Converter-Modulator Design and Operations for the ILC L-band Test Stand

To facilitate a rapid response to the International Linear Collider (ILC) L-band development program at SLAC, a spare converter-modulator was shipped from LANL. This modulator was to be a spare for the spallation neutron source (SNS) accelerator at ORNL. The ILC application requires a 33% higher peak output power (15 MW) and output current (120 Amp). This presents significant design challenges to modify the existing hardware and yet maintain switching parameters and thermal cycling within the semiconductor component ratings. To minimize IGBT commutation and free-wheeling diode currents, a different set of optimizations, as compared to the SNS design, were used to tune the resonant switching networks. Additional complexities arose as nanocrystalline cores with different performance characteristics (as compared to SNS), were used to fabricate the resonant 'boost' transformers. This paper will describe the electrical design, modeling efforts, and resulting electrical performance as implemented for the ILC L-band test stand