EEE 572

Advanced Power Electronics

Fall 2021

Raja Ayyanar

Lecture 1 Introduction
 Outline of lecture

• What is power electronics

• Major application areas
• Course objectives and outcomes
• Course organization

• Components of voltage source converters

• Switch mode vs. linear electronics examples

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 What is power electronics

• Power conversion and control using

power semiconductor devices and circuits

• Efficient interface between different forms

of electrical energy
- can go from ANY form to ANY other form

• Multi-disciplinary and a wide spectrum of

applications - milli watts to Mega watts

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 What is power electronics
120V
1 phase Electronics
1V +/-0.01%

Hi freq
Power lighting
Fuel Cell Electronic
500 kV
3 Phase Converter
utility
EV

Source Load
EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar
 Applications:
Powering the Information Technology
• Computer power management
- notebooks to mainframes
• Power supply for ALL electronic
equipment
• Data centers large consumers
of electric power, processed
through power electronics

astontech.com

Figures from www.irf.com

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Electric drives and motion control

• Energy conservation
• Industry automation
• Robotics
aptinex.com
www.baldor.com

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Motor drives for home appliances
• Washing machines, refrigerators and air conditioners
• PMSM motors and drives

www.irf.com
 Hybrid and Electric vehicles

• Inverters for drive train

• On- board Battery chargers
teslamotors.com/
• Auxiliary power unit
• Extreme fast chargers (DC)
• Soon V2G, ‘smart grid’ functions

Chevy Voltec drivetrain

chargepoint.com http://articles.sae.org/13666
 Lighting
• Compact fluorescent lamps (CCFL)
• High brightness LED lighting
• Higher efficacy, flexibility, improved
color schemes, controllability
• Power electronics is a key enabler
for the modern lighting technology

From Cree LED lighting catalog

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Renewable energy interface: Photovoltaics

• Conversion of dc power from

solar cells to utility grade ac
• Maximum power point tracking
• Grid support functions

10
 Power systems applications
SSB 500,230 kV SSB

ASD
DG
STATC O M
DVR

UPFC DG
DG 120,240V

DG DG
HVDC
Mi crogri d DG

Generation Transmi ssi on Di stri buti on EndUse

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Course objective

Prepare students for a design career in

Power Electronics

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Course outcomes
Students will be able to
• Analyze any power electronic circuit
• Select suitable topology/architecture, given input-output
specifications for any application (mW – MW) including
soft switching converters
• Model the systems for various objectives
• Optimally design various components of power stage
considering various design tradeoffs
• Design stable feedback controllers considering
converter-level and system-level models and objectives
• Become proficient in using simulation tools like PLECS
• Understand some practical issues of power converter
design and implementation
EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar
 An example
Isolated Boost Type DC-DC Full-bridge
Converter DCLink Inverter
LCL Filter

Lboost Li Lg
HFT
CPV CDCLink
Cf Grid
PV
Rf

s vdclink s1234 vg
PWM PWM
iPV vPV PLL
d
d iLi
vg − sin(ωt)
GVpv(s) Vi * + εI + iLi*
GILi(s)
2 +
εVpv v dclink
MPPT
vPV − εV2 iLi_max*
− Gdclink(s)
vPV* + v2dclink* +

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Course organization

All lecture slides, class notes, homework

assignments and solutions posted on Canvas

Discussion forum: Homework discussions,

general PE topics

Office hours: Tuesday – 1:30-3:00 PM

(by Zoom only) Thursday – 1:00–2:00 PM
https://asu.zoom.us/j/4397053839

Midterm exam : October 13; Final exam: Dec 10

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Course organization
• Reference books
• Mohan, Undeland, Robbins, ‘Power Electronics:
Converters, applications and design’ Wiley,
Third edition, 2003
• Erickson, Maksimovic, ‘Fundamentals of
Power Electronics’ Second edition
• Mohan, ‘First course on Power Electronics’
MNPERE Publishers, 2009
• Instructor lecture slides, simulations
• PSERC Academy videos at
http://psercacademy.asu.edu/ (videos currently work
with Microsoft Edge browser; with Chrome browsing in incognito mode works)

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Course organization

PsercAcademy.asu.edu

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Grading

Homework 20%
Project 20%
Midterm exam 27%
Final exam 33%

> 95 A+ 80-84 B+
90-94 A 75-79 B
85-89 A- 70-74 B- etc.

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Project
• Any application or concept in power electronics
• Major tasks
• Formulation of specifications from
literature or product search
• Comparison of two or more approaches
• Detailed, automated design of power stage
and controller for the chosen approach
• Extensive simulation validation
• Formal technical report
• Done in teams of strictly 2 students
• Project selection due on 11/1, and final report
due on 12/1
EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar
 PLECS simulations
• PLECS is the supported simulation tool for this course
• Students will be given a code with which they can
get a license from plexim.com
• Stand alone version (recommended)
• Strictly for course work only
• Very important to develop expertise early in the course
• Will be used in class lectures, homeworks & project
• Valuable tool in your design career

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 General classification of converters

Conversion from any form of electrical

energy to any other form
DC - different magnitudes
AC - different magnitudes, frequency, phase

• AC-DC converters (rectifiers)

• DC-DC converters
• DC-AC converters (inverters)
• AC-AC converters (cyclo-converters
matrix converters)

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar

 Power electronic converters

• Voltage source or voltage link converters (VSC)

• Current source or current link converters (CSC)
• Matrix converters
• Thyristor based self and line commutated converters

• Voltage source converters probably the most

widely used at present
• Characteristics of currently available
power semiconductor devices favor VSC
• We focus on VSC here and look at the basic
components of a generic VSC

EEE572 Raja Ayyanar

 Components of a voltage source converter

EEE572 Raja Ayyanar

 Example: Single phase PV inverter
Isolated Boost Type DC-DC Full-bridge
Converter DCLink Inverter
LCL Filter

Lboost Li Lg
HFT
CPV CDCLink
Cf Grid
PV
Rf

s vdclink s1234 vg
PWM PWM
iPV vPV PLL
d
d iLi
vg − sin(ωt)
GVpv(s) Vi * + εI + iLi*
GILi(s)
2 +
εVpv v dclink
MPPT
vPV − εV2 iLi_max*
− Gdclink(s)
vPV* + v2dclink* +

EEE572 Raja Ayyanar

 Power supply problem example #1
Input voltage : 10V to 14V DC
Output voltage : 5V DC +/- 0.1%
Output current : 1A max.

Linear Electronics Approach

Io
vec
+ +
Control
Vin Load Vo

- -

 Excellent regulation, control

 Low noise, ripple at the output

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Problems with linear electronics approach
Iin = Io Io
Input voltage : 10V to 14V DC vec
+ +
Output voltage : 5V DC +/- 0.1%
Output current : 1A max. Vin Load Vo

- -

Po Vo I o 5 ×1
Efficiency = = =
Pin Vin I in 14 × 1

= 35.7%

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Problems with linear electronics approach
iT = Io Io
+ -
Input voltage : 10V to 14V DC vT
+ +
Output voltage : 5V DC +/- 0.1%
Output current : 1A max. Vin Load Vo

- -

Power lost in transistor = vT I o

vT
= (14 − 5)× 1 = 9W 9V
0 t
iT
1A
0 t
↓ Need for large heatsinks / Ploss
thermal management 9W

↓ Impact on power density

0 t

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Switch mode approach

Uses a bi-positional switch Switch in position 1 vA = Vin

Switch in position 2 vA = 0
vA
+ (V)
1 Vin
14
Vin A 12
+ 10 average
2 5
_ vA
_ 0 t

 By controlling the duration of ON interval (time when

switch is in Position 1), the average output can be
continuously controlled

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Simple step-down converter

+
iL
Vin
+ +
_ vA Vo
_ _

Low-pass filter
at the output

• High frequency content in vA filtered using LC filter

• Filter size and cost very small with high frequency

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Bi-positional switch: electronic implementation

Vin

 SPDT switch realized with two SPST switches

 SPST implemented with MOSFETs and IGBTs or other power
semiconductor devices
 Bi-positional switch is a main building-block of power converters

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Switch mode approach: efficiency

vT
14 V

0 t
iT
1A
0 t
Ploss

0 t

• Efficiency, theoretically 100% (with ideal components)

- Zero voltage when switch is ON
- Zero current when switch is OFF
• Practical efficiency > 95% in many applications

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Power supply problem example #2

Input voltage : 1.5V to 2V DC

Output voltage : 5V DC +/- 0.1%
Output current : 0.1A max.

Linear Approach

??
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 Power supply problem example #3
Isolated Power Supplies
Input voltage : 120V AC +/-20%
Output voltage : 5V DC +/- 0.1%
Output current : 20A max.

Linear Approach Line-Commutated Approach

High power loss Thyristor
120 V
60 Hz

Load
Large C

60 Hz transformer 60 Hz transformer
bulky, costly bulky, costly Bulky filter

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Switch mode isolated power supply
Full-Bridge DC-DC Converter
Low loss

120 V
60 Hz Load

100 kHz transformer Small filters

Small C

 High-frequency transformer
- typically smaller by a factor of 50 – 100
 smaller filter
 higher efficiency
× EMI problems

Raja Ayyanar, ASU

 Summary

• Power electronics
- EFFICIENT power conversion and control
using electronic (power) devices;
- conversion from any form of electrical
energy to any other form
• Major applications
• Components of a voltage source converter
• PE solutions to typical power supply problems

EEE 572 – Raja Ayyanar