Power Electronics

Overview of power electronics main topics. A brief historical development of electrical switches. Semiconductor switches: physical principle, conventional and modern switches, static and dynamic characteristics, important parameters, selection, dimensioning, protection, cooling, future trends.

Uncontrolled rectifiers: operation, commutation, characteristics, dimensioning.

Controlled rectifiers: operation, commutation, characteristics, dimensioning, load influence. Control demands, design of control pulse devices.

Influence of controlled rectifiers on supply grid, phase shift, reactive power. Principles of reactive power reduction.

Inverter topologies, converters in ac and dc circuits. Principles of modulations, pulse width modulation, Voltage and current source inverters, characteristics, basic topologies. Applications of semiconductor converters in electrical drives, typical examples from the industry.

Transient loses, inductors and capacitors. Influence of converters on the grid, pasive and active filters, EMC compatibility and protection.

To acquire knowledge on elements and devices of power electronics which are applied in controlled electrical drives, to understand their operation, to select and optimize them and include them in complex automated systems.

The lectures provide a theoretical background on discussed topics. A complete study material is available to the students.

Successful practical work on laboratory excercises, which take place in smaller groups, enables prior acquaintance of the students with computational and demo tasks.