SWITCHING CIRCUIT EMPLOYING ELECTRONIC DEVICES IN SERIES WITH AN INDUCTOR TO AVOID COMMUTATION BREAKDOWN AND EXTENDING THE CURRENT RANGE OF SWITCHING CIRCUITS BY USING IGBT DEVICES IN PLACE OF MOSFETS

摘要

A switching circuit is provided which is to be connected to a power source. The circuit includes a first device, an inductor and a second device, all connected in series. Either a single inductor or a pair of series-connected inductors is connected in series between the first and second devices. One or both of the first and second devices are switched on and off to supply a load with an output voltage. The circuit can also include diodes to prevent harmful reverse current flow and to provide bypasses around the first and second devices. The first and second devices can be semiconductor elements, such as FETs, and particularly MOSFETs. The first device can be an IGBT.