Performance analysis and testing of a 250 kW medium-speed brushless doubly-fed induction generator

This study presents the performance analysis and testing of a 250 kW medium-speed brushless doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG), and its associated power electronics and control systems. The experimental tests confirm the design, and showthe system's steady-state and dynamic performance and grid low-voltage ride- through capability. The medium-speed brushless DFIG in combination with a simplified two-stage gearbox promises a low-cost low-maintenance and reliable drivetrain for wind turbine applications. © The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2013.

Optimising the dynamic performance of an all-wide-bandgap cascode switch

A SPICE simulation model of a novel cascode switch that combines a high voltage normally-on silicon carbide (SiC) junction field effect transistor (JFET) with a low voltage enhancement-mode gallium nitride field effect transistor (eGaN FET) has been developed, with the aim of optimising cascode switching performance. The effect of gate resistance on stability and switching losses is investigated and optimum values chosen. The effects of stray inductance on cascode switching performance are considered and the benefits of low inductance packaging discussed. The use of a positive JFET gate bias in a cascode switch is shown to reduce switching losses as well as reducing on-state losses. The findings of the simulation are used to produce a list of priorities for the design and layout of wide-bandgap cascode switches, relevant to both SiC and GaN high voltage devices. © 2013 IEEE.

A study of converter rating for brushless DFIG wind turbines

This paper studies the converter rating requirement of a Brushless Doubly-Fed Induction Generator for wind turbine applications by considering practical constraints such as generator torque-speed requirement, reactive power management and grid low-voltage ride-through (LVRT). Practical data have been used to obtain a realistic system model of a Brushless DFIG wind turbine using steady-state and dynamic models. A converter rating optimization is performed based on the given constraints. The converter current and voltage requirements are examined and the resulting inverter rating is compared to optimization algorithm results. In addition, the effects of rotor leakage inductance on LVRT performance and hence converter rating is investigated.

Stretchable liquid-crystal blue-phase gels.

Liquid-crystalline polymers are materials of considerable scientific interest and technological value. An important subset of these materials exhibit rubber-like elasticity, combining the optical properties of liquid crystals with the mechanical properties of rubber. Moreover, they exhibit behaviour not seen in either type of material independently, and many of their properties depend crucially on the particular mesophase employed. Such stretchable liquid-crystalline polymers have previously been demonstrated in the nematic, chiral-nematic, and smectic mesophases. Here, we report the fabrication of a stretchable gel of blue phase I, which forms a self-assembled, three-dimensional photonic crystal that remains electro-optically switchable under a moderate applied voltage, and whose optical properties can be manipulated by an applied strain. We also find that, unlike its undistorted counterpart, a mechanically deformed blue phase exhibits a Pockels electro-optic effect, which sets out new theoretical challenges and possibilities for low-voltage electro-optic devices.

A Fully Integrated 900-MHz Passive RFID Transponder Front End With Novel Zero-Threshold RF-DC Rectifier

This paper presents a fully integrated CMOS analog front end for a passive 900-MHz radio-frequency identification (RFID) transponder. The power supply in this front end is generated from the received RF electromagnetic energy by using an RF-dc voltage rectifier. In order to improve the compatibility with standard CMOS technology, Schottky diodes in conventional RF-dc rectifiers are replaced by diode-connected MOS transistors with zero threshold. Meanwhile, theoretical analyses for the proposed rectifier are provided and verified by both simulation and measurement results. The design considerations of the pulsewidth-modulation (PWM) demodulator and the backscatter modulator in the front end are also discussed for low-power applications. The proposed front end is implemented in a 0.35-mu m 2P4M CMOS technology. The whole chip occupies a die area of 490 x 780 mu m(2) and consumes only 2.1 mu W in reading mode under a self-generated 1.5-V supply voltage. The measurement results show that the proposed rectifier can properly operate with a - 14.7-dBm input RF power at a power conversion efficiency of 13.0%. In the proposed RFID applications, this sensitivity corresponds to 10.88-m communication distance at 4-W equivalent isotropically radiated power from a reader base station.

First principle study of Mg, Si and Mn co-doped GaN

Calculations of electronic structures and optical properties of Mg (or Si) and Mn co-doped GaN were carried out by means of first-principle plane-wave pesudopotential (PWP) based on density functional theory - The spin polarized impurity bands of deep energy levels were found for both systems. They are half metallic and suitable for spin injectors. Compared with GaN Mn, GaN Mn-Mg exhibits a significant increase in T-C 1 while the 1.3 eV absorption peak in GaN Mn disappears due to addition of Mg. In addition, a strong absorption peak due to T-4(1) (F) -> T-4(2) (F) transition of Mn4+ were observed near 1.1 eV. Nevertheless, GaN Mn-Si failed to show increase of T-C, and the absorption peak was not observed at the low energy side.

Design and fabrication of 1.06 mu m resonant-cavity enhanced reflective modulator with GaInAs/GaAs quantum wells

A resonant-cavity enhanced reflective optical modulator is designed and frabricated, with three groups of three highly strained InGaAS/GaAs quantum wells in the cavity, for the low voltage and high contrast ratio operation. The quantum wells are positioned in antinodes of the optical standing wave. The modulator is grown in a single growth step in an molecular beam epitaxy system, using GaAs/AIAs distributed Bragg reflectors as both the top and bottom mirrors. Results show that the reflection device has a modulation extinction of 3 dB at -4.5 V bias.

Study of GaN thin films grown on vicinal SiC (0001) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy

A detailed study of the characteristics of undoped GaN films, grown on either vicinal or nominal flat SiC (0001) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy, has been carried out using photoluminescence and Raman scattering techniques. The I I K photoluminescence spectra of the GaN film grown on the vicinal SiC (0001) substrate show a strong and sharp near-bandgap peak (full width at half maximum (FWHM) similar to 16 meV). This feature contrasts with that of the GaN film grown on the nominal flat SiC (0001) substrate where the I I K photoluminescence spectra exhibit the near-bandgap peak (FWHM similar to 25 meV) and the intensity is approximately seven times weaker than that of the vicinal film sample. The redshift of the near-bandgap peak associated with excitons bound to shallow donors is related to the stress caused by both the lattice mismatch and the thermal expansion coefficient difference between GaN and SiC substrates. The measured thermal activation energy of the shallow donor of 33.4 meV is determined by using an Arrhenius plot of the near-bandgap luminescence versus I IT from the slope of the graph at high temperature. The temperature dependence of the FWHM of the near-bandgap luminescence has also been studied. The Raman scattering measurements from the vicinal film reveal that the E-2 phonon peak is strengthened and the A(1)(LO) phonon peak is shifted towards the low-frequency side with enhanced intensity, in comparison to that from the nominal flat film, suggesting a reduction in the density of defects and a lower free carrier concentration in the vicinal GaN film.

A novel DC-DC charge pump circuit for passive RFID transponder

This paper presents a low-voltage, high performance charge pump circuit suitable for implementation in standard CMOS technologies. The proposed charge pump has been used as a part of the power supply section of fully integrated passive radio frequency identification(RFID) transponder IC, which has been implemented in a 0.35-um CMOS technology with embedded EEPROM offered by Chartered Semiconductor. The proposed DC/DC charge pump can generate stable output for RFID applications with low power dissipation and high pumping efficiency. The analytical model of the voltage multiplier, the comparison with other charge pumps, the simulation results, and the chip testing results are presented.

VCSEL-based parallel optical transmission module

This paper describes the design process and performance of the optimized parallel optical transmission module. Based on 1x12 VCSEL (Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser) array, we designed and fabricated the high speed parallel optical modules. Our parallel optical module contains a 1x12 VCSEL array, a 12 channel CMOS laser driver circuit, a high speed PCB (Printed Circuit Board), a MT fiber connector and a packaging housing. The L-I-V characteristics of the 850nm VCSEL was measured at the operating current 8mA, 3dB frequency bandwidth more than 3GHz and the optical output 1mW. The transmission rate of all 12 channels is 30Gbit/s, with a single channel 2.5Gbit/s. By adopting the integration of the 1x12 VCSEL array and the driver array, we make a high speed PCB (Printed Circuit Board) to provide the optoelectronic chip with the operating voltage and high speed signals current. The LVDS (Low-Voltage Differential Signals) was set as the input signal to achieve better high frequency performance. The active coupling was adopted with a MT connector (8 degrees slant fiber array). We used the Small Form Factor Pluggable (SFP) packaging. With the edge connector, the module could be inserted into the system dispense with bonding process.

CMOS兼容光电单片接收机的模拟与设计

设计了与CMOS工艺兼容的光电单片接收机电路，其中包括光电探测器、前置放大器和主放大器。它采用0.6μm CMOS工艺，可在自血的高阻外延片上使用MPW (multi-project wafer)进行流水。其中光电探测器的工作波长为850nm，响应度为0.2A/W，接收灵敏度为-16dBm，带宽为800MHz，因此适用于VSR(versy short reach)系统。前置放大器采用电流模反馈放大器，主放大器输出为LVDS(low voltage differential signals)电平。通过器件模拟与电路模拟统一的方法将光电探测器与接收机放大电路进行统一模拟，分析了电路的限制因素，并提出了相应的改进方法。

Kicker电源数字延迟线及低压监测系统设计

踢轨磁铁（Kicker）电源系统是HIRFL-CSR注入引出系统中实现快引出的一个关键元件，主要功能是为踢轨磁铁提供快脉冲励磁电流以产生所需要的快脉冲磁场。Kicker电源提供的是高电压大电流的快脉冲，电流脉冲上升沿和下降沿为150ns,脉冲宽度为650ns,其脉冲峰值电流为2700A，工作周期为10s-17s。因此及时监控Kicker电源闸流管的工作状况以及电流脉冲波形特性至关重要。本文针对踢轨磁铁（Kicker）电源的需要，进行了Kicker电源监测系统的设计，主要针对闸流管误漏导通检测、电流脉冲宽度过宽过窄检测、脉冲宽度测量及脉冲计数等功能提出了电路的工作原理，并设计了具体电路。系统输入端采用光纤接口，而输出端采用了PLC数字I/O接口。由于采用PLC接收监测电路板的信号来完成对Kicker电源的监控报警，基于此编写了相关PLC程序，并调试通过。该监测系统电路板已调试完成，可以很好地完成对Kicker电源系统较为全面的状态监测，方便地对Kicker电源系统状态进行监控。另外，为了解决Kicker电源系统脉冲同步的问题，以满足兰州重离子加速器冷却储存环（HIRFL-CSR）环踢轨磁铁（Kicker）电源对电流脉冲进行适当延迟的要求，还分别设计了ECL高速可程控数字延迟线电路系统和基于CPLD的数字延迟线系统，分析介绍了数字延迟线系统结构、工作原理及PCB版图设计等。ECL高速可程控数字延迟线电路已初步调试通过，而基于CPLD的数字延迟线系统已完成了程序编程及仿真工作，它克服了ECL数字延迟线不能实现零延迟的缺点，且可以通过修改VHDL程序来设置出更多位的可编程数字延迟线，方便灵活

Kicker电源数字延迟线及低压监测系统设计

踢轨磁铁（Kicker）电源系统是兰州重离子加速器冷却储存环（HIRFL-CSR）注入引出系统中实现快引出的一个关键元件，主要功能是为踢轨磁铁提供快脉冲励磁电流以产生所需要的快脉冲磁场。踢轨磁铁（Kicker）电源系统各触发脉冲是否同步关系到束流能否顺利注入引出以及有好的束流品质。基于此，本文介绍了基于CPLD-EPM1270T144的数字延迟线系统，以满足HIRFL-CSR踢轨磁铁（Kicker）电源对触发脉冲进行适当延迟的要求；分析介绍了数字延迟线系统结构、工作原理、PCB制版及系统调试。实际检验证明本设计通过修改VHDL程序来调节延迟时间能够方便灵活的完成Kicker电源系统对脉冲同步的要求，延迟精度达到10ns。另外，由于Kicker电源提供的是高电压大电流的快脉冲，电流脉冲上升沿和下降沿为150ns、脉冲宽度为650ns,其脉冲峰值电流为2700A、工作周期为10s-17s，因此及时监控Kicker电源闸流管的工作状况以及电流脉冲波形特性非常重要。基于此，本文还进行了Kicker电源监测系统的设计。该设计主要针对闸流管误漏导通检测、电流脉冲宽度过宽过窄检测、脉冲宽度测量及脉冲计数等功能提出了电路的系统结构、工作原理，并完成了程序编程、仿真及外围电路设计

三相高压变压器型电子加速器性能研究

在当前国际上，强流大功率电子加速器的研究是应用于辐射行业辐射源的一个主要研究方向。内置加速管三相高压变压器型电子加速器与外置加速管强流大功率电子加速器相比，具有结构紧凑、造价低、结构简单等特点。本文对内置加速管三相变压器型电子加速器在研制过程中出现的高压击穿频繁、高压硅堆的损坏率高、能量脉动高、引出窗束流损失大等问题进行了研究，提出并实施了改进措施，得到了较好的调试结果。并对存在的问题进一步提出了改进方案。首先介绍了内置加速管三相变压器型电子加速器的原理、结构及组成。在此基础上，针对在加速器调试过程中出现的经常性高压击穿等严重制约加速器正常运行的问题，通过对三相高压变压器型的高压发生器在变压器特性分析、气体绝缘和电场分布计算、高压电极形状优化、过电压分布的计算、正常工作时的仿真，提出了改进方案。经过改进后，从调试结果来看，所设计的高压发生器能够正常稳定的工作。研究了作为高压发生器易损坏的关键部件之一的高压整流硅堆的性能。根据硅堆内部的结构和在高压发生器中所处的位置，合理的建立了等效电路，并对电路中各结构电容在硅堆耐高压方面的作用进行了详细的理论计算和分析。对硅堆内部管芯的排列及在加速器中的摆放位置提出了改进方案，经过改进，提高了硅堆的耐压值，也保证了高压发生器的正常稳定运行。对于加速器引出窗束流损失大和能量脉动高的问题，用PBGUN程序计算了优化后的阴极鼻锥聚束极结构在强流状态下的束流轨迹和加速管出口处的束斑；对能量脉动测量做了分析，并得到较真实的脉动值。论文最后对内置加速管三相变压器型电子加速器在整体调试中存在电子束受到变压器杂散磁场影响的问题做了介绍，提出了分离式的改进结构

An Efficient Nanocrystalline La2O3:Tm3+ Blue Phosphor for Field-Emission Displays with High Color Purity

Nanocrystalline Tm3+-doped La2O3 phosphors were prepared through a Pechini-type sol-gel process. X-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, photoluminescence, and cathodoluminescence spectra were utilized to characterize the synthesized phosphors. Under the excitation of UV light (234 nm) and low-voltage electron beams (1-3 kV), the Tm3+-doped La2O3 phosphors show the characteristic emissions of Tm3+(D-1(2), (1)G(4)-F-3(4), H-3(6) transitions).