DC-DC Converters:

The purpose of a DC-DC converter is to supply a regulated DC output voltage to a variable-load from
a fluctuating DC input voltage. In many cases the DC input voltage is obtained by rectifying a line
voltage that is changing in magnitude. DC-DC converters are commonly used in applications
requiring regulated DC power. DC-DC converters are also used to provide a regulated variable DC
voltage for DC motor speed control applications.

The output voltage in DC-DC converters is generally controlled using a switching concept, as
illustrated by the basic DC-DC converter shown below. Modern DC-DC converters classified as switch
mode power supplies (SMPS) employ insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) and metal oxide
silicon field effect transistors (MOSFETs).

The switch mode power supply has several functions:

1. Step down an unregulated DC input voltage to produce a regulated DC output voltage using a
buck or step-down converter.

2. Step up an unregulated DC input voltage to produce a regulated DC output voltage using a boost
or step-up converter.

3. Step down and then step up an unregulated DC input voltage to produce a regulated DC output
voltage using a buck–boost converter.

4. Invert the DC input voltage using a Cúk converter.

5. Produce multiple DC outputs using a combination of SMPS topologies.

Step-Down (Buck) Converter

A step-down converter produces an average output voltage, which is lower than the DC
input voltage Vin. The basic circuit of a step-down converter is shown below. In continuous-
conduction mode of operation, assuming an ideal switch, when the switch is on for the time
duration ton, the inductor current passes through the switch, and the diode becomes
reverse biased. This results in a positive voltage (Vin−Vo) across the inductor, which, in turn,
causes a linear increase in the inductor current iL.

Step-Down (Buck) Converter Step-Up (Boost) Converter

When the switch is turned off, because of the inductive energy storage, i L continues to flow.
This current flows through the diode and decreases. Average output voltage can be
calculated in terms of the switch duty ratio as:

Where d= ton/T. can be controlled by varying the duty ratio d of the switch. Another
important observation is that the average output voltage varies linearly with the control
voltage.

Step-Up (Boost) Converter

In this converter, the output voltage is always greater than the input voltage. When the
switch is on, the diode is reversed-biased, thus isolating the output stage. The input voltage
source supplies energy to the inductor. When the switch is off, the output stage receives
energy from the inductor as well as the input source.

During the On-state, the switch S is closed, which makes the input voltage ( ) appear across the inductor,
which causes a change in current ( ) flowing through the inductor during a time period (t) by the formula:
At the end of the On-state, the increase of IL is therefore:

D is the duty cycle. During the Off-state, the switch S is open, so the inductor current flows through the load. If we
consider zero voltage drop in the diode, and a capacitor large enough for its voltage to remain constant, the
evolution of IL is:

Therefore, the variation of IL during the Off-period is:

In the continuous-conduction mode of operation, considering d as the duty ratio, the input–output
relation is as follows:

Buck-Boost Converter:

With continuous conduction for the Buck -Boost converter V x =Vin when the transistor is
ON and Vx=Vo when the transistor is OFF. For zero net current change over a period the
average voltage across the inductor is zero.
and the corresponding current:

Since the duty ratio "D" is between 0 and 1 the output voltage can vary between lower or
higher than the input voltage in magnitude. The negative sign indicates a reversal of sense
of the output voltage.

Cuk Converter:
The buck, boost and buck-boost converters all transferred energy between input and output
using the inductor, analysis is based of voltage balance across the inductor. The CUK
converter uses capacitive energy transfer and analysis is based on current balance of the
capacitor. The circuit below is derived from the DUALITY principle on the buck -boost
converter.

(A)
(B)

If we assume that the current through the inductors is essentially ripple free we can
examine the charge balance for the capacitor C1. For the transistor ON the circuit is shown
in A above. the current in C1 is IL1. When the transistor is OFF (B), the diode conducts and
the current in C1 becomes
IL2. Since the steady state assumes no net capacitor voltage rise, the net current is zero

Thus the voltage ratio is the same as the buck-boost converter. The advantage of the CUK
converter is that the input and output inductors create a smooth current at both sides of
the converter while the buck, boost and buck-boost have at least one side with pulsed
current.

Single-Phase Half-Wave Diode Rectifier

Although the half-wave diode rectifier is not a useful circuit for high power applications, it
nevertheless permits a number of useful principles to be explained in their simplest terms. For the
moment we will adopt simplifying assumptions (a), (b), and (c), but assumption (d) is not valid for
this one-pulse circuit. We will use this circuit to introduce the study of rectifier waveforms and the
effects which the load has on these waveforms.

If the load is purely resistive, the output voltage waveform consists of half-cycles of a sine wave
separated by half-cycles of zero output voltage, for which the average value is:

The current waveform is identical in shape to the voltage waveform, and the average current
is:

On the other hand, if the load is purely inductive, the waveforms change considerably.
During the first half cycle, the current builds up from zero to a peak value, watt-
seconds are stored in the magnetic field. However, the diode cannot interrupt the nonzero
current which exists when the source voltage reverses polarity. The diode must wait for the
current to go to zero by itself before conduction ceases. In fact, the diode will continue to
conduct throughout the second half-cycle, during which the output voltage is negative and the
total energy stored in the inductor is returned to the AC line. If the inductor is lossless, the
diode will conduct continuously, and at the end of each full cycle the total net energy transfer
will be zero. Note that although the instantaneous output voltage goes negative, the current
never does. If the current did go negative, it would violate the assumed behavior of the ideal
diode.

Single-Phase Half-Wave Diode Rectifier – R/L Load

In practice, the inductor is not lossless, so we must consider at least some series resistance. At
the end of the first half cycle, the current will be less than the previously calculated Ip
because of the voltage drop and consequent power loss in R. During the second half cycle, R
will continue to dissipate power as long as current flows. Since there is less total energy to
return to the AC line, current will always cease before the second half cycle is completed.
That is, commutation does occur, but is delayed until after the zero crossing of the AC source
voltage. Net power flow over the full cycle will be from the AC line to the load, as it must be
to account for the loss in R.
During the time when the instantaneous voltage and current are both of the same polarity,
power flow is from the AC line to the load, and the circuit acts as a rectifier. During the time
when the instantaneous voltage and current are not of the same polarity, power flow is from
the load to the AC line, and the circuit acts as a synchronous inverter. Since the load is
passive, the net power flow over a full cycle must be from the AC line to the load. Since the
diode must conduct for the full half cycle of rectification, but ceases conduction part way
through the inversion half-cycle, the circuit has positive average voltage and cannot invert net
power from its DC terminals to its AC terminals.
If the L/R time constant of the load is small compared to a half-period of the AC source,
commutation is delayed very little, and the operation of the circuit approaches that of a circuit
with a resistive load.