Measurement Techniques of Common Mode Currents, Voltages, and Impedances in a Flyback Converter for Radiated EMI Diagnosis

Abstract

For the radiated electromagnetic interference pre-compliance diagnosis in power electronics systems, the measurement of common mode (CM) currents, impedances, and voltages are essentially important. In this article, two measurement issues are first identified in CM current and impedance measurement. The first is the coupling between the cables attached to a power converter and the coaxial cable connected to the measurement equipment. It degrades the measurement accuracy. The second is the coupling between the converter's attached cables and the ac grid. It degrades the repeatability of measurements. To improve the measurement accuracy and repeatability, this article proposes an improved measurement technique to address these two issues. Furthermore, for the measurement of the voltage difference between primary and secondary grounds, this article also identifies two issues. The first is the poor measurement resolution for the low noise voltage in the high-frequency range due to the high magnitude of line-frequency voltages. The second is that the loading effects of the voltage probe can reduce the measurement accuracy. This article proposed a technique to address these two issues. Finally, the proposed measurement techniques were validated on a flyback converter.