The 'semiconductor-based large-capacity switch' technology developed by the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) is receiving great attention from the world's top research institutes, and is moving forward in earnest to dominate the global market worth 9.3 trillion won in the future.

The Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute announced on the 24th that its 'semiconductor-based large-capacity switch' technology is receiving great interest from world-renowned accelerator research institutes.

Dr. Jang Seong-rok's team from the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute also made efforts to promote the technology overseas, such as by presenting a paper at the 'Linear Accelerator Conference (LINAC)', the most prestigious conference held in Chicago, USA in August last year.

As a result, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the Stanford University National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC) in the United States proposed technological cooperation, and international joint research is currently being actively discussed.

KERI plans to send the large-capacity switch it developed to the United States in March to conduct a verification test and further increase reliability of the technology.

This technology is a core pulse power control technology that can be used in various fields such as accelerators, railguns, and DC circuit breakers, and is achieving successful research results such as receiving global cooperation proposals.

Pulse power technology uses low power This is a technology that charges energy and then discharges it instantly at high power, and the large-capacity switch that controls it plays an important role in fields such as accelerators, railguns, and radars.

Conventional large-capacity switches using mechanical gases have the disadvantages of high cost, limited precision, and susceptibility to failure, but semiconductor-based large-capacity switches are emerging as an alternative that can solve these problems.

KERI's Electrophysics Research Center has successfully developed and demonstrated large-capacity switch technology based on semiconductor devices for the first time in Korea.

Unlike existing technologies that use thousands of semiconductor elements, this technology utilizes just a few dozen low-power switching elements, increasing ease of maintenance and commercialization.

Customized designs are possible by combining components in a series and parallel structure, and it boasts world-class performance, withstanding a maximum voltage of 50kV and current of 10kA.

The research team completed verification of the domestically developed switch in cooperation with Pohang Accelerator Laboratory and Southeast Nuclear Medical Institute.

KERI is also focusing on overseas promotion and is currently discussing international joint research with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Stanford University National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC) in the United States. We plan to conduct a demonstration in the United States in March to increase technological reliability.

KERI Jang Seong-rok, head of the Electrophysics Research Center, said, “The global large-capacity switch market is worth 9.4 trillion won, so the scope of application is wide,” and expressed his ambition to “achieve good results based on our achievements that are receiving attention not only domestically but also overseas and take the lead in overseas markets.”

Meanwhile, KERI is a government-funded research institute under the National Research Council of Science and Technology of the Ministry of Science and ICT, and this research was conducted as part of KERI's basic project.