Thesis Committee
Jason T. Stauth, Ph.D. (Chair)
Charlie R. Sullivan, Ph.D.
Eric R. Fossum, Ph.D.
Seth R. Sanders, Ph.D.

Abstract

Over many years, advances in silicon power semiconductor devices enabled continuous
miniaturization of power electronics products. Higher performance devices allowed higher
switching frequencies with smaller passive components while maintaining high efficiency.
However, as silicon power devices reach maturity they no longer provide significant advances
in performance. In the meantime, demand for high efficiency, high density power electronics
is unabated. Therefore, system- and circuit-level innovations are required to provide further
improvements in size and efficiency. Moreover, many applications require highly granular
power management of a large number of elements while maintaining low cost. This thesis
explores the design and control of high-density power converters and architectures with a
focus on systems constructed of large arrays of series-stacked DC cells. Specifically the
problem of feedback control is addressed in the context of distributed maximum power point
tracking for photovoltaic systems, as well as microprocessor power delivery. Alternative
power conversion topologies are then explored to address some of the limitations of
conventional, inductor-based power converters. Specifically, past work on resonant switchedcapacitor
(ReSC) is expanded by proposing variable-conversion ratio operating modes and
refining the use of interleaving to improve the performance. A prototype ReSC IC in 0.18 μm
CMOS is presented which was used to verify the proposed design. Lastly, a path towards full
closed-loop regulation with ReSC converters is proposed.