinusoidal input voltage, from 10Hz
to 10kHz. It can be observed that the cut-off frequency is
close to 450Hz. The PI parameters are adjusted in order to all
units have a frequency response very close to this, which
presents a good compromise between the output current
ripple and the step response time.
Figure 10 shows the result of the stability test during
almost 16 hours for +10A output current. The output current
was measured using a DCCT (DC Current Transformer), and
the reading interval was 5s. The output current error
(difference between the output value and the reference
voltage) had a variation of approximately 2.5mA. This value
exceeds the specified (2mA), but the room temperature
variation during this time was close to 3.5oC, as can be seen
also in figure 10, which is higher than the specified (1oC).

Fig. 9. Frequency Response to 200mVpp Input Signal.
Fig. 10. Stability Test for +10A.
Because the output current error follows the temperature
variation, with exception of the beginning of the test (when
we have the power supply warm-up), it is supposed that, for
lower temperature variations, the power supply will reach the
specifications. This can be proved by figure 11, where is
showed, for the same unit, a stability test during more than
14 hours, with a -10A output current. In this case, a little
lower room temperature variation (3oC) was enough to reach
the specification (2mA).
Stability tests were also performed for 0A output current,
and the result is better than to -10A and +10A.
Fig. 11. Stability Test for -10A.
The measured efficiency was close to 85%, for the
maximum load (10A/10V). This efficiency does not take in
account the consumption of the +15V/-15V auxiliary power
supply. The main power supply has also a 85% efficiency
(with 4 units at nominal load), so these power supplies
together have a 72% efficiency. If the auxiliary power supply
loss were taken in account, the whole system efficiency
decrease to 68%. Figure 12 shows the input voltage, current
and power for a rack with 4 units at nominal load (10V/10A).
The power factor for this situation is close to 97%, because
the off-the-shelf main power supply has internally a PFC
(Power factor Corrector).
Fig. 12. Input Voltage (Ch4), Current (Ch3) and Power (Matem.)
for a rack with 4 units at nominal load.
IV. CONCLUSION
The tests performed in laboratory and in the Electron
Storage Ring with the 10 first units of the new model of
power supply were satisfactory.
Despite of the fact the output current ripple obtained is
within the specified value, it could be still lower, adjusting
the PI parameters. But this would increase the power supply
response time, what is not desirable. So, the PI parameters
were adjusted to obtain the lower output current ripple with
the time response within the specifications (lower than 2ms).
The stability tests showed that, in a temperature controlled
situation, the output current stay stable better than 100ppm
(2mA). When this temperature variation increases, the same
happens proportionally with the output current variation.
The obtained efficiency, 85%, was satisfactory and close
to expected. Adjusting the switching frequency to 20kHz, it
increased to 87%, what is not great enough to compensate
the increase in the switching frequency ripple.
Reliability tests are been performed yet, but during two
weeks of operation in the real application no problem was
observed. If these units have again a satisfactory
performance, fifty new units will be built to substitute all the
steering magnet power supplies of the Electron Storage Ring.
The main advantages of this new model over the older
ones are the higher efficiency, lower size, weight and costs.
Moreover, new features were added, as more measurements,
faster response to small steps and more interactivity due to
the keyboard.
The fact of the regulation circuit was built separated from
the power components in an aluminum box (that is placed
inside the power supply) to get more stability, also will allow
future improvements, as the implantation of a DAC (Digital-
to-Analog) internally or even the substitution for a digital
controller [6,7].
The use of microcontrollers to supervise the power supply
behavior, presently just measuring some voltage and
currents, allow future software upgrades in order to perform
other functions, as to register fail events, implement some
interlocks by software or at same performer self tests.
REFERENCES
[1] www.lnls.br, Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory
website.
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Source For Orbit Correctors”, in Proc. Of COBEP, pp.
636-639, 2005.
[3] J. G. Oliveira, C. Rodrigues, “Projeto de Uma Fonte de
Corrente Bipolar com Saída Full-Bridge”, in Proc. of
CBA, pp. 1891-1895, 2006.
[4] C. Rodrigues, A. R. Silva, “A Bipolar DC Power Supply
Using Full-bridge Topology as Active Shunt for
Magnets”, in Proc. Of COBEP, 2009.
[5] W.F. Praeg, “A High-Current Low-Pass Filter for
Magnet Power Supplies”, IEEE Transactions on
Industrial Electronics and Control Instrumentation, vol.
IECI-17, no. 1, pp. 16-22, February 1970.
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388-394, 2007.
[7] L. H. S. C. Barreto, P. P. Praça, E. C. Diniz, T. R. F.
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