REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 86, 034702 (2015)

Optically isolated, 2 kHz repetition rate, 4 kV solid-state pulse trigger generator D. H. Barnett,1 J. M. Parson,1 C. F. Lynn,1 P. M. Kelly,1 M. Taylor,1 S. Calico,2 M. C. Scott,2 J. C. Dickens,1 A. A. Neuber,1 and J. J. Mankowski1 1 2

Center for Pulsed Power and Power Electronics, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas 79409, USA Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, 1701 W. Marshall Dr., Grand Prairie, Texas 75051, USA

(Received 22 October 2014; accepted 18 February 2015; published online 5 March 2015) This paper presents the design and operation characteristics of a solid-state high voltage pulse generator. Its primary utilization is aimed at triggering a gaseous spark gap with high repeatability. Specifically, the trigger generator is designed to achieve a risetime on the order of 0.1 kV/ns to trigger the first stage, trigatron spark gap of a 10-stage, 500 kV Marx generator. The major design components are comprised of a 60 W constant current DC-DC converter for high voltage charging, a single 4 kV thyristor, a step-up pulse transformer, and magnetic switch for pulse steepening. A risetime of