A detailed analysis of hotspots and insulation breakdown phenomena in power inductor windings at high frequency regimes: overcurrents and overvoltages

Abstract

AbstractThis research paper is the last of a group of three papers dedicated to the analysis and computation of the high‐frequency electromagnetic behaviour of inductor windings where a multiconductor transmission line approach is used. The present work is essentially concerned with application aspects linked up with the important engineering problem of windings insulation damage, which can occur either because of excessive temperature (winding hotspots) or because of excessive electric field strength (dielectric breakdown). For single and multilayer windings we present here a wealth of information in graphical and tabular form concerning the distribution of voltages, currents, electric charges, charge densities, electric field components and power losses along the inductor winding turns, operating at the critical resonance frequencies characteristic of the structure (which is the worst possible scenario). This information is analysed and processed in order to allow for a detection of the winding zones where breakdown phenomena and hotspots could most probably occur. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.