Analysis and evaluation of bi-directional power switch losses for matrix converter drive

The matrix converter (MC) is a bidirectional AC/AC conversion device that generates variable-voltage variable-frequency output from ac voltage utility. Since power topology and switching rules of MC are quite different from voltage source inverter (VSI), power device loss analysis based on VSI topology cannot be applied to MC. In this paper, analysis method for evaluation of bidirectional switch losses of MC is proposed. Variation of collector-emitter voltage and current distribution in bidirectional IGBTs are investigated at various operating conditions for power loss analysis. The validity of the proposed analysis has been verified through the simulations and the experimental results with 7.5 kW MC driven-AC drives system.