Design strategies for a SiC Marx generator for a kicker magnet

This paper discusses various design strategies and preliminary test results for a Marx generator with specifications of 40 kV, 3.2 kA, 3 μs pulse width, 30 ns rise and fall-times, and 1 Hz repetition rate, for possible replacement of a thyratron and PFL in an existing kicker system. The proposed topology will use 50 stages, each 800 V stage comprising 24 SiC MOSFETs in parallel, each MOSFET conducting about 140 A pulses. First tests using parallel SiC MOSFETs are described and results discussed in light of the proposed topology. Also the overall structure is discussed, as the parasitic inductances are a key issue for this application.