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In the last 10 or 15 years, exciting new developments have occurred in the field of filters and multiplexers. The two words that best explain this phenomenon are “topology” and “technology.” Thus, this paper will cover new connections, new materials, and new processes. This paper summarizes what is new, describes the new devices, and avoids simply surveying the entire field. It is not possible to cover everything, and regrettably, some new and possibly exciting areas are omitted (such as filters fabricated using liquid crystal polymers, active element inclusion, extreme power devices used in accelerators), and others,\ldots, because something has to be left for the next paper! The paper does cover bandstop filters, intrinsically switched film bulk acoustic resonator, and barium–strontium–titanate filters, brand new derivations of lossy filter synthesis and dual-band filter synthesis, multimode networks, new work on optimal multiplexer (multiport network) configurations, and substrate integrated waveguide filters. In each of these areas significant new work has been recently performed and is presented in a summary format suitable for those thinking that the area of filters and multiplexers has become mature (stagnant) with nothing interesting to learn. Nothing could be further from the truth! [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The papers in this special section provide deep insights into new solutions, synthesis and design techniques, topologies, and technological realizations of filters and multiplexers that can answer all existing demands from high-frequency communication systems. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

An introduction to the journal is presented in which the editor discusses an article on the real-time optimization of a step multilevel modulation, the use of zero state in the minimization of distortion, and the analysis of selective harmonic control based on the utilization of resonant filters.

Harmonic resonance has become an important concern for the application of shunt capacitors in recent years. A potential solution to address this challenge is to convert a shunt capacitor into a passive filter. This paper presents design methods to configure a shunt capacitor as a C-type filter or a third-order high-pass filter with guaranteed resonance-free performance. The concept of resonance-free condition is first introduced in this paper. It is then used to develop filter design methods that always meet the resonance-free condition. The two filter configurations are also compared. It was found that the third-order high-pass filter has more advantages than the C-type filter. Another useful finding of this work is that the filter parameters, as determined using the proposed design methods, are independent of the system conditions. As a result, a lookup table for the filter parameters has been created to facilitate immediate use by the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A phase-locked loop or phase lock loop (PLL) is, essentially, a closed loop control system, where its output signal (regulated) maintains a direct (chosen) relationship to the input signal (unregulated). If the phases of the input and output signals remain the same, their frequencies will also match. In its usual way, a PLL is an electronic circuit with filters and controllers that must be tuned each time, according to the input signal parameters. As a contribution and novelty, this paper introduces a new, easy, fast and highly efficient PLL algorithm, that it does not need to adjust every time the input signal changes. This makes it independent of the input signal it receives and, therefore, and in a certain way, universally applicable. In addition, the proposal is implemented exclusively by software, housed in a microcontroller, which also represents another novelty. As another remarkable feature, the proposed algorithm is very simple, with a very low computational cost, which makes it very stable, practically insensitive to noise, and very fast. These characteristics and the performance shown over a wide range of input signal frequencies, make the proposed algorithm suitable for use in different applications, from the electricity grid synchronization to the demodulation of frequency modulation, DC motor drives, etc. In addition to frequency and phase tracking, the developed algorithm generates the signal corresponding to the fundamental frequency of the input signal. Furthermore, the algorithm behavior is not affected by the input signal distortion and is independent of its initial phase. The performance and excellent behavior of the developed algorithm are evaluated through simulations and experimental tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the analysis of possible transient overvoltages that can be generated during vacuum circuit-breaker (VCB) operation at the connection point of a photovoltaic powerplant. A typical switching event that is related to the VCB concerns energization and de-energization of the unloaded transformer. However, at the typical photovoltaic powerplant, the transformer is fed by an inverter equipped with LC (or LCL) filters that are necessary for limitation of harmonics and ripple in voltage and current. From the point of view of switching operations, the inductance and capacitance of the low-voltage (LV)-side connected filter affect the natural frequency of the transformer, which is reflected by different transient system response during VCB operation. In this paper, laboratory measurement of overvoltages generated during distribution transformer switching by means of VCBs is analyzed. The impact of the LC filter connected at the LV side on the overvoltages suppression was studied. Electromagnetic Transients Program–Alternative Transients Program simulations were conducted in order to verify the possibility of transients elimination by means of the additional series-connected RL choke at the transformer medium-voltage side. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Due to the structure of underground cables, the frequency dependence of shunt admittances is more important to underground cables than to overhead lines. The main purpose of this paper is to establish a frequency-dependent underground cable model for advanced research and analysis regarding the influences of frequency-dependent shunt admittances on underground cable systems. The model will be more practical by adding the frequency dependence of shunt admittances into mathematical models and transferring them to the corresponding programming codes. In the cable Electromagnetic Transient Program (EMTP) models, the frequency dependence of shunt admittances could be represented by a set of equivalent circuits with constant parameters that can be determined by observing the characteristics of shunt admittances, then synthesizing them with a rational function approximation for discrete-time EMTP solutions. A number of simulation cases are presented in this paper to show that the frequency dependence of shunt admittances for underground cable systems leads to magnitude attenuation and strong traveling time reduction in a transient period of voltages. Also, the influences of frequency-dependent capacitances on cable systems are comparatively more impressive than those of frequency-dependent conductances. The conclusions are supported by numerical simulation results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a simplified control technique for a dual three-phase topology of a unified power quality conditioner—iUPQC. The iUPQC is composed of two active filters, a series active filter and a shunt active filter (parallel active filter), used to eliminate harmonics and unbalances. Different from a conventional UPQC, the iUPQC has the series filter controlled as a sinusoidal current source and the shunt filter controlled as a sinusoidal voltage source. Therefore, the pulse width modulation (PWM) controls of the iUPQC deal with a well-known frequency spectrum, since it is controlled using voltage and current sinusoidal references, different from the conventional UPQC that is controlled using nonsinusoidal references. In this paper, the proposed design control, power flow analysis, and experimental results of the developed prototype are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, a novel terminated coupled line structure (TCLS) is introduced, which is constructed by a coupled line section and four terminations loaded on it. Introducing different kinds of terminations, three types of bandpass filters (BPFs) based on TCLSs are proposed, theoretically analyzed, and fabricated, including two single-ended wideband BPFs with fractional bandwidths (FBWs) of 67% and 40% respectively, and a wideband differential BPF with 74% differential-mode FBW. These BPFs can achieve wide passband bandwidth, low in-band insertion loss, high passband selectivity, as well as deep stopband rejection performance simultaneously, benefited from the multiple transmission zeros and transmission poles obtained by the TCLSs. The practical design procedures of these BPFs are presented and explained. The agreement among theoretical predictions, EM-simulated, and measured results validates our proposed filter structures. Finally, the generalized multistage filter topology based on TCLSs is proposed to design high-order filters with better filtering performances. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The influence of a filter inductor on the steady-state performance of a parallel-type resonant converter is elaborated and analyzed in this paper. By steady-state operation analysis, it is shown that the ripple current of the filter inductor results in an inaccurate prediction of fundamental harmonic approximation (FHA), and such problem would become serious when the filter inductance is small. In order to portray such feature, an improved fundamental harmonic approximation (IFHA) is proposed. Unlike an FHA equivalent circuit, an equivalent inductor is added to the ac resistance parallelly in an IFHA equivalent circuit. Due to that, the equivalent inductor branch takes account of the ripple current of the filter inductor, and the IFHA is expected to own higher accuracy and can be used in a parameter design procedure. In this paper, the equivalent inductor expressions of full-bridge rectifier and current-doubler rectifier are derived as examples. In order to verify the theoretical analysis, a 500 W LCC resonant converter is built as a prototype. The close-loop experiment results show that small filter inductance would lead to the failure of output voltage regulation and hard-switching operation of power switches. And open-loop experiment results show the IFHA gives more accurate predictions than those of FHA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many research works report the use of LCL filters for grid-interfaced PV systems. Indiscreet selection of passive LCL filter parameters may result in poor filtering and increased power losses. LCL filter parameter selection is critical to get a good performance and at the same time ensure that losses and costs stay low. This paper proposes a novel approach to design the LCL filter for a grid-interfaced PV system. A cost-based minimization approach on a cost per joule basis for each of the filter elements is explored to obtain the optimal filter design. Simulation results for a 10-kVA grid-connected inverter with an LCL filter are presented in order to verify the efficacy of the proposed design. The impact of designed filter parameters on the ripple current is also discussed in this paper. The total inductance of the LCL filter is varied and filter parameter values which give lowest cost is identified while meeting harmonic standard requirements and the fundamental voltage drop across the filter. Finally, the proposed design is also experimentally validated via a hardware prototype. Results validate the design method in terms of the harmonic attenuation and total harmonic distortion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the active differential-mode (DM) electromagnetic interference (EMI) filter topology for ac/dc converters is first briefly investigated. The active DM EMI filter model was developed based on the models of filter components including a current transformer, a high-pass filter, an operational amplifier, and a class AB amplifier. The system model including the active filter, ac/dc converter, and line impedance stabilization networks (LISNs) are explored. With the developed system model, the loop gain and insertion gain of the active filter are derived. Based on the loop gain, the stability of the active filter is investigated and the compensation is applied to achieve stability and good EMI reduction. Both simulations and experiments are conducted to validate the developed technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are many different methodologies for a line startup, process transfer, line conversion, and process upgrade in semiconductor IC manufacturing. In our startup of a 200 mm bulk acoustic wave filter line converted from an existing 150 mm production line, a methodology of copy, scale, develop, and match (CSDM) was introduced. This methodology includes four phases of matching (unit qualification, short flow verification, pathfinder validation, and qualification lot process) between 150 mm and 200 mm process, different failure mode effects analysis (DFMEA) for the risk assessment of the differences between two processes, process flow breakdown with process blocks and sub-blocks, a decide, define, determine, and design method of process evaluation with short loop flow process monitors based on DFMEA assessment. Following this CSDM methodology throughout the conversion process ensures that both electrical and reliability performances of 200 mm product wafers match to those of the 150 mm line. The first 200 mm full flow pathfinder lot with electrical yield on parity to 150 mm line yield. In this paper, the application of this CSDM methodology is discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The harmful effects of harmonics are an important issue in wind power plants (WPPs), especially in offshore applications. In offshore WPPs, the wind turbines are linked to the network through high-power converters that produce harmonics at relative low frequencies. Moreover, in the network of a WPP, the propagation of noncharacteristic harmonics and the effect of resonance contribute as well in boosting the harmonic distortion. In this paper, a solution for compensating the harmonics in a WPP by means of using hybrid filters is proposed. In this paper, not only the filtering solution is tested, but also a method for finding the best place where to connect the filter, based on a modal analysis or a harmonic modal resonance analysis, is implemented. The proposed solution has been tested by considering the model of a real 400-MW offshore WPP as the study case. As it will be shown, the hybrid filter is capable of damping the resonances in the plant, while the analysis conducted permits us to optimize its location in the plant. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

There are several ways to model three-phase gridconnected voltage-source inverters (VSIs) with an $LCL$ filter. Such models often use simplifications like constant dc-link voltage or averaging over a switching period. These simplifications remove transistor switching and dc-link capacitor dynamics from the model. In this paper, a comprehensive modeling of a three-phase VSI, including an $LCL$ filter, is described and compared to models using one or more of the aforementioned simplifications. Advantages and disadvantages of different models are discussed. All simulations are verified by comparing with experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper presents a novel philosophy to compensate the load-reactive power demand through a three-phase unified power quality conditioner (UPQC). Most of the UPQC-based applications show the dependency on shunt inverter for load-reactive power compensation, whereas the series inverter is always looked as controlled voltage source to handle all voltage-related problems. This paper proposes a new functionality of UPQC in which both the shunt and series APFs supply the load-reactive power demand. This feature not only helps to share the load-reactive power demand, but also helps to reduce the shunt APF rating, and hence, the overall cost of UPQC. This results in better utilization of the existing series inverter. The theory and complete mathematical analysis termed as "power angle control (PAC)" is presented. The simulation results based on MATLAB/Simulink are discussed in detail to support the concept developed in the paper. The proposed approach is also validated through experimental study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper calculates and compares the efficiency and loss distribution in the three most popular state-of-the-art types of large motor drive systems: 1) current-source drive with active front-end rectifier; 2) current-source drive with 18-pulse thyristor rectifier; and 3) three-level voltage-source drive with 12-pulse/24-pulse diode rectifier. For converter systems with efficiencies better than 90%, it is suggested to calculate or measure the losses of all the components separately and add them up to calculate the total efficiency. A simple and accurate method of calculating switching losses for a current-source and voltage-source converter is proposed. Through the calculation and simulation of each loss factor such as switching losses, conduction losses, and snubber and filter losses, the three-level voltage-source drive system has been found to have the highest efficiency of 98.77% under the rated load of 1.6 MW. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A two-dimensional space-time pilot-symbol assisted demodulation system is proposed in this paper. Since complex scattering environments can produce nontrivial space-time correlation characteristics, this paper proposes coherent demodulation by estimating the fading channel distortion using pilot observations across both space and time. The optimum interpolation filter takes in multiple signals from receiving antennas and exploiting the space-time channel correlation to produce multiple channel-estimate outputs corresponding to every antenna. The optimal channel-estimation filter, its mean-square error performance, and the pairwise symbol-error probability are derived for realistic scattering models to characterize the system performance. A design criterion is proposed for the pilot-symbol spacing and the filter length. Since the filter is a function of the statistical description of the channel, we investigate if this statistical description and the resulting optimal filters can be estimated simply from the pilot observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new class of compact Chebyshev differential-mode (DM) bandpass filters with intrinsic common-mode (CM) rejection is proposed and demonstrated on $\lambda$ /4 coplanar stripline (CPS) resonators with an improved unloaded quality factor ($Q_{u}$). The distinct advantage of the proposed $\lambda$ /4 CPS resonator with higher $Q_{u}$ than slotline resonator, together with intrinsic CM rejection of CPS line, can demonstrate that $\lambda$ /4 CPS resonator is more suitable for the design of narrowband DM filter than others on slotline resonator. Then, the underlying physics why CPS resonator possesses higher $Q_{u}$ than slotline resonator is numerically studied and further interpreted by the radiation loss. To facilitate the design process, an analytical design approach is introduced by using alternative J/K inverters and a tailored method is used to extract J/K inverter values with their associated effective electrical lengths based on their equivalent circuit models. Finally, two design examples, a second-order and a fourth-order DM Chebyshev bandpass filter, are designed and implemented, operating at the center frequency of 1.8 GHz with the fractional bandwidths of 6% and 19%, respectively. The simulated and measured DM/CM frequency responses match well with each other. The proposed DM filters based on $\lambda$ /4 CPS resonators have demonstrated the claimed superior performances in terms of intrinsic CM rejection, improved unloaded quality factor, easy implementation of J/K inverter, inherent suppression of first DM harmonic, and compact size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The output voltage of power electronic converters is a very important quantity for dynamic control of power electronic systems. In electrical drives without electromechanical position or speed sensor, the terminal reference voltage is used to obtain the rotor position. Dead-time effects and semiconductor voltage drop lead to distortion in the actual output voltage and degrade the control performance when the back electromotive force magnitude is low. Thus, for stable low-speed operation, output voltage sensing becomes necessary. Due to the switching nature of power electronic systems, this is not a trivial task, especially when instantaneous measurement of the terminal voltage is required. In this paper, an instantaneous switching-period average voltage sensing technique is proposed that utilizes a combined approach of oversampling and filtering. Based on the theoretical analysis of the sampling- and filter-induced measurement distortion, a general solution for an optimal filter design is derived. The additional sensing circuit is integrated into the low-side gate driver of the converter outputs. This paper includes details about the hardware implementation and extensive verification measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a new filter design method that can smooth the wind power generation output while keeping the energy capacity and power rating of the energy storage system (ESS) small. Wind power generation causes frequency fluctuations in power systems. Therefore, in many cases, the ESS is needed for smoothing the fluctuations of wind generator output. In order to improve the performance of the ESS controlled with the conventional low-pass filter (LPF), this paper investigates other types of filters. First, the relations between filter and energy capacity/power rating of the ESS are disclosed through the worst-case study. Then, the frequency fluctuation analysis of the power system with respect to the wind power generation is carried out in order to realize a pin-point smoothing. Finally, a metaheuristic optimization method is proposed for the multiobjective design of the filter based on these relations so as to achieve an optimal tradeoff between the output smoothing and energy capacity/power rating of the ESS. It is shown via simulation analysis with real wind data that the proposed method can suppress the frequency fluctuation of the power system effectively with the ESS having smaller energy capacity and power rating. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper presents an accurate method for synthesis of true time delay (TTD) reflecting elements to design wideband reflectarray (RA) antennas. In doing so, primarily the conventional phase distribution formulation of RA is modified to accommodate the design of resonant reflecting elements based on TTD technique. An accurate circuit model is then presented to realize the linear reflection coefficient phase of the reflecting elements of the RA antenna using the continued fraction theory. Finally, the equivalent circuit models of reflecting elements are implemented via multilayer frequency selective-surface structures. The RA antenna is designed and fabricated to operate in the X-band frequency. Stable aperture phase efficiency of about 80% and stable radiation patterns throughout the operating frequency band, confirm the accuracy of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Unintentional series and/or parallel resonances, due to the tuned passive filter and the line inductance, may result in severe harmonic distortion in the industrial power system. This paper presents a hybrid active filter to suppress harmonic resonance and to reduce harmonic distortion. The proposed hybrid filter is operated as variable harmonic conductance according to the voltage total harmonic distortion; therefore, harmonic distortion can be reduced to an acceptable level in response to load change or parameter variation of the power system. Since the hybrid filter is composed of a seventh-tuned passive filter and an active filter in series connection, both dc voltage and kVA rating of the active filter are dramatically decreased compared with the pure shunt active filter. In real application, this feature is very attractive since the active power filter with fully power electronics is very expensive. A reasonable tradeoff between filtering performances and cost is to use the hybrid active filter. Design consideration are presented, and experimental results are provided to validate effectiveness of the proposed method. Furthermore, this paper discusses filtering performances on line impedance, line resistance, voltage unbalance, and capacitive filters. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper presents a new form of reconfigurable band notch resonator with a wide tuning range. The whole structure consists of a through line and two parallel coupled resonators. This paper presents an accurate lumped element equivalent circuit for the parallel coupled resonator. The mechanism giving rise to the wide tuning range is also investigated. The first harmonic of the fundamental stop-band is analyzed and compared with that of the varactor-coupled resonator. Measurement results show that the stop-band of the filter can be tuned from 0.6 to 4.0 GHz. This is achieved by varying the capacitance of two pairs of varactor diodes. The stop-band tuning range is restricted by the capacitance variation which can be achieved using the varactor diode. The potential tuning range of a filter based on this resonator is greater than one decade. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Compared with the L filter, the LCL filter is more suitable for high-power low-switching-frequency applications due to its better attenuation characteristics on high frequencies. However, the parameter design for the LCL filter is more complex since both the inhibiting effect of the high-frequency harmonic current and the influence to the controller response performance of the converter should be considered. In this paper, the model of the LCL filter and the design criteria of the LCL filter for a shunt active power filter (SAPF) are analyzed in the beginning. Then, the impacts of all parameters of the LCL filter on SAPF are intuitively drawn on a graph by theoretical derivation. Finally, a novel parameter design and optimization method for the LCL filter is proposed. The validity and effectiveness of the proposed method are proved by simulated and experimental results of a single-phase SAPF prototype at the end of this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper presents a single-stage converter for a high-bandwidth and high-efficiency envelope amplifier. In the proposed application, due to the high peak-to-average-power ratio, high bandwidth, and the power level requirements, the envelope amplifier has low efficiency. Therefore, many efforts have been made to increase the efficiency of the envelope amplifier. To achieve this improvement, the current ripple cancellation technique is applied in this paper to a synchronous buck converter to cancel the output current ripple and to decrease the switching frequency without a reduction in the large signal bandwidth, for open-loop operation and for the envelope elimination and restoration technique. The advantages of the proposed design are presented and validated experimentally. The transfer function of the output filter of the buck converter with a ripple cancellation circuit has been modeled and compared to measurements, showing a good correspondence. Experimental validation is provided at 4 MHz of switching frequency, for dc and for variable output voltage, applying a sinusoidal reference and a 64-QAM signal. Experimental validation of the efficiency improvement is provided, compared to the equivalent design of the conventional buck converter in terms of the output voltage ripple rejection ratio and large signal bandwidth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new compensation strategy for receiving clean power of a conventional 18-pulse ac/dc converter formed by three 6-diode bridges is proposed. According to the proposed strategy, a three-phase current-controlled inverter injects the compensation currents into the three positive terminals of the three six-diode bridges. The goal of injecting currents at dc side is to improve the quality of the ac line currents. Compared to the conventional active filter deployed at the ac side, the three-phase inverter used in this paper is with lower kVA rating, and the 18-pulse converter draws nearly sinusoidal currents from the ac main by the proposed compensation strategy. The theoretical compensation command is derived in this paper, and then an approximate approach is recommended to simplify the calculation. A digital-signal processor is employed as a digital controller to calculate the compensation command, and a 3-kW prototype including the 18-pulse converter and the current-controlled inverter is built for evaluation and measurement. Moreover, the performance affected by unbalanced ac source is investigated. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method not only improves the line current quality but also mitigates the effects caused by unbalanced source voltages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transmission-line busbar filter is an innovative high-density electromagnetic interference (EMI) containment solution for power electronics systems. It uses the concept of the transmission-line EMI filter as a part of the power interconnection to eliminate the EMI noises in power converters. This paper presents a systematic study of the transmission-line busbar filter in a motor drive system, which includes its design, modeling, and improvement using a hybrid approach. The paper investigates the relationship between the busbar filter's in-circuit attenuation and its geometry, and then derives a general design guideline for the transmission-line busbar EMI filters. To improve the performance of the transmission-line busbar filter, the paper proposes a hybrid busbar filter combining a transmission-line busbar filter and a one-turn inductor. This improvement provides much higher attenuation than the traditional transmission-line busbar filters. These proposed concepts have been verified experimentally not only with small-signal measurement but also with in-circuit tests in a medium-power motor drive system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wide bandgap semiconductor switches have been increasingly utilized to improve the power density and efficiency of power converters, as such devices are able to operate at very high frequencies, e.g., up to 100 MHz, with reduced power losses. However, such a high-frequency operation may impose a challenge to the digital control system, and the system clock frequency should be up to 100 GHz in high-precision applications, which is difficult to realize in low-cost microprocessors. Instead of using extremely high-frequency clocks, preprocessing-based solutions that utilize digital pulse-width-modulated (DPWM) dither techniques can also enhance the DPWM resolution with moderate frequency clocks. Unfortunately, this is usually achieved at the expense of introducing low-frequency harmonics, which may complicate system controller and output filter design. In this paper, an optimal dither technique is proposed to enhance the resolution of DPWM power converters. The concepts of positive dither and negative dither are first proposed in this paper. Furthermore, vector-diagram-based analysis indicates that with proper utilization of positive dithers and negative dithers and carefully selected dither sequences, the lowest order harmonic introduced by the conventional dither technique can be completely eliminated when the dither period is multiples of six switching periods. In other cases, the proposed optimal dither technique can produce minimized lowest order harmonic. Finally, experimental results obtained from a Gallium Nitride (GaN) devices-based synchronous buck converter validate the feasibility of the proposed dither technique. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Tunable matching networks (MNs) are essential components for agile radio frequency systems. To optimally design such networks, the total area they cover on the Smith chart needs to be determined. In this paper, the coverage areas of typical MNs have been determined analytically for the first time. It has been found that the coverage area is encompassed by up to five arcs. Analytical expressions for the centers and radii for these arcs have been derived. The theoretical analysis is provided for four typical MNs and verified by circuit simulation and measured data. Moreover, a dynamically load-modulated power amplifier has been designed using the presented theoretical techniques, which demonstrates a measured improvement in the power added efficiency of up to 5% in the frequency range of (0.8–0.9) GHz. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared with the conventional central shunt active power filter (SAPF), modular designed SAPF can track the harmonics more precisely and quickly with a compact and expandable structure, which makes it a better solution for harmonic mitigation. But there are very few paper discussed about the modeling and parallel resonance issues of modular SAPF parallel system. This paper provides a modeling of three-level SAPF, aiming to guide the modular design and research the parallel resonance control method. First, a simplified modular three-level SAPF modeling is proposed based on averaging impedance modeling and small signal linearization techniques. Then, the coupling issues between modules are researched, and a self-adaptive active damping method is proposed to suppress the system resonance. Based on the modeling results, an improved three-level SAPF module topology is proposed to construct the modular system. The theoretical analysis and experimental results verify that the module topology improvement together with the damping strategy can promise the compensating bandwidth, reliability, and fast, precise harmonics tracking ability. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In conventional HVDC systems where the harmonic filters and shunt capacitors are installed at the ac grid side, the converter transformers inevitably suffer the detrimental impacts caused by harmonic penetration. In this paper, combined with an inductive filtering method, a parallel delta-connected filtering-winding scheme for 12-pulse converter transformer units is proposed to reduce the harmonic currents flowing through the transformers and, thus, to attenuate the harmonic effects on them. This paper describes the presented transformer configuration in terms of the wiring scheme of the 12-pulse converter transformer unit and corresponding flowing paths of different harmonic currents with the orders of 3,6n\pm 1\left(\mathrmn=1,3,5,\ldots \right), 11 and 13 in the filtering winding circuit. Then, the mechanism of the proposed scheme on harmonic suppression to the converter transformers is explained theoretically. In an attempt to validate the theoretical analysis, simulations based on PSCAD/EMTDC and experiments in a laboratory prototype system are performed to evaluate the harmonic eliminating performance of the proposed scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper proposes a novel dual-mode substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) filter technique. Based on the conventional dual-mode SIW structure, further investigation is performed. Multiple transmission zeros can be obtained at one side or both sides of the passband for an SIW cavity. Therefore, flexible design and high performance response can be available for dual-mode SIW filter. A dual-mode SIW bandpass filter with quasi-elliptic response and a dual-mode SIW diplexer with asymmetric channel response are simulated, fabricated, and measured to demonstrate and verify the novel property. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Several issues related to the practical synthesis of ternary sequences with specified spectra are addressed in this paper. Specifically, sequences with harmonic multiples of two and three suppressed are studied, given their relevance when testing and characterizing nonlinear systems. In particular, the effect of nonuniform digital-to-analog converter (DAC) levels on the spectral properties of the generated signal is analyzed. It is analytically shown that the DAC nonuniform levels result in degraded harmonic suppression performance. Moreover, a new approach is proposed for designing ternary sequences, which is flexible and can be adapted to suit different requirements. The resulting sequences, denoted as randomized constrained sequences, are characterized theoretically by deriving an analytical expression of the power spectral density. Furthermore, they are extensively compared with three synthesis approaches proposed in the literature. The approach is validated by numerical simulations and experimental results, showing the potential to achieve harmonic suppression performance of approximately 100 dB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The optimal design of pulse compression waveform/filter pairs for use with near-nadir spaceborne radar in low earth orbit for the observation of clouds and precipitation is discussed. An optimization technique is introduced that considers performance metrics specific to the remote sensing of clouds and precipitation from such platforms. Specifically, the sensitivity of the radar to precipitation and clouds is maximized as close to the ground as required. The sensitivity of the radar near the surface is typically limited by the pulse compression range sidelobes from the surface’s echo. Optimization of the waveform/filter pair’s performance is facilitated by a time-domain radar scattering model to simulate radar reflectivity range profiles. The presented radar-scattering model accounts for the radar’s configuration constraints and platform motion, as well as the spatial distribution and relative motion of the scatterers. In this paper, the optimization of both linear frequency modulation (LFM) and nonlinear frequency modulation (NLFM) waveforms is considered. It is demonstrated that the LFMwaveforms provide superior performance over NLFM waveforms for application subject to unmitigated Doppler shifts. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper proposes a control strategy for a three-phase three-wire thyristor-controlled LC -coupling hybrid active power filter (TCLC-HAPF), which can balance active power and compensate reactive power and harmonic currents under unbalanced loading. Compared with TCLC-HAPF with conventional control strategy, active power filters and hybrid active power filters which either fail to perform satisfactory compensation or require high-rating active inverter part for unbalanced compensation, a control strategy was proposed for TCLC-HAPF to operate with a small rating active inverter part for a variety of loads with satisfactory performance. The control idea is to provide different firing angles for each phase of the thyristor-controlled LC-coupling part (TCLC) to balance active power and compensate reactive power, while the active inverter part aims to compensate harmonic currents. First, the required different TCLC impedances are deduced. Then, independent firing angles referenced to the phase angle of voltage across TCLC are calculated. After angle transformations, final firing angles referenced to phase angle of load voltages are obtained. In this paper, a novel controller for TCLC-HAPF under unbalanced loading is proposed. Simulation and experimental results are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed controller in comparison with a state-of-the-art controller. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Filter-based battery–supercapacitor hybrid energy storage systems (HESSs) are popular as a way of extending battery lifetime by diverging the high-frequency power variations to the supercapacitor. However, when a traditional supercapacitor voltage controller (SCVC) is employed in the filter-based HESS, precise sizing of the supercapacitor as well as finding filter parameters for the power allocation are challenging due to nonlinearities. These problems can be circumvented by using a supercapacitor energy controller (SCEC) proposed in this paper. The paper presents a method for selection of the SCEC and filter parameters as well as precise sizing of the supercapacitor for a given application. The proposed method is experimentally verified on a single-phase grid-connected HESS used to smooth the power delivered to the grid at the point of common coupling. It is also shown that the size of the supercapacitor when using the SCEC is significantly lower than the one estimated for the traditional SCVC. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The current grid codes for distribution networks impose on operators to provide ancillary services, like fault ride through capability and reactive power compensation. In this context, generating units with power electronics interfaces could offer as an additional service the active compensation for harmonic and interharmonic currents introduced by other converters or distorting loads. Typically, the converters of these generating units do not have information on the distortion of either other loads or of the grid current. Thus, this paper presents a control algorithm for grid harmonics and interharmonics compensation that relies only on the measurement of the voltage at the point of connection of the unit. The reference for the compensating current is calculated from the harmonic components of grid voltage in the synchronous reference frame. The paper also addresses the influence on the compensation performance of the line impedance between the generating unit and the point of connection. Experimental tests on a laboratory setup fully validate the proposed compensation method. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A new 16-phase interleaved bidirectional dc/dc converter is developed featuring smaller input/output filters, faster dynamic response and lower device stress than conventional designs, for hybrid vehicle applications. The converter is connected between the ultracapacitor (UC) pack and the battery pack in a multisource energy storage system of a hybrid vehicle. Typically, multiphase interleaved converters require a current control loop in each phase to avoid imbalanced current between phases. This increases system cost and control complexity. In this paper, in order to minimize imbalance currents and remove the current control loop in each phase, the converter is designed to operate in discontinuous conduction mode (DCM). The high current ripple associated with DCM operation is then alleviated by interleaving. The design, construction, and testing of an experimental hardware prototype is presented, with the test results included. Finally, a novel soft switch topology for DCM operation is proposed for future research, to achieve zero-voltage switching (ZVS), or zero-current switching (ZCS) in all transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the performance of the modular multilevel converter (MMC) tapping cells associated with an ac filter in terms of efficiency and power density in a hybrid LV ac/dc microgrid application and compares it to the performance of the conventional topology used in LV application, i.e., the two-level voltage source converter (2L-VSC). A biobjective optimization based on the Genetic Algorithm is hence developed, providing details on designing the components of the LCL filter, the MMC, and the 2L-VSC. The MMC reaches an efficiency of 99.4% when the main dc-grid is left floating. However, due to its modularity and scalability, offering multiport connections option, the MMC tapping cells has the disadvantage of low power density. Exploring the filtering capability of the equivalent arm inductance of the MMC seen from the ac grid side, optimization design results show that higher switching frequencies allow a significant volume reduction of the inductive components of the MMC/LCL filter while higher switching frequencies have little impact on the switching losses of the MMC. This has the benefit of reducing the overall footprint of the converter and encouraging the use of the MMC in LV application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a bandpass frequency selective surface (FSS) based on substrate-integrated waveguide (SIW) technology is presented for airborne radome application. The proposed FSS element consists of a tapered cross-slot on either side of the substrate surrounded by metallic vias. The structure selectively allows the impinging electromagnetic (EM) wave through it in the specified frequency band. The element shows very stable frequency response for oblique incidence and the sharp roll-off performance characteristics at the edges of operating region in the rejection band. The −10 dB relative bandwidth (BW) of the element is 12.8% from 9.5 to 10.8 GHz with a very good insertion loss (IL) of 0.1 dB. Furthermore, the spectacular advantages of the FSS element based on SIW have been used for modeling the airborne radome application. The proposed radome structure is operating at 10 GHz with a relative 10 dB BW of 25.0% (8.20–10.6 GHz) with maximum (IL) better than 0.1 dB in its passband. The behavior of the FSS radome has been analyzed at different conformal sectors and thickness is optimized for optimal performance. The key parameters of radome such as transmission performance, radiation efficiency, and radar cross section (RCS) have been studied. Experimental verifications are carried out to prove the validity of the estimated results. The results show promising performance of the proposed FSS based on SIW technology for airborne radome application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a new design of near-field focused metasurface for high-efficiency wireless power transfer with multifocus characteristics. A general synthesis procedure is outlined to design metasurfaces with desired multiple foci in the near-field zone. The unit cell of printed tridipole is used to realize the focused metasurface which has a large range of phase shift and is adapted to near-field focusing applications. Different feeding and focusing designs of the printed tridipole metasurfaces are proposed and analyzed. Two kinds of metasurfaces with 20×20 elements are designed, fabricated, and measured at 5.8 GHz. One is the single-feed and single-focus case, and the other is single-feed and two-focus case. Two-dimensional planar near-field scanning technique is implemented to measure the E-field focusing characteristics. Full-wave simulations and experiments demonstrate that the proposed focusing metasurfaces have a high wireless power transfer efficiency of 70%. The relative bandwidth with 50% power focusing efficiency is about 16%. The measured results are in good agreement with the theoretical designs and simulated results, which verify the feasibility and correctness of the proposed approach in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a generic complex repetitive controller ($nk + m$ RC, $k\in \mathbb {Z}$), based on the inverse transfer function of the generalized delayed signal cancelation transformation is proposed. The presented complex controller can be designed for regulating different positive- and negative-sequence harmonic components through a space-vector error signal, with improved response time as compared to traditional repetitive controllers. An evaluation of the proposed control scheme stability, based on phase margin, Nyquist diagram, and sensitivity function is presented. The effects of the controller parameters on the system's stability and also on its dynamic response are shown and allow the definition of some control design guidelines. Experimental results are presented to validate the theoretical assumptions through applying the proposed controller for regulating the currents in a three-phase active power filter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Output filters of the grid inverter usually have a large footprint in the total system. In order to increase the power density of the grid inverter, a passive integrated structure for the output filter with flexible multilayer foils is presented. Compared with a discrete output filter, the volume of the integrated filter is reduced by at least 20%. In this paper, the design of the integrated output filter is discussed. Then, a distributed electromagnetic component model of the integrated filter is used to verify the proposed design. Finally, a prototype of the integrated output filter is built and used in a grid inverter. Experimental results are included and compared with the results derived from the discrete output filter to prove the validity of this integrated filter design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a hybrid modular multilevel dc–dc converter with dc fault ride-through capability. In each phase, the lower arm and shunt arm are composed of half-bridge submodules and full-bridge submodules (FBSMs) respectively, and the upper arm is composed of both types of submodules. The shunt arm eliminates the large ac filter required at the output of dc side. Moreover, it provides the bidirectional fault ride-through capability together with the FBSMs in the upper arm. Required kVA rating of the switches in the proposed topology is analyzed and compared to other topologies. With the optimal number of FBSMs in the upper and shunt arms designed by overmodulation, the proposed topology has a reduced kVA rating of switches, especially for the voltage conversion ratio above 0.54. A control strategy is presented to control the ac circulating current and balance the energy between the three arms. The performance of the proposed topology is validated by real-time simulation and a lab-scale test bench. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]