Photoconductive switches for AC circuit protection

• Published in: IEEE transactions on electron devices Vol. 37; no. 12; pp. 2526 - 2531
• Main Authors: Triaros, C.P., Carroll, D.P., Lindholm, F.A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY IEEE 01-12-1990; Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• Subjects: Application software; Applied sciences; Circuit breakers; Circuit faults; Circuit testing; Electronics; Exact sciences and technology; Optical devices; Optical switches; Optoelectronic devices; Photoconducting devices; Power transmission; Protection; Semiconductor electronics. Microelectronics. Optoelectronics. Solid state devices; Switching circuits; Design; Semiconductor device; Temperature; Photoconducting device; Computer simulation; Theoretical study; Selector switch; Performance; Protection circuit; Electric current; Alternating current
• DOI: 10.1109/16.64529
• EISSN: 1557-9646
• ISSN: 0018-9383

The basic suitability of the photoconductive circuit element (PCE) for protective switching applications in AC power transmission and distribution circuits is examined. Specific applications include circuit breakers and fault-current limiters. This work considers a hybrid switching mechanism, which consists of a parallel arrangement of the PCE with a low-capacity mechanical switch. Electrical, optical, and thermal models are developed for the PCE device, which are incorporated in a system-level computer simulation of a power test circuit. Simulation results show the feasibility of the hybrid switching concept, although device sizes appear to be relatively large due to thermal dissipation requirements.< >