Fast High Power Zener Diode
Aim of high power Zener diode:
The aim of the design of this high-power Zener diode is a fast voltage regulator that can provide high currents. The circuit is based on a Type BUZ10 SIPMOS transistor, which has a high dissipation and can cope with high currents.
From an external power source, whose voltage must be about 2 V higher than the wanted stabilized potential, P1-C1-D1 derives a stable voltage in the range of 0 – 6.8 V. This voltage switches ON T1, which in turn switches ON T2. If Uz drops slightly, the potential at the gate of T1 also drops, whereupon the T2 raises its on-resistance so that the output voltage rises. The control speed is determined by R4.
Application of Zener diode:
Zener diode is used in clipping circuits also the uses of Zener diode include modifying and shaping the AC waveform clipping circuits. The clipping circuits limit one part of the AC waveform to shape the waveform or provide protection. These kinds of circuits are generally used in TV and FM transmitters to remove interference.
High power Zener diode circuit diagram:
The circuit, as drawn, delivers output voltages in the range of 3.9 – 9.6 V at a supply voltage of 15 V. In the prototype, an open-circuit voltage of 6 V was set (the current drawn by T2 was 490 mA), which dropped to 5.94 V when a load of 15 Ω (minimum value) was connected across T2 as shown in dashed lines.
The drain current was then 13 mA. The dynamic behavior is excellent: with a rectangular input signal at a frequency of 10 kHz, and a load of 15 Ω, the recovery time was smaller than 1 µs.