Design of Open-Ferromagnetic Core for Tesla Transformer-Based Pulse Generators

This article details an open-ferromagnetic (OF) core design to be used in a Tesla transformer (TT)-based pulse generator. The core model is designed based on parameters obtained through an analytical design of the TT. Due to the high energy density of the pulse forming line (PFL), the required effective cross-sectional (CS) area of the core to mitigate core saturation is calculated and modeled solely on the structure of the core. Electromagnetic simulations are used to evaluate the performance of the ferromagnetic core in terms of its degree of saturation, ease of fabrication, and the total transformer power loss when used in a pulse generator with an average output power of 4.65 kW.