Low Voltage Power Supplies for the ATLAS Liquid Argon Calorimeter

by Steven E. Summer (Modular Devices, Inc)

Wednesday 20 Feb 2002, 09:00 → 10:30 Europe/Zurich

40-S2-B01 (CERN)

Modular Devices Inc. will be manufacturing high current, low voltage power supplies for the US Atlas Argon Calorimeter. These radiation hardened power supplies will be water-cooled assemblies of multiple 250 watt power supply modules and other circuitry. Brookhaven National Laboratories has conducted extensive radiation testing on both the FETs within the modules; the modules themselves and the peripheral power supply circuits. Although radiation hardened power supplies are mainly used in non-cost sensitive space applications, HEP applications must be economical. This presentation discusses how space heritage design practices were applied to a terrestrial scientific application. All component parameters degrade, malfunction or fail with radiation exposure. The successful design of a radiation hardened power supply must avoid soft components, qualify some components by lot testing and use circuit techniques and topologies which overcome parametric degradation. Also discussed is how the building block module is embedded into assemblies to deliver several kilowatts per power supply.

Organiser(s): Chris PARKMAN / EP Division