Surge Current Capability of IGBT Based Power Electronic Interrupter Modules for Hybrid DC Circuit Breaker Applications

The power electronic interrupter (PEI) is a key component of the dc hybrid circuit breaker (HCB) as it facilitates the arc-less opening of the mechanical switch by taking over the fault current during the interruption process. A modular implementation of the PEI enables design scalability allowing the use of high peak current density discrete IGBTs in a series-parallel configuration as needed for the maximum transient voltage and peak fault current levels seen by the system. In this paper, surge current turn-off experiments are conducted on discrete IGBTs to determine the limiting factors for fault current interruption. Experimental data are provided to show IGBT performance under two different PEI module configurations and identified failure modes are discussed along with main design tradeoffs.