Non-destructive tester for single event burnout of power diodes

摘要

A protection circuit for power diodes under heavy ion bombardment is presented, which allows to acquire failure waveforms without destroying the device under test. An ultra-fast, high voltage switch based on eight vacuum tubes is employed to short the device within less than 100ns from the potentially destructive impact. Some waveforms have been safely acquired in conditions where the device could have been destroyed in absence of protection.