Fast and Flexible, Arbitrary Waveform, 20-kV, Solid-State, Impedance-matched Marx Generator

We developed a new pulsed power supply to study the influence of the high-voltage (HV) pulse shape on the generation of plasma-activated water (PAW). This article shows the design and implementation of the generator and evaluates its performance on resistive loads. The design is an improved version of the solid-state impedance-matched Marx generator (SS-IMG) concept as previously developed at Eindhoven University of Technology. The IMG concept allows for sub-nanosecond rise time pulses, to be able to create a nonthermal plasma very efficiently. A conventional SS-Marx generator (SS-Marx) circuit is taken as the starting point, and a careful implementation is made with most electrical connections analyzed as transmission lines (TLs). All these TLs are impedance-matched to each other and the load. The implemented generator is able to generate 25 ns to μ s duration pulses of 20 kV up to 10-kHz repetition rate in a 50- Ω load with about 8 ns rise time and arbitrary pulse shape. Future improvements are suggested which will increase the repetition rate and decrease the pulse rise time to the sub-nanosecond regime.