Evaluating inverter efficiency in high-voltage circuits while accommodating widespread adoption of SiC power devices

Hioki is pleased to announce the launch of the AC/DC High-Voltage Divider VT1005, which divides and outputs voltages of up to 5000 V. Combined with Hioki’s Power Analyzer PW8001, the device can be used to accurately measure large, high-voltage power signals to assess efficiency improvements gained through use of SiC power devices.

Power analyzers are an ideal tool for measuring efficiency. However, typical power analyzers cannot directly measure voltages of 1000 V or greater. When measuring large, high-voltage power signals, such instruments must use a high-voltage differential probe or potential transformer. However, those devices are unable to accurately measure the components contained in power on the output side of inverters. As a result, they introduce a number of issues: efficiency results that exceed 100%, instability of measured values, and low reproducibility. Hioki developed the VT1005 to resolve issues such as these. The VT1005 divides and outputs voltages of up to 5000 V to a power analyzer, allowing the instrument to accurately detect all the components contained in inverter output-side power so that users can ascertain efficiency improvements on the order of 0.1% (more info).