126
Light Technology Institute (LTI)
The Light Technology Institute (LTI) is part
of the Department of Electrical Engineer-
ing and Information Technology of the
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).
It was founded in 1922 as the first Light
Technology Institute in the world. Nowa-
days, 5 professors, 1 associate professor
and 8 senior researchers supervise more
than 60 Ph.D. students working at the
institute.
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Uli Lemmer and Prof.
Dr. rer. nat. Cornelius Neumann are the
cooperative directors of the LTI.
The research at the LTI covers a wide
range of activities including the investi-
gation and utilization of light and light
sources as:
•
Plasma-Technologies
•
Power-Electronics
•
Optoelectronics
•
Optical Technologies in Automobiles/
General Lighting
•
Organic Photovoltaics
•
Optical Antennas
Power Electronics at the LTI
Within the department Light, ECG and
Plasma Technologies, the Power Electronics
Laboratory contributes electronic and
power electronic equipment to achieve
best operating conditions of sophisticated
optical radiation sources. However,
additional to light sources, the fields of
research and development also cover:
•
Electronic Control Gears (ECG) for all
kind of light sources (plasma, LED)
•
High-frequency switched-mode power
supplies
•
Microwave generators for mercury-free
plasma lamps
•
Grid-friendly PFC front-end ballasts for
single and three-phase systems
•
Characterization of power semiconduc-
tor switches (Si, SiC, GaN)
•
Layout investigations on small to medi-
um power transistor modules
•
High-speed gate drive circuit design
The laboratory is equipped with latest
measuring instruments, such as state
of the art oscilloscopes, power meters
and broadband high voltage and current
probes. For device and circuit characteri-
zation, an impedance/network analyser is
provided. Power semiconductor switches
are statically and dynamically character-
ized using a unique thermally controlled
test bench.
Our expertise in circuit topologies, mag-
netics design and semiconductor gate
drive circuits is intended to be expanded
to application areas as plasma surface
treatment, inductive heating, wireless
energy transfer and high power density
applications.
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
High-frequency resonant full-bridge inverter
equipped with full-SiC-modules for 10 kW.
Laboratory sample of a pulse-driven Dielectric
Barrier Discharge radiation source for disinfection
purposes.
Spatial-resolved spectroscopy of novel microwave-driven mercury-free energy saving lamps.
