Unconventional Compact Wound Glass Capacitors for Pulsed Power System in RF Accelerators

Capacitors are critical components in power modulator systems for radio frequency accelerator technology, in power electronics in electric vehicles, wind energy, and photovoltaic panels, and in directed energy weapon systems. Current capacitors have low energy density and occupy 30-50% volume of the devices. We propose to develop advanced wound capacitors with a specialty flexible ultrathin glass with high dielectric constant, low dielectric loss, high thermal stability, and high breakdown strength. The capacitors will combine ultrahigh energy density, high energy efficiency, and low-cost commercial manufacturability. Systematic test on the glass samples confirmed that the high dielectric constant glass has high dielectric breakdown strength, high energy density, and high charge- discharge efficiency. The ultrathin glass is flexible and can wound to a small radius without damage. Proprietary coating technology was developed to significantly improve the dielectric breakdown strength and the reliability. The ultrathin glass sheet will be further improved so that the high performance of the glass can be fully transferred to large prototype capacitors. Advanced capacitor design will be performed to increase the energy density and lifetime of the capacitors so they can meet the customer requirement. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits: The ultrahigh energy density glass capacitors with high reliability will enable the miniaturization of many power electronic devices. Potential applications include capacitors for hybrid electric vehicles, plug-in electric vehicles, high power strobe lights, defibrillators, and uninterruptable power supplies