Wide Bandgap Extrinsic Photoconductive Switches
- State Univ. of New York (SUNY), Plattsburgh, NY (United States); Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States)
Photoconductive semiconductor switches (PCSS) have been investigated since the late 1970s. Some devices have been developed that withstand tens of kilovolts and others that switch hundreds of amperes. However, no single device has been developed that can reliably withstand both high voltage and switch high current. Yet, photoconductive switches still hold the promise of reliable high voltage and high current operation with subnanosecond risetimes. Particularly since good quality, bulk, single crystal, wide bandgap semiconductor materials have recently become available. In this chapter we will review the basic operation of PCSS devices, status of PCSS devices and properties of the wide bandgap semiconductors 4H-SiC, 6H-SiC and 2H-GaN.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 1034509
- Report Number(s):
- LLNL-TH-523591; TRN: US201204%%51
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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