Electronic Transformers and Circuits is a free introductory textbook on transformers and related circuits. See the editorial for more information....


Voltage Doublers

To obtain more d-c output voltage from a rectifier tube, the circuit of Fig. 53 is often used.

Fig. 53. Relation of peak sine voltage to d-c voltage in voltage-doubling circuit.

With proper values of circuit elements the output is nearly double the a-c peak voltage. Tube inverse peak voltage is little more than the d-c output voltage, and no d-c unbalance exists in the anode transformer. Current output available from this circuit is less than from the single-phase full-wave circuit for a given rectifier tube. Current relations are given in Fig. 52.

Voltage tripling and quadrupling circuits also are used, either to increase the d-c voltage or to avoid the use of a transformer.(1)



(1) See "Analyses of Voltage Tripling and Quadrupling Circuits," by D. L. Waide-lich and H. A. Taskin, Proc. I.R.E., 33, 449 (July, 1945).



Last Update: 2011-02-17