Four Channel 6.5 kV, 65 A, 100 ns–100 µs Generator with Advanced Control of Pulse and Burst Protocols for Biomedical and Biotechnological Applications

Abstract

Pulsed electric fields in the sub-microsecond range are being increasingly used in biomedical and biotechnology applications, where the demand for high-voltage and high-frequency pulse generators with enhanced performance and pulse flexibility is pushing the limits of pulse power solid state technology. In the scope of this article, a new pulsed generator, which includes four independent MOSFET based Marx modulators, operating individually or combined, controlled from a computer user interface, is described. The generator is capable of applying different pulse shapes, from unipolar to bipolar pulses into biological loads, in symmetric and asymmetric modes, with voltages up to 6.5 kV and currents up to 65 A, in pulse widths from 100 ns to 100 µs, including short-circuit protection, current and voltage monitoring. This new scientific tool can open new research possibility due to the flexibility it provides in pulse generation, particularly in adjusting pulse width, polarity, and amplitude from pulse-to-pulse. It also permits operating in burst mode up to 5 MHz in four independent channels, for example in the application of synchronized asymmetric bipolar pulses, which is shown together with other characteristics of the generator.

Control of the Electroporation Efficiency of Nanosecond Pulses by Swinging the Electric Field Vector Direction

“…Brief trains of unipolar, nearly rectangular 300 or 600 ns EPs were delivered from an EPULSUS-FPM4-7 pulse generator [ 35 ]. To produce trains of paired pulses, a second channel of the generator was programmed to generate an identical pulse, either with no delay or with a brief 50 ns delay after the pulse from the first channel.…”

Does the shape of the electric pulse matter in electroporation?

“…Kandratsyeu et al. presented a 6.5-kV asymmetric pulse generating device with a minimum pulse duration of 100 ns ( 115 ). Novickij et al.…”

The Cascade of High-Voltage Pulsed Current Sources

“…With the addition of only one switch, the inductor is used to charge and discharge, resulting in a high gain of output pulse amplitude. In [25], a developed device can generate pulses from 100 ns to 100 µs, up to 6.5 kV and 65 A with a maximum repetition rate of 5 MHz, from four independent and synchronized Marx modulators. Almost all pulsed generators of this type have voltage source characteristics; the output current cannot automatically adapt to the change in the load impedance, so they cannot meet some special application requirements.…”