Requirements on switching devices in DC-to-DC converters

Lower bounds are established for the power dissipated, peak voltage, and peak current for the switches and diodes in any dc-to-dc converter. The bounds are in terms of the input and output voltages and currents of the converter. A trade-off between peak voltage and peak current in a switch is shown to be theoretically possible. Realization of the trade-off in practice is illustrated by considering eleven different converter circuits.