Designing an ignitor for short-arc xenon lamps

A compact ignitor is designed for short-arc xenon lamps which require high ignition voltage and fast transition. The ignitor employs two stages of step-up circuits with two small sized transformers. A capacitor with an intermediate voltage is used for storing the energy converted from the DC power supply by the first-stage step-up circuit. The impact voltage necessary for igniting the xenon lamp is generated by the second-stage step-up circuit which is connected in series with the lamp and the DC power supply. The design of the ignitor for a short-arc xenon lamp of 350 W is discussed as an illustrative example.