Instrumentation
&
Power Electronics
Lecture 13 & 14
Thyristors
THYRISTOR
• Thyristor, a three terminal, four layers solid
state semiconductor device, each layer
consisting of alternately N-type or P-type
material, i.e; P-N-P-N, that can handle high
currents and high voltages, with better
switching speed and improved breakdown
voltage .
• Name ‘thyristor’, is derived by a combination
of the capital letters from THYRatron and
transISTOR.
K
A
G
THYRISTORS
• Thyristor can handle high currents and high voltages.
• Typical rating are 1.5kA & 10kV which responds to 15MW
power handling capacity.
• This power can be controlled by a gate current of about 1A
only.
• Thyristor act as bistable switches.
– It conducts when gate receives a current pulse, and
continue to conduct as long as forward biased (till device
voltage is not reversed).
– They stay ON once they are triggered, and will go OFF only
if current is too low or when triggered off.
Thyristor Two Transistor Model
Thyristor Operating modes
Thyristors have three modes :
• Forward blocking mode:
Only leakage current flows,
so
thyristor
is
not
conducting.
• Forward conducting mode:
large forward current flows
through the thyristor.
• Reverse blocking mode:
When cathode voltage is
increased
to
reverse
breakdown
voltage
,
Avalanche
breakdown
occurs and large current
flows.
1-Phase Half Wave Controlled Rectifier
1-Phase Full Wave Controlled Rectifier
1-Phase Full Wave Controlled Rectifier
1-Phase Full Wave Controlled Rectifier
3-Phase Controlled Rectifier
Thyristor turn-ON methods
•
Thyristor turning ON is also known as Triggering.
•
With anode is positive with respect to cathode, a thyristor
can be turned ON by any one of the following techniques :
–
–
–
–
–
Forward voltage triggering
Gate triggering
dv/dt triggering
Temperature triggering
Light triggering
Forward Voltage Triggering
• When breakover voltage (VBO) across a thyristor is exceeded
than the rated maximum voltage of the device, thyristor
turns ON.
• At the breakover voltage the value of the thyristor anode
current is called the latching current (IL) .
• Breakover voltage triggering is not normally used as a
triggering method, and most circuit designs attempt to avoid
its occurrence.
• When a thyristor is triggered by exceeding VBO, the fall time
of the forward voltage is quite low (about 1/20th of the time
taken when the thyristor is gate-triggered).
Gate Triggering
• Turning ON of thyristors by gate triggering is simple and
efficient method of firing the forward biased SCRs.
• In Gate Triggering, thyristor with forward breakover
voltage (VBO), higher than the normal working voltage is
chosen.
• Whenever thyristor’s turn-ON is required, a positive gate
voltage b/w gate and cathode is applied.
• Forward voltage at which device switches to on-state
depends upon the magnitude of gate current.
– Higher the gate current, lower is the forward
breakover voltage .
dv/dt triggering
• With forward voltage across anode & cathode of a thyristor, two
outer junctions (A & C) are forward biased but the inner junction
(J2) is reverse biased.
• The reversed biased junction J2 behaves like a capacitor because of
the space-charge present there.
• As p-n junction has capacitance, so larger the junction area the
larger the capacitance.
• If a voltage ramp is applied across the anode-to-cathode, a current
will flow in the device to charge the device capacitance according
to the relation:
• If the charging current becomes large enough, density of moving
current carriers in the device induces switch-on.
• This method of triggering is not desirable because high charging
current (Ic) may damage the thyristor.
Temperature Triggering
• During forward blocking, most of the applied voltage
appears across reverse biased junction J2.
• This voltage across junction J2 associated with leakage
current may raise the temperature of this junction.
• With increase in temperature, leakage current through
junction J2 further increases.
• This cumulative process may turn on the SCR at some high
temperature.
• High temperature triggering may cause Thermal runaway
and is generally avoided.
Light Triggering
• In this method light particles (photons) are made to
strike the reverse biased junction, which causes an
increase in the number of electron hole pairs and
triggering of the thyristor.
• For light-triggered SCRs, a slot (niche) is made in the
inner p-layer.
• When it is irradiated, free charge carriers are
generated just like when gate signal is applied b/w
gate and cathode.
• Pulse light of appropriate wavelength is guided by
optical fibers for irradiation.
• If the intensity of this light thrown on the recess
exceeds a certain value, forward-biased SCR is turned
on. Such a thyristor is known as light-activated SCR
(LASCR).
• Light-triggered thyristors is mostly used in highvoltage direct current (HVDC) transmission systems.
Thyristor Gate Control Methods
• An easy method to switch ON a SCR into conduction is to
apply a proper positive signal to the gate.
• This signal should be applied when the thyristor is forward
biased and should be removed after the device has been
switched ON.
• Thyristor turn ON time should be in range of 1-4 micro
seconds, while turn-OFF time must be between 8-50 micro
seconds.
• Thyristor gate signal can be of three varieties.
– D.C Gate signal
– A.c Gate Signal
– Pulse
Thyristor Gate Control Methods
D.C Gate signal: Application of a d.c gate signal causes the flow of gate
current which triggers the SCR.
– Disadvantage is that the gate signal has to be continuously applied,
resulting in power loss.
– Gate control circuit is also not isolated from the main power circuit.
A.C Gate Signal: In this method a phase - shifted a.c voltage derived from
the mains supplies the gate signal.
– Instant of firing can be controlled by phase angle control of the gate
signal.
Pulse: Here the SCR is triggered by the application of a positive pulse of
correct magnitude.
– For Thyristors it is important to switched ON at proper instants in a
certain sequence.
– This can be done by train of the high frequency pulses at proper
instants through a logic circuit.
– A pulse transformer is used for circuit isolation.
– Here, the gate looses are very low because the drive is discontinuous.
Gate Control Circuits
Gate Control Circuits
Thyristor Commutation
• Commutation: Process of turning off a conducting thyristor
– Current Commutation
– Voltage Commutation
• A thyristor can be turned ON by applying a positive voltage
of about a volt or a current of a few tens of milliamps at the
gate-cathode terminals.
• But SCR cannot be turned OFF via the gate terminal.
• It will turn-off only after the anode current is negated
either naturally or using forced commutation techniques.
• These methods of turn-off do not refer to those cases
where the anode current is gradually reduced below
Holding Current level manually or through a slow process.
• Once the SCR is turned ON, it remains ON even after
removal of the gate signal, as long as a minimum current,
the Holding Current (IH), is maintained in the main or
rectifier circuit.
Thyristor Turn-off Mechanism
• In all practical cases, a negative current flows through the device.
• This current returns to zero only after the reverse recovery time (trr) ,
when the SCR is said to have regained its reverse blocking capability.
• The device can block a forward voltage only after a further tfr, the
forward recovery time has elapsed.
• Consequently, the SCR must continue to be reverse-biased for a
minimum of tfr + trr = tq, the rated turn-off time of the device.
• The external circuit must therefore reverse bias the SCR for a time toff >
tq.
• Subsequently, the reapplied forward biasing voltage must rise at a dv/dt
< dv/dt (reapplied) rated. This dv/dt is less than the static counterpart.
Thyristor Commutation Classification
• Commutation can be classified as
– Natural commutation
– Forced commutation
Line Commutation (Natural Commutation)
• Occurs only in AC circuits.
• Natural Commutation of thyristor takes place in
– AC Voltage Regulators
– Phase controlled rectifiers
– Cycloconverters
Thyristor Turn-Off: Line-Commutated Thyristor Circuit
Forced Commutation
• Applied to d.c circuits.
• If a thyristor is used in a DC circuit, when first turned on, it will stay on until the
current goes to zero. To turn off the thyristor it is possible to use a Forced
commutation circuit. The circuit creates a reverse voltage over the thyristor (and
a small reverse current) for a short time, but long enough to turn off the
thyristor.
• A simple circuit consist of a precharged capacitor and a switch (e.g. another
thyristor) parallel to the thyristor. When the switch is closed, the current is
supplied by the capacitor for a short while. This cause a reversed voltage over
the thyristor, and the thyristor is turned off.
• Commutation is achieved by reverse biasing thyristor or reducing the thysristor
current below the holding current value.
• Commutating elements such as inductor, capacitors are used for commutation
purpose.
• Force commutation is applied to choppers and inverters.
• Force Commutation methods
– Class A- Resonant Load
– Class B- Self commutation
– Class C- Auxiliary commutation
– Class D- Complimentary commutation
– Class E- External pulse commutation
Thyristor Turn-Off: Forced- Commutated Thyristor Circuit
Thyristor Family Members
•
•
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SCR: Silicon Controlled Rectifier
DIAC: Diode on Alternating Current
TRIAC : Triode for Alternating Current
SCS: Silicon Control Switch
SUS: Silicon Unilateral Switch
SBS: Silicon Bidirectional Switch
SIS: Silicon Induction Switch
LASCS: Light Activated Silicon Control Switch
LASCR: Light Activated Silicon Control Rectifier
SITh : Static Induction Thyristor
RCT: Reverse Conducting Thyristor
GTO : Gate Turn-Off thyristor
MCT: MOSFET Controlled Thyristor
ETOs: Emitter Turn ON thyristor
Silicon-Controlled Rectifier (SCR)
• SCR is a synonym of thyristor
• SCR is a four-layer pnpn device.
– Has 3 terminals: anode, cathode, and gate.
– In off state, it has a very high resistance.
– In on state, there is a small on (forward) resistance.
• Applications: motor controls, time-delay circuits, heater controls, phase
controls, etc.
Turning the SCR –ON Method and its Characteristics
•
•
The positive pulse of current at the gate
turns on Q2 providing a path for IB1.
Q1 then turns on providing more base
current for Q2 even after the trigger is
removed.
– Thus, the device stays on (latches).



The SCR can be turned on by
exceeding the forward breakover
voltage or by gate current.
Notice that the gate current controls
the amount of forward breakover
voltage required for turning it on.
VBR(F) decreases as IG is increased.
Turning SCR Off
• The SCR will conduct as long as forward current exceeds IH.
• There are two ways to drop the SCR out of conduction:
– Anode Current Interruption
– Forced Commutation.
Turning SCR Off : Anode Current Interruption
• Anode current can be interrupted by breaking the anode current path ,
providing a path around the SCR, or dropping the anode voltage to the
point that IA < IH.
Turning The SCR Off: Force Commutation
• Force commutation uses an external circuit to momentarily force current in the
opposite direction to forward conduction.
• SCRs are commonly used in ac circuits, which forces the SCR out of conduction
when the ac reverses.
SCR Characteristics & Ratings
•
•
•
•
•
Forward- breakover voltage, VBR(F): voltage at which SCR enters forward-conduction
(ON) region.
Holding current, IH: value of anode current for SCR to remain in on region.
Gate trigger current, IGT: value of gate current to switch SCR on.
Average forward current, IF (avg): maximum continuous anode current (dc) that the
SCR can withstand.
Reverse-breakdown voltage, VBR(R): maximum reverse voltage before SCR breaks into
avalanche.
SCR Applications - dc motor control
• SCRs are used in a variety of power control
applications.
• One of the most common applications is to use
it in ac circuits to control a dc motor or
appliance because the SCR can both rectify and
control.
• The SCR is triggered on the positive cycle and
turns off on the negative cycle.
• A circuit like this is useful for speed control for
fans or power tools and other related
applications.
SCR Applications- crowbar circuits
• Another application for SCRs is in
crowbar circuits (which get their name
from the idea of putting a crowbar
across a voltage source and shorting it
out!)
• The purpose of a crowbar circuit is to
shut down a power supply in case of
over-voltage.
• Once triggered, the SCR latches on.
• The SCR can handle a large current,
which causes the fuse (or circuit
breaker) to open.
DIAC (diode for alternating current)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
The DIAC is a five-layer device trigger diode that conducts current only after its
breakdown voltage has been exceeded momentarily.
When this occurs, the resistance of the diode abruptly decreases, leading to a
sharp decrease in the voltage drop across the diode and, usually, a sharp
increase in current flow through the diode.
The diode remains "in conduction" until the current flow through it drops below
a value characteristic for the device, called the holding current.
Below this value, the diode switches back to its high-resistance (non-conducting)
state.
This behavior is bidirectional, meaning typically the same for both directions of
current flow .
– their terminals are not labeled as anode and cathode but as A1 and A2 or
MT1 ("Main Terminal") and MT2.
Most DIACs have a breakdown voltage around 30 V.
DIACs have no gate electrode, unlike some other thyristors they are commonly
used to trigger, such as TRIACs.
diac is normally used in ac circuits
The drawback of the diac is that it cannot be triggered at just any point in the ac
power cycle; it triggers at its preset breakover voltage only. If we could add a
gate to the diac, we could have variable control of the trigger point, and
therefore a greater degree of control over just how much power will be applied
to the line-powered device.
DIAC (diode for alternating current)
TRIAC (Triode for Alternating Current)
•
Triac is five layer device that is able to pass current
bidirectionally and is therefore behaves as an a.c. power control
device.
•
In triac , the main connections are simply named main terminal 1
(MT1) and main terminal 2 (MT2).
The gate designation still applies, and is still used as it was with the
SCR.
The useful feature of the triac is that it not only carries current in
either direction, but the gate trigger pulse can be either polarity
regardless of the polarity of the main applied voltage.
The gate can inject either free electrons or holes into the body of the
triac to trigger conduction either way.
•
•
•
–
•
•
•
So triac is referred to as a "four-quadrant" device.
Triac is used in an ac environment, so it will always turn off when the
applied voltage reaches zero at the end of the current half-cycle.
If we apply a turn-on pulse at some controllable point after the start
of each half cycle, we can directly control what percentage of that
half-cycle gets applied to the load, which is typically connected in
series with MT2.
This makes the triac an ideal candidate for light dimmer controls and
motor speed controls. This is a common application for triacs.
Triac operation
• The triac can be considered as two thyristors connected in antiparallel as
shown in Fig .
• The single gate terminal is common to both thyristors.
• The main terminals MT1 and MT2 are connected to both p and n regions
of the device and the current path through the layers of the device
depends upon the polarity of the applied voltage between the main
terminals.
• The device polarity is usually described with reference to MT1, where the
term MT2+ denotes that terminal MT2 is positive with respect to terminal
MT1.
The Gate Turn-Off Thyristor (GTO)
GTOs Schematic representation
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END OF LECTURES-13-14