BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Module-3
Thyristors: Introduction, Thyristor Characteristics, Two-Transistor Model of Thyristor, Thyristor
Turn- On, Thyristor Turn-Off, A brief study on Thyristor Types, Series Operation of Thyristors,
Parallel Operation of Thyristors, di/dt Protection, dv/dt Protection, Thyristor Firing Circuits,
Unijunction Transistor.

Introduction:

A thyristor is a four-layer, three-joint p-n-p-n semiconductor switching device with three terminals: anode, cathode, and
gate. The figure shows the thyristor symbol and a sectional view of a three-pn junction.

The terminal connected to the outer p region is called anode(A), the terminal connected to outer n region is called
cathode(K) and that connected to inner p region is called the Gate(G).

For large current applications, thyristor need better cooling, this is achieved to a great extent by mounting them onto heat
sinks SCR ratings has an improved of voltage rating 10kv and an rms current rating of 300 A with corresponding power
handling capability of 30 MW are available.

An SCR is so called silicon carbide Rectifier because silicon is used for its construction and its operation as a rectifier
unlike the diode, a thyristor also blocks the current from anode to cathode until it is triggered into conduction by a proper
gate signal between gate and cathode terminals.

Static VI Characteristics of SCR:

Fig 1. Static V-I characteristics of a thyristor (SCR)

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

The characteristics shown in the above figure are called static characteristics. The anode to cathode current I AK is
plotted with respect to anode to cathode voltage V AK. The voltage 'VBO' is the forward breakover voltage. 'VBR' is the
reverse break-down voltage. And Igl, Ig2 , Ig3 are the gate currents applied to the thyristor.

The working of the terrestrial can be discussed into 3 modes

1. Reverse blocking mode

2. Forward blocking mode and
3. Forward conduction mode

Reverse blocking mode:

Fig. shows the situation when the thyristor will be in reverse blocking mode.
In the above figure, observe that the anode (A) is made negative with
respect to cathode (K). The gate is kept open. There are three PN junctions
in the thyristor Jl,J2 and J3. Due to this reverse bias, junctions Jl and J3 are
also reverse biased. And junction J2 is forward biased. The thyristor does
not conduct due to this reverse bias. A very small current flows from
cathode to anode. This current is called reverse leakage current of the
thyristor. This mode is called reverse blocking mode. Fig.1 shows the
characteristic of thyristor in reverse blocking mode. Observe that reverse
voltage increases but very small current flows. At reverse break down
voltage (VBR), the reverse current increases rapidly. At the time of reverse
breakdown, the high voltage is present across the thyristor and heavy
current flows through it. Hence large power dissipation takes place in the thyristor. Due to this dissipation, the junction
temperature exceeds the permissible value and the thyristor is damaged. Hence a reverse voltage across the thyristor should
never exceed VBO.

During the reverse blocking mode, the positive gate signal should not be applied. If the positive signal is applied between
gate and cathode, junction J3 is forward biased. Hence current starts flowing through it. This current adds to reverse leakage
current of the thyristor. Hence dissipation is also increased.

Forward Blocking Mode: The thyristor is said to be forward biased when

anode is made positive with respect to cathode As shown in the fig. Due to
this the junction J1 & J3 are forward biased and J2 is reverse biased. A very
small current flows from anode to cathode called forward leakage current
and it is in order of few milliamperes. In this mode, the thyristor is forward
biased but it does not turn-on. The VAK can be increased till VBO then the
thyristor will turn on and the thyristor goes from forward blocking mode to
forward conduction mode even if gate drive is not applied. Thus thyristor
is not damaged if VAK > VBO, rather it is turned on.

Forward Conduction Mode:

In this mode, the thyristor conducts current from anode to

cathode with a very small drop across it. A thyristor is brought
from forward blocking mode to forward conduction mode by
turning it on by exceeding the VBO or by applying a gate pulse
between gate and cathode. In this mode, thyristor is in on state
and behaves like a closed switch. The voltage drop across
thyristor in the on state in of the order of 1 to 2v depending on
the rating of SCR.

The voltage drop increases slightly with an increase in anode

current in conduction mode anode current is limited by load
impedance alone as voltage drop across SCR is quite small. This small voltage drop across the device is due ohmic drop
in the four layers.

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Latching Current(IL): Latching current is the minimum forward current that flows through the thyristor to keep it in
forward conduction mode (ON state) at the time of triggering if the forward current is less than the latching current
thyristor doesn't turn on. Latching current is of the order of 10 to 15 milliamperes

Holding Current(Ih): Holding current is the minimum forward current that flows through the thyristor to keep it in
forward conduction mode when forward current reduces below holding current thyristor turn off.

The holding current of the thyristor is of the order of 8 to 10 milliamperes.

Comparison (difference) between holding and latching currents

The definitions of holding current and latching current appear similar but they are totally different. The differences are
mentioned below :

1. Latching current is effective at the time of turning-ON, whereas holding current is effective at the time of turning-
OFF the thyristor.
2. Latching current is the minimum current that should flow at the time of triggering to turn-ON the thyristor.
Whereas once the thyristor is already in ON-state, its current should not reduce below holding current otherwise
it turns-OFF.
3. Latching current is greater than holding current even though their magnitudes are much related.

Two Transistor Model of Thyristor: The operation of the thyristor can be explained with the help of two
transistor model. Fig. shows how the two transistor model of the thyristor is formed.

As shown in Fig. (b), the middle two layers are split into two separate parts. Because of this, the two transistors are formed.
These transistor are shown in Fig.(c). The transistor Tl is pnp, whereas T2 is npn. The base of Tl is connected to collector
of T2. Similarly base of T2 is connected to collector of T1. These transistors are in common base configuration. When the
thyristor is forward biased and gate is open, various currents flow as shown in Fig.(c). As shown in this figure, the anode
to cathode current is ID. The collector current, emitter current and leakage currents of Tl are related as,

………….(1)

………….(2)

Therefore equation (1) & (2) can be written as,

………….(3)

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

In Fig. (c), observe that the current ID flows through the collectors of Tl and T2. Hence we can write,

Putting the values from equation (3) in above equation,

……..(4)

…….(5)

Thyristor Turn-on and Turn-off:

Different Ways to Turn-on the Thyristor:
1. Gate drive: Thyristor can be turned on by applying positive gate-cathode voltage. Injected gate carriers increase the
anode current and regenerative action starts. (𝛼1 + 𝛼2 ) approaches unit and anode current (ID) becomes large. It is limited

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

only by external load. Once the thyristor is turned-on, there is no need of gate drive. Hence it can be removed. Normally
pulsed gate drive is applied to reduce losses in the thyristor gate.

2. High forward voltage: Thyristor turns on when its anode-cathode voltage exceeds forward breakover voltage, i.e. V
Ak > VBO. At these voltages, the leakage current is so high, that internal regeneration starts in the device.

3. dv/dt: Thyristor can be thought of as a capacitor in the forward biased state. When the anode-cathode voltage changes
rapidly, leakage current thought the device increases due to internal capacitor. The leads to turn-on of the thyristor.

4. Light: Thyristor can be turned on by light, when it falls on gate cathode junction of the thyristor light induces electronic
hole pairs and it helps to increases leakage current.

5. High temperature: Tyristor turns on due to increased temperature AT higher temperature, there are more electron-hole
pairs across junctions. This inverses the leakage current and the thyristor turns on.

Turn-on Dynamic Characteristics:

The gate pulse is applied at t = 0. During the delay time (td), the anode current rises very slowly and flows only near the
narrow region of the gate. Observe that anode to cathode does not reduce during td. It remains to the forward blocking
value. During the rise time (tr), the anode current increases rapidly and anode to cathode voltage falls rapidly. The high
voltage and current are present in the thyristor. Hence large dissipation takes place in the thyristor.

This power dissipation is called switching loss of the thyristor. The current starts spreading in the remaining area of the
thyristor. During the spread time (tp), the conduction spreads over the complete cross-section of the thyristor. The anode
current reaches to its maximum value. And the anode to cathode voltage falls to lowest value (i.e. less than 2 V). The
dissipation in the thyristor is also reduced. The turn on time (ton) of the thyristor is given as total of td,tr and tp. Thus,

The turn on time can be defined as,

The turn-on time of the thyristor is defined as the time from initiation of gate drive to the time when anode current
reaches to its full value.

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

The turn-on time of the thyristors is about I to 3 microseconds. The turn-on time can be effectively reduced by applying
higher values of gate currents. Because of high gate currents, more electron-holes are injected near junction J2. Hence
avalanche break-down of J 2 takes place fast. Therefore anode current rises fast. Thus effective turn-on time is reduced.
To turn-on the thyristor, the gate pulse is thus sufficient.

Thyristor Turn-off:
The thyristor can be turned-off, when its forward current falls below holding current. The can be done by two methods i)
Natural commutation and ii) Forced commutation.

i) Natural commutation: In this type of turn-off, the supply voltage becomes zero or negative, Hence thyristor is reverse
biased. Therefore it is turned-off.

ii) Forced commutation: When the supply voltage is DC, then external commutation component are used to turn-off the
thriystor. The commutation components apply reverse bias across the thyristor temporarily or pass impulse of negative
current. Therefore thyristor turns-off.

Turn-off Dynamic Characteristics:

The thyristors are not turned off by gate. They need external circuit for turn-off. These circuits are called commutation
circuits. These commutation circuits has to hold negative voltage across the thyristor during turn-off period. The thyristor
is said to be turned-off when it regains forward blocking capability after forward conduction. In the below figure observe
that anode current falls and then it becomes negative. The negative pulse of current flows through the thyristor for short
period. During the conducting state, the thyristor is flooded with carriers and it acts as short circuit. The negative anode
current flows through the thyristor till all these carriers are removed. Then junctions Jl and J 3 achieve their forward
blocking state. The time required for this is called reverse recovery time (try At the end of trr, reverse voltage appears
across the thyristor and anode current becomes zero. This is shown in Fig. But still, the thyristor is not turned-on. The
commutation circuit has to hold negative voltage across the thyristor for gate recovery time (tgr During this time, the
excess carriers near junction J2 are recombined. If negative voltage is removed by commutation circuit before t then
thyristor may turn-on again due to these excess carrier near junction J2. Because they act like gate drive to the thyristor.
Hence the turn-off is complete at the end of gate recovery time. The thyristor regains its forward blocking capability. The
negative voltage imposed by commutation circuit can be removed at the end of tgr. The turn-off time (tq) of the thyristor
is the total time required by reverse recovery and gate recovery. i.e.,

The turn-off time of the thyristor is the time required to achieve forward blocking capability after commutation is initiated.

The turn-off time of the thyristor varies from 5 to 200 microseconds. The turn-off time of the commutation circuit is called
circuit turn-off time (tc). And hence circuit turn-off time must be greater than the turn-off time of the thyristor (tc > tq).

A Brief Study on Thyristor Types:

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Gate Turn-off Thyristor (GTO):

The SCR is most commonly used member thyristor family. But needs external circuits for turn-off. GTO can be turned-
off by gate drive, gate has full control over the operation of GTO. Fig. shows the structure of GTO.

The Structure of GTO is almost similar to SCR, but significant differences make GTO different from SCR. These
differences are

1. Gate and cathode are highly interdigitated with various geometric forms. This maximizes the periphery of cathode
and minimize distance.
2. There are n + regions at regular intervals in the p + anode layer. This n + layer makes direct contact with n - layer
This is called anode short. This speeds up turn-off mechanism of GTO.
3. The operation of GTO can be explained with the help of two transistor analogy. The gain of pnp transistor is
reduced. This reduces the regenerative action. Hence turn-off of GTO can be achieved by negative current from
gate.

The double arrow on the gate indicates the bidirectional current flows through the gate. The rest of the symbol is similar
to SCR.

Characteristics of GTO:

The V-I Characteristics of GTO in forward direction are similar

to that of SCR. But in reverse direction GTO has virtually no
blocking capability Observe that GTO starts conducting in
direction after very small reverse (20 to 30 V) voltage. This is
because of the short structure.

The junction blocks reverse voltages. But J3 has very small

reverse breakdown voltage. Thus GTO has asymmetric voltage
blocking capability.

Advantages, Limitations and Applications of GTO:

Advantages:

1. Higher voltage blocking capability.

2. Gate has full control over the Of GTO
3. Low on-state loss.
4. High ratio of surge current to average current.
5. High on-state gain.

Limitations

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

1. GTOs require large negative gate currents for turn-off. Hence they are suitable for low-power applications.
2. Very small reverse voltage blocking capability.
3. Switching frequencies are very small.

Applications

1. GTOs are suitable mainly For low power applications.

2. Induction heating and motor drives.

Light Activated SCR (LASCR):

The light-activated SCRs can be triggered using a
beam of light: Their gate region is photosensitive.

The photons of light induce electrons in the gate

cathode junction. Because of these electrons, current
starts flowing across J3 and SCR turns-on. Once the
SCR is turned on, gate has no control over its
operation.

Advantages

1. It can turned-on by a beam of light. Hence isolation is provided between control circuit and SCR.
2. Because of optical triggering, effects of noise are reduced.

Applications

1. Used in high-power applications like HVDC transmission, VAR compensation etc.

2. Used in noise environments for better-triggering control.

Reverse Conducting Thyristor (RCT):

In most of the applications, an antiparallel diode is connected across the thyristor,
For example in chopper and inverter circuits, the antiparallel diode improves the turn-
off requirement of the circuit. The antiparallel diode is also useful in case of inductive
loads to provide the path for feedback currents. A reverse conducting thyristor (RCT)
is similar to an SCR with an antiparallel diode. Fig. shows the equivalent circuit of
RCT. The RCT is also called as thyristor or ASCR. It conducts in the reverse
direction without any control. The conduction in the forward direction is controlled
by the gate. The characteristics are similar to SCR in the forward direction. And the characteristics are similar to diode in
reverse direction.

Triac (Bidirectional Triode Thyristors):

The triac is the bidirectional device. It conducts in both directions. SCR
is conducted only in one direction. The tria is equivalent to the two
antiparallel SCRs.

The triac has three terminals: Main Terminal 1 (MT1), Main Terminal
2 (MT2), and Gate (G). The symbol pf antiparallel devices. The current
flows from MT1 to MT2 when MT1 is forward biased with respect to
MT2. Similarly, current flows from MT2 to MT1 when MT2 is forward
biased with respect to MT1. The current flows (the triac is switched
on) whenever the gate drive is applied.

The Triac is the best device for AC phase control. The input and load
are both AC. The power is to be controlled in positive and negative half cycles. The tria is then triggered in every half

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

cycle. The triac turns off when the current falls to zero in every half cycle. Thus the necessity of antiparallel SCRs is
eliminated by triac.

Merits, Limitations and Applications of Triac:

Merits of Triac:

1. Triac is a bidirectional device, i,e it conducts in both directions.

2. Triac turns off when voltage is reversed.
3. Single gate controls conduction is both directions.
4. Triac with high voltage and current ratings are available.

Demerits if Tria:

1. Tria are latching devices like SCR. Hence, they are not suitable for DC power applications.
2. Gate has no control over the conduction once triac is turned on.
3. Triac have very small switching frequencies.

Applications of Triac:

1. AC power controllers and heater, fan etc. controller.

2. Triggering device for SCRs.

Diac:
The diac is the two terminal and four layer device. It is mainly used for
triggering triacs. Fig(a) shows the symbols of diac. The symbol shown in Fig(b)
has arrows in both the directions. This means it conducts in either direction, The
terminals are not named. It can be used in any direction. It is low low-power
triggering device. There is no control terminal on the diac.

VI Characteristics of Diac: Fig. shows the V-I characteristics of diac. The

current through the diac is plotted with respect to voltage across it. Diac remains
Off till voltage is less than VBO. When voltage exceeds VBO, diac turns 'on' and
conducts heavily. Observe that the characteristic is exactly similar for positive as
well as negative values of voltage and current. Once the diac turns on, the voltage
across it drops to negligible value.

Series and Parallel Operation of Thyristors:

Necessity of Series and Parallel
Operation:
Series connection of the devices is often required to
increase the overall voltage rating. For example the
thyristor is to be operated at 1000 volts. But we have
thyristors of rating 600 volts. Then the circuit can be
implemented by connecting two thyristors in series

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Similarly, parallel connection is used to increase current ratings. For example, current in the circuit is 80 A. But we have
a thyristor of rating 50 A. Then the problem can be solved by connecting two thyristors in parallel as shown in Fig. (b).
This makes the current sharing among two thyristors and each one carries 80/2 = 40 A. Thus series and parallel connections
are most widely used to cater the need of higher voltage and currents.

Series Connection of Thyristors:

Problems Encountered in Series Connection:
When the thyristors are connected in series, they have small
differences in their ratings. Fig shows the V-I characteristics of
two thyristors of same ratings. Observe that there are minor
differences between the characteristics. Forward break-over
voltages, internal resistance, leakage current etc are not exactly
same. The thyristor with highest internal resistance will have
minimum leakage current. Hence high voltage will appear across
it in off state. This creates voltage imbalance in the series
connection. Hence equalization is necessary in the series
connection.

Equalizing Components:
Consider that 'n' number of thyristors
are connected in series. An equalizing
resistance 'R' is connected across each
thyristor as shown in Fig. Let us assume
that Tl has maximum internal resistance
in off state. Hence its leakage current ID1
is minimum. Let the internal resistance
of other devices is same. Hence their
leakage current is also same, i.e. ID2
current I1 flows through R. Since other thyristors have same internal resistance, current through their theie resistors will
be same, i.e. I2. From above circuit we can write,

………….(1)

Here ΔID is the difference in leakage currents of two thyristors. Voltage across T1 is VD1 = I1, R and voltage across T2,
T3,…..Tn is same i.e. I2R. Therefore we can write,

Putting for I2 from equation (1),

Maximum value Of VD1 will occur when ΔID is maximum. Value of R can be obtained from above equation as,

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Dynamic Equalization Circuit:

When all thyristors are in forward blocking state.
There can be some difference in the turn-on and
turn-off times of the thyristors. When trigger is
given to all the thyristors, they start turning-on.
Higher voltage will appear across the thyristor
which turns-on late. Hence its maximum voltage
rating may be exceeded. This problem can be
overcome by dynamic equalizing circuit.

An R-C circuit is placed across each thyristor. Cl provides the equalization during turn-on and turn-off. Resistance R1 is
used to limit the discharge current of Cl.

Value of Cl

If V is ΔV, then

We Know that

If ΔQ indicates the difference in charge stored in Cl and C2, then ΔV will indicate the voltage difference across Tl and T2.
Hence we have ΔV = ΔID R. Therefore above equation becomes,

This equation gives the voltage imbalance across Tl. Value of Cl can be obtained as,

Derating factor of the string: The derating factor (D) indicates the amount by which string is derated. It is given by

String efficiency (n): Sting efficiency indicates the amount by which the string is utilized. It is given as,

Parallel Connection of Thyristors:

The parallel connection of thyristor is used to provide high current demands.

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Problems Occurred In Parallel Connection: The devices used in parallel connection do not have exactly
similar characteristics. The thyristor carrying higher current will have more power dissipation. This will increase its
temperature and reduce the internal resistance. Therefore the current further increases. This process continues till
thyristor damages.

Equalizing Arrangements:
Heat sharing can be done by using common heat sinks for all the devices. This will maintain all the devices at same
temperature.

Static Current Sharing: Two resistors connected in series with the thyristors. R1 and R2 try

to equalize the currents through Tl and T2. But power dissipation in R1 and R2 is very high.

Dynamic Current Sharing: The inductors are placed in series with thyristors.

These inductors are magnetically coupled. But they are connected in opposite direction.

Hence if current in Tl tries to Increase, then a voltage of opposite polarity will be

induced in L2. This Increases the current in T2. Thus current balance is maintained.

di/dt and dv/dt Protection:

In the power controllers, there is a chance of exceeding some rating of the device. The device and the complete controller
may be damaged when such ratings are exceeded. Such fault conditions can be avoided by protecting the devices against
exceeding the ratings. The current, voltage etc are regularly monitored and the device is protected by some means such as
fast acting fuse, snubber, disabling the gate drives etc.

Snubber for Protection Against dv/dt and Over Voltages:

Transient Voltage: The transient over voltages can switch on the thyristor. In
some cases the thyristor can be damaged due to these transient voltages. These
transient voltages are very common when the converter is having inductive
loads. The thyristors can be protected against transient voltages by a RC network
as shown in Fig. This RC network is connected in parallel across the thyristor. It
is called snubber circuit. The resistance has the value of few hundred ohms.
Whenever there is a large spike or voltage transient across the thyristor, it is
absorbed by the RC circuit. The RC circuit (snubber) acts as a lowpass filter for
this voltage transient. The resistance has normally low value so that the transient
is absorbed by the capacitor quickly. Thus the thyristor is protected against
voltage transients. The RC snubber circuit is very commonly used for
protection of thyristors against transient voltages.

dv/dt: dv/dt also generates large voltage transients. These rapid voltage
variations can also be suppressed by snubber circuit. The capacitor acts as a
short for these dv/dt variations. The snubber can be made more effective by
connecting a diode across the resistance as shown in Fig.

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

In case of voltage transient, the current flows through diode and capacitor. The capacitor acts as a short for the voltage
transient. Thus it is suppressed. When thyristor turns-on, the capacitor discharges through resistance R. The R, C and diode
snubber is more commonly used because it is very effective for dv/dt and other voltage transients.

Design of snubber:

Overcurrent Protection:
The over currents flow in the thyristor circuits due to short circuits. The short circuits
can take place because of short circuited load, misalignment of firing pulses failure of
the thyristors due to over voltages etc. The short circuit currents can be protected
automatically because of load or supply transformers appear in the circuit. However
the thyristors must be protected against over currents in the circuit. Normally fast
acting fuse are used for the protection of thyristor against over currents. These fuses
melt at comparatively lower currents than current rating of the thyristor. Thus fuse
melts and disconnects the circuit and the thyristor is protected. This is shown in Fig.
The fuse should be selected such that it should not melt or disconnect the circuit at
normal load currents.

di/dt Protection: At the time of turn-on, anode current increases rapidly. This
rapid variation of anode current does not spread across the junction area of the thyristor.
This creates the local hot-spots in the junction and increases the junction temperature. If
the junction temperature exceeds permissible value, then the thyristor is damaged.

The rapid variations of the thyristor current are also called di/dt. Every thyristor has
maximum permissible value of di/dt.

The thyristor can be protected from excessive di/dt by using an inductor in series as shown
in Fig. The inductance opposes for rapid current variation di/dt. Whenever there is rapid
current variation, the inductor smooths it and protects the thyristor from damage.

The value of inductance can be calculated as,

Here di/dt is the maximum value and L is the series inductance including stray inductance.

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Firing Circuits:
1. Forward break over voltage
2. dv/dt triggering
3. Exceeding internal device temperature
4. Focusing light beam on the junction
5. Gate triggering.

Features of Firing Circuits: The triggering circuits are called firing circuits. The following features must
be fulfilled by the firing circuit.

1. The firing circuit should produce the triggering pulses for every thyristor at ppropriate instants.
2. The triggering pulses generated by the control circuit need to be amplified and passed through the isolation circuit.
The triggering pulses generated by the control circuit have very small power. Hence their power is increased by
pulse amplifier. Fig. shows the scheme. The firing circuit operates at low voltage levels (5 to 20 volts). And the
thyristor operates at high voltage levels (greater than 250 volts). Hence there must be electrical isolation between
firing circuit and thyristor. This isolation is provided by the pulse transformer or optocouplers.

R-Firing Circuit:

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

RC Firing Circuit:

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Full Wave RC-Firing Circuit:

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

UJT Triggering Circuit:

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BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Fig. 1 shows the circuit diagram of UJT triggering circuit. The supply voltage is rectified and given to the Zener
regulator. The voltage of zener diode is VZ. The zener diode clamps the rectified voltage to VZ as shown in the
waveforms of Fig. 2. Hence voltage Vz is applied to the UJT circuit.

The capacitor charges through resistance Rc. When the capacitor voltage becomes equal to Vp, the peak voltage of the
UJT, it turns-on. The capacitor discharges through emitter (E), base (Bl) and primary of pulse transformer. The UJT is
turned-on when the capacitor discharges. Since current flows through the primary of pulse transformer, a pulse is
generated. This pulse as shown in Fig.1 is the gate triggering pulse. When the capacitor discharges to a voltage called
valley voltage (Vv), the UJT turns-off and capacitor again starts charging. This mode of working of UJT is called relaxation
oscillator. The delay angle '𝛼' is the angle when first triggering pulse is generated in the half cycle. The charging of the
capacitor can be varied by resistance Rc. Hence delay angle can also be varied. The UJT trigger circuit has the firing angle
range from 0 to 1800.

The zener voltage acts as a supply voltage for UJT relaxation oscillator. This voltage becomes zero at 0, 𝜋, 2𝜋, 3𝜋,....etc.
The capacitor voltage also becomes zero at these instants. Thus synchronization with zero crossings is achieved. The UJT
trigger circuit can be used to trigger SCRs in 1Ø converters, 1Ø AC regulators etc.

Mathematical analysis:

Prepared By- Mrs. Sowmyashree K S, Dept. of EEE, ATMECE, Mysuru 18

BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Prepared By- Mrs. Sowmyashree K S, Dept. of EEE, ATMECE, Mysuru 19

BEE503 Module-3_ Thyristors

Prepared By- Mrs. Sowmyashree K S, Dept. of EEE, ATMECE, Mysuru 20