ABSTRACT
The problem is to identify the unique requirements for an application and to build a pulsed power supply as a high power transmitter component. In general, ultra-wideband (UWB) power supplies must produce shorter pulses at higher voltages than are produced by conventional narrowband radar power supplies. This chapter surveys some useful pulsed power techniques for supplying high voltage in UWB radar transmitters. In UWB impulse radars, the power supply output is applied directly to the antenna with perhaps an intermediate stage to sharpen the pulse. The voltage required starts in the thousands of volts and ranges up to many megavolts. The effects of physical size and the speed of light in short pulse circuits are significant in many aspects of UWB impulse radar work. The subject of magnetic switching is often mentioned in pulsed power work. This is actually a pulse- sharpening technique that is used with another type of primary switch.
