Study of the TVS trigger geometry and the triggered vacuum conditions

Abstract

This presentation focuses on the optimization of the trigger unit of a six-rod triggered vacuum switch. The different configurations of the trigger pin and of the trigger electrode have been considered to study the electric field distribution at the triple points of the unit embedded in the cathode. Electric field simulations with a planar and a circular head of the trigger pin in combinations with a convex-shaped and a concave-shaped trigger electrode have been done to optimize the field enhancement. The simulations were done with an applied trigger pulse voltage of U _trigger = 5 kV and with a discharge voltage for the main switch of U _switch = 20 kV. The experimental values were U _trigger = 40 kV and U _switch = 5 kV. The simulation results show that the combination of a circular trigger pin head and a concave trigger electrode yields the highest electric field of 9.6 ·10⁶ V/m at the triple point. In-parallel experiments have been performed with those four trigger configurations. The results of the experiments, however, cannot yet be used to confirm the trend in the results of the field simulations.