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Understanding inductor saturation impact on control design

Presented by Prof. Nicola Femia, President of IPERA

This webinar is intended for engineers who work on power electronics designs. Inductor saturation influences the behavior of the control loop of switched-mode power supplies and has to be considered while designing the control loop. Depending on the desired static and dynamic performance parameters of the power supply, saturation can provide valuable benefits or might have to be avoided. Based on a discussion about the underlying mechanisms of popular control techniques like hysteretic, voltage-mode, or peak-current-mode control, methods and models are introduced that can predict the impact of inductor saturation on control loop behavior. Furthermore, measurement techniques for capturing saturation effects are shown and discussed.