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Registered Member #567
Joined: Tue Mar 06 2007, 10:55AM
Location: Singapore
Posts: 147
I've just realized I have quite a few diposable camera capacitors and SIDACs sitting around, and I thought of making a (relatively) low voltage, high current marx with SIDACs replacing the sparkgaps. Is there anything immediately wrong with this idea? I've never seen something like that before.
Registered Member #690
Joined: Tue May 08 2007, 03:47AM
Location: New Jersey, USA
Posts: 616
I've never heard of this before, but sounds like something neat to try as long as your SIDACs can handle the high current pulse. You'd need a whole lot of stages to get reasonable arcs, however maybe you have another use in mind.
Registered Member #540
Joined: Mon Feb 19 2007, 07:49PM
Location: MIT
Posts: 969
I don't know much about Marx generators but I think that a 20A pulse is too low of a rating for a SIDAC if you want to use it as a spark gap. I may be wrong but it depends on your design. You might want to build a cascade multiplier because it uses diodes and caps so there aren't spark gaps. If you do build a cascade multiplier then you would want to put a resistor in series with the output so that you don't damage anything.
Registered Member #690
Joined: Tue May 08 2007, 03:47AM
Location: New Jersey, USA
Posts: 616
I think just one photoflash cap would be enough to blow up a beetle. As for a modded bugzapper, with a circuit like that you'd have to call it a squirrelzapper.
Registered Member #146
Joined: Sun Feb 12 2006, 04:21AM
Location: Austin Tx
Posts: 1055
The pulse current depends on the load. If you plan on letting it short out across bits of metal etc... then the peak current will likely be in the hundreds of amps, and you will get one shot out of the thing (cause now the sidacs are blown). If you are willing to put a few hundred ohms in series with your output to keep it to a sane current (maybe the sidacs can really handle 100A?) then it should work, but it might not be that impressive, im not sure...
Also, marx generators often rely on the UV of the neighboring spark gaps to help the whole thing trigger in nS time scale (and i have tested this! its true!).
Registered Member #75
Joined: Thu Feb 09 2006, 09:30AM
Location: Montana, USA
Posts: 711
Steve Ward wrote ...
Also, marx generators often rely on the UV of the neighboring spark gaps to help the whole thing trigger in nS time scale (and i have tested this! its true!).
I don't think this has the slightest relevance in a system using 'lytics, but I am really curious how you measured this. Did you take the gamble of discharging your Marx into a $1000+ digitizing 'scope?
Registered Member #567
Joined: Tue Mar 06 2007, 10:55AM
Location: Singapore
Posts: 147
Hm, seems like there are more problems with that idea than I expected (ie. some).
By the way, isn't it the case that if one sparkgap triggers, the voltage on the next one is immediately doubled?
Oh and as for the thing about the bug zapper, hey, what can I say? I'm doing high voltage as a hobby, in other words, for fun! And I hate bugs. Oh, and there are hardly any squirrels here, anyway.
Registered Member #162
Joined: Mon Feb 13 2006, 10:25AM
Location: United Kingdom
Posts: 3140
Have you considered using the Xenon flash tubes as sparkgaps. They seem to flash-over between 1500 and 2200 volts, and can handle large current pulses. You will need a power supply of over 2kV (e.g. MOT, flyback transformer, Ignition coil etc.)
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SIDAC Marx?
