Output Transformer Design and Winding

Copyright 1999-2000 R.G. Keen. All rights reserved.

You can ju p do!n to here to see ho! you nondestructively#

ight reverse engineer an output trans"or er

$r just read on here to see so e o" the start o" the design procedure. 1. %nderstand the ter inology 2. %nderstand the trans"or er e&uivalent circuit '. (rite do!n re&uire ents ). *elect a core si+e ,. Co pute pri ary turns -. Co pute secondary turns .. /it !ire to core !indo! 0. Co pute lea1age inductance 9. 2" /h is $K3 go 4uild it. 10. $ther!ise3 select a ne! interleave and go 4ac1 to "itting !ire. 11. $4tain aterials 12. (ind the coils 1'. *tac1 the la inations 1). 5est the per"or ance 1,. 2" result is $K3 you6re done3 enjoy. 1-. $ther!ise3 go 4ac1 and select a ne! 7pro4a4ly 4igger8 core si+e and loop 4ac1 through the process.

Understand the terminlogy

9-2 la ination

A "lat trans"or er steel la ination co posed o" pairs o" 9-shaped and 2 shaped pieces. 5he iddle projection or tongue o" the 9 is placed through the center o" a coil o" !ire3 and the 2 placed at the end li1e this: 92: so the iron "or s a co plete agnetic path through the center and around the outside o" the coil. An 9-2 la ination !ith proportions such that t!o 96s and t!o 26s are sta ped "ro a rectangle o" iron !ith no !aste le"t over. 5his is the least e;pensive shape "or trans"or er iron3 and is the standard "or the industry "or non-special purpose trans"or ers. 5he proportions are special3 o4viously. 5he 26s are sta ped "ro the open areas o" t!o end-"acing 96s. 5he iddle part3 or tongue3 o" each 9 is t!ice as !ide as the t!o outer legs3 and the e pty area sta ped out o" the 9 7!hich "or s

*crapless la ination

the 28 is hal" as long as the 9 is high "ro top to 4otto . As you can see3 since the proportions are pre-deter ined3 you can speci"y any one di ension and all the rest are deter ined. 9-2 la inations are usually na ed 4y the tongue !idth< 92100 has a tongue that is 1.00 inches !ide. 921,0 is 1.,: !ide3 etc. 2" you connect only the pri ary !ires o" a trans"or er3 and easure the inductance3 no energy leaves through any secondary !indings3 so the thing loo1s li1e 7and is#8 just an inductor. 5he a ount o" inductance you easure is the pri ary inductance. 5he pri ary inductance is a conse&uence o" the iron and air in the agnetic "ield path3 and is non-linear - you !ould easure so e!hat di""erent values under di""erent conditions. =i1e!ise3 !hat you secondaries. easure i" you connect a easure ent instru ent only to the

pri ary inductance

secondary inductance

lea1age inductance

=ea1age inductance is inductance that results "ro the parts o" the pri ary6s agnetic "ield that does not lin1 the secondary. 5his is an inductance "ro !hich the secondary can never dra! energy3 and represents a loss o" e""ectiveness in the trans"or er. 2" you short the secondary !inding and then easure the :pri ary: inductance3 you !ill easure the lea1age inductance3 !hich appears to 4e in series !ith the pri ary !inding. 5he iron in the core is itsel" conductive3 and the agnetic "ield in it induces currents. 5hese currents cause the loss o" energy3 and this co es out as heat. 5he core loss represents a price you have to pay to use a trans"or er. Core loss is strongly related to "re&uency3 increasing linearly as the "re&uency goes up.

core loss

9ddy currents are the currents induced in conductors in a agnetic "ield - such as the iron core. 5he inside o" a conductor loo1s li1e a shorted trans"or er turn to the eddy current agnetic "ield3 so the currents can 4e large3 and can cause su4stantial heating3 as in the core losses. copper loss !inding !indo! Copper is not a per"ect conductor. Current oving through copper causes the copper to heat up as it oves through the resistance o" the !ire. 5his is the area o" a core availa4le "or !inding !ires into. *pace le"t at the end o" a coil "or er !here no copper !indings are placed. 5his 1eeps the copper !ire "ro going out to the very edges o" the coil "or er3 and i proves the voltage isolation 4et!een layers and !indings.

argins

!indo! "ill

5he a ount o" the !inding !indo! that is "illed up !ith copper !ires3 insulation3 etc. %sually e;pressed as a percent o" the !inding !indo! area. A"ter !inding a neat layer o" !ire on a coil3 you put a thin layer o" insulating paper3 plastic "il 3 etc. over it. 5his is interlayer insulation. 2t helps 1eep the insulation o" the !ires "ro 4rea1ing do!n "ro the stress o" the voltage di""erence 4et!een layers3 and echanically helps "or a neat3 solid coil. ?agnetic "ield intensity3 or :"lu; density:@ so eti es easured in "lu; lines3 Gauss or 1iloGauss3 or 5eslas depending on the easure ent syste you use. ?ost trans"or er iron saturates around 1) to 20 1Gauss. Cera ic aterials saturate at around '-)1Gauss. Coercive "orce. 5his is !hat :"orces: the agnetic "ield into 4eing. 2t6s usually easured in A pere-5urns per unit o" agnetic circuit length3 o"ten a pere-turns per eter. Bretty si ply3 the graph o" > versus the causative A. (hen there is a large slope o" > versus A3 the per ea4ility o" the aterial is high. At saturation3 the per ea4ility "alls o""3 as ore A cannot cause higher >.

interlayer insulation

>

>-A curve saturation

2nsulation class

5rans"or er insulation is rated "or certain a ounts o" te perature rise. ?aterials !hich !ithstand te peratures under 10,C are Class A. Class > aterials !ithstand higher ter peratures3 and other letters even higher te peratures. Class A insulation is the ost co on "or output trans"or ers3 as no great te perature rise 74y po!er trans"or er standards at least8 are encountered. 5his :class: is not related to the 4ias class o" the a pli"ier at all3 they just happened to use the sa e !ords. Ao! uch iron is put inside the coils o" !ire a1ing up the !indings o" the trans"or er. 5he la ination si+e deter ines the !idth o" the tongue3 the stac1 height deter ines the height3 and the !idth ti es the height is the core area3 !hich is a 1ey deter iner o" the po!er handling capa4ility o" the trans"or er. All other things 4eing e&ual3 ore stac1 height eans either a greater inductance "or a given nu 4er o" turns3 or a "e!er nu 4er o" turns "or the sa e inductance. 5his is one eans o" juggling !ire si+es and !indo! "ill.

*tac1

Understand the transformer equivalent circuit Write down requirements:

Ceter ine< Bo!er through the trans"or er =o!est "re&uency to 4e passed Aighest "re&uency to 4e passed Bri ary and secondary voltages or i pedances to 4e Bri aryDsecondary voltage and i pedance ratios

atched

Write down requirements:

Ceter ine !hat you6re going to 4uild 7or hope you are#8. 5o do this you need a clear state ent o" your design goals - !hat you are going to 4uild3 !hat output tu4es you !ill use3 !hat i pedance7s8 are to 4e atched3 etc. As an e;a ple3 you ight !ant to design an output trans"or er "or a single pair o" -=output tu4es. /ro the tu4e data 4oo1s3 you deter ine that a pair o" -=-6s !ill put )0,0( in Class A> push pull into a ))00 oh plate to plate i pedance. You 1no! you !ould li1e to atch this i pedance to loads o" 0 and ) oh s3 and this !ill 4e used "or guitar only3 not 4ass or hi-"i. >y erely stating that3 you have de"ined a lot o" !hat you need to design a trans"or er. 5he po!er re&uire ent and the lo! "re&uency re&uire ent e""ectively set the physical si+e o" the trans"or er3 and the high "re&uency li its i plied in the :guitar: "re&uency range sets a ini u upper 4ound on the high "re&uency response o" the trans"or er3 and hence an upper 4ound on the lea1age inductance that the trans"or er can have. 5he choice o" 4iasing into class A> is also signi"icant3 as this helps de"ine the current range in the pri ary !inding and sets a lo!er li it on the si+e o" the !ire the pri ary can 4e !ound "ro . Ceter ine< Bo!er through the trans"or er E ,0( 7esti ated8 =o!est "re&uency to 4e passed E 02A+ Aighest "re&uency to 4e passed E 10KA+ Bri ary and secondary voltages or i pedances to 4e atched< FpE))00 FsE03 ) oh s Bri aryDsecondary voltage and i pedance ratios< FpDFsE ))00D0E,,0 ))00D)E1100. GsDGpE2'.), and ''.2 7) oh s8

Select a core size for the given power level:

5his is 4est done 4y e;perience- e.g. other designs3 or relating to a -0A+ po!er trans"or er o" 1no!n po!er. Ao!ever3 you can also do it 4y co puting the area product o" la inations and esti ating. 2" you6re serious a4out this3 consult /lanagan6s trans"or er design 4oo1s "or charts and graphs or other trans"or er re"erences. 9;perience or co parison !or1s 4est3 though3 and is !hat the pros do in practice.

5here are a nu 4er o" "actors in trans"or er design that in"luence the si+e o" the core and hence set the si+e in one !ay or another. 5hese things are related to the ore nor al things !e loo1 at and easure 4y so e pretty co plicated ath andDor odeling relationships3 and so they are essentially not calcula4le 4y the average Hoe Cesigner. 9ven e;perienced designers use ta4les3 charts3 and the seats o" their pants to pic1 a core. 2" you have a replace ent application in ind3 a really3 really good guess is the si+e that is in there no!3 plus a 4it i" you !ant to a1e it 4etter so e !ay. 5he si plest !ay to allo! "or e;tra goodness to 4e poured in is to a1e the :4etter: replace ent so e!hat 4igger. %sually3 since a trans"or er6s cost o" anu"acture is a4out 00I 4ased on the cost o" the iron and copper in it and relatively little on the la4or content3 the econo ies that li ited the original in so e !ay !ere oriented to!ard a1ing the "inal result the s allest and lightest it can 4e ade - least iron and copper. Got 4eing under such a restriction3 you are "ree to a1e it 4etter and re ove so e restrictions on you and your design 4y using a slightly 4igger core. *ince the area product 7!inding !indo! area ti es core stac1 tongue area8 deter ines a lot o" things a4out a trans"or er3 you6ll !ant to enlarge that 4y either using a 4igger stac1 o" la inations 7!hich increases only the core area8 or 4y going to a 4igger la ination3 !hich increases the !inding !indo! and potentially the core area as !ell. /or a nu 4er o" practical !inding reasons3 you should stay !ith a core stac1 4et!een s&uare 7the stac1 is the sa e height as the la ination tongue is !ide8 and a stac1 t!ice as high as the tongue !idth. %sing a 4igger la ination and a stac1 s aller than s&uare is usually not an econo ical success. 2" you need to go 4igger than a 2<1 stac13 then go to the ne;t 4igger si+e la ination and a stac1 that ay 4e a tri"le less than s&uare i" you have to. *ince a po!er trans"or er can 4e thought o" as an audio trans"or er that only has one "re&uency in it3 you can use the si+e o" a -0A+ po!er trans"or er o" 1no!n po!er as a re"erence "or an output trans"or er "or guitar. 2" you assu e that the po!er trans"or er is pro4a4ly designed a 4it too close to the saturation "lu; density than you !ant3 4ut that your lo!est "re&uency is 02 A+3 not -0A+3 these t!o o""er a "irst order o""set3 and "or a ,0( 02A+ output trans"or er3 a ,0( -0A+ po!er trans"or er !ould 4e close to the sa e si+e@ certainly a good starting point. 2" you6re trying to design a 4ass output trans"or er3 that6s an octave do!n "ro guitar3 and you6d e;pect that it !ould 4e a4out t!ice as heavy since the lo!est "re&uency is hal" that o" one "or guitar3 so a good starting point "or esti ating the si+e o" a 4ass trans"or er !ould 4e a -0A+ po!er trans"or er o" a4out 100( rating. Gote that trans"or ers are rated in JA 7Jolt A peres83 !hich is li1e !atts3 4ut includes the possi4ility that the load is reactive and !hat it passes ay not 4e real !atts3 4ut the volts !ill 4e the sa e and the total nu 4er o" a peres !ill 4e the sa e. As 2 entioned3 there is a pure co putation ethod that can 4e done 4y co puting the area product o" la inations and esti ating the po!er capa4ility o" the iron stac1 "ro that3 4ut it is involved3 and you6ll have to dig it out on your o!n. 2 don6t !ant to type the

several pages that are needed. 5here6s a use"ul &uote in the Radiotron Cesigner6s Aand4oo13 )th edition< :As a general rule3 the output trans"or er should have the largest core !hich is practica4le or per issi4le having regard to cost or other "actors. A large core o" ordinary silicon steel la inations is usually 4etter than a s all core o" special lo!-loss steel.: (hen in dou4t3 a1e it 4igger.

Compute turns
Co pute =pE Fp at /l Co pute Gp "ro =p "or the given core Co pute Gp "or > a;Kcore aterial re&uire ents %se highest Gp Co pute *econdary turns "ro GsDGp or FsDFp

Compute turns
5o deter ine the nu 4er o" pri ary turns needed3 you !ill have to satis"y t!o constraints. /irst3 the pri ary inductance ust 4e large enough to not shunt the po!er "ro the output devices a!ay "ro the re"lected load. 5his has the e""ect o" re&uiring that Flp 4e "ro e&ual to the plate to plate load at the lo!est "re&uency o" interest 7!hich i plies a 'd4 or hal" po!er loss8 to 4eing larger or uch larger than the plate to plate load. As an e;a ple3 i" you !ant a ))00 oh plate to plate load do!n to 02A+3 the ini u pri ary inductance you should use !ill 4e =p E ))00D72LpiL028 E 0., Ay. 5hat !ill ean that you !ill have out only hal" po!er at the lo!est notes o" a guitar. 2" you !ant 4etter response3 you ight !ant to up that 4y dou4le3 or &uadruple. Assu e you !ant to dou4le it to 1. Ay. /ro that inductance3 you can co pute the nu 4er o" pri ary turns to get a4out that inductance "ro your target core and stac1. 2n an actual design3 you pro4a4ly !ant the response to 4e not ore than 1d4 do!n at the lo!est note3 not 'd4 do!n as the nor al engineering calculations !ould suggest. 5hat indicates a1ing the pri ary inductance even 4igger. A !ord a4out inductance. Bri ary inductance is G$5 a constant. 2t varies !ith the care o" stac1ing and adjusting the la inations3 !ith the a ount o" e;citation o" the !indings3 and !ith any CC current through the !indings. Co pute a good target pri ary inductance3 4ut don6t get too e;cited i" you don6t get really close to the target. Co puting the turns needed "or a certain ini u inductance can 4e done t!o !ays. $ne is an analytical !ay3 using the per ea4ility o" the la inations you6ll use. >y that ethod3 GE *&rt77=pLlL10LL08D7'.2LALu88

(here =p E desired pri ary inductance l E agnetic path length "or the la ination in inches AE core stac1 area3 s&uare inches uE per ea4ility o" the core aterial 5he anu"acturer !ill o" course have to supply you the nu 4er "or per ea4ility3 or you6ll have to easure it - a tough tas1. =a ination a1ers usually don6t supply that nu 4er. (hat they do is to tell you the inductance o" a s&uare stac1 !ith 1000 turns o" !ire on it. *ince inductance is linear !ith core area3 and turns s&uared3 you can co pute turns "or a given inductance directly "ro the a1er6s supplied inductance constant. 5he reverse is also true. You can ta1e your pre"erred la ination3 a1e a s&uare stac1 !ith a no inal nu 4er o" turns 71000 is a lot o" !or13 4ut gives good easure ents8 and deter ine the inductance "or that !inding. 5his !ill also su4su e your stac1ing and adjust ent s1ills3 and !ill 4e a ore accurate nu 4er "or ho! LyouL !ill !ind the trans"or er. $nce you have done that3 you also need to co pute an independent nu 4er o" pri ary turns to 1eep the core "ro saturating on pea1s o" input signals at the lo!est "re&uencies. Aere3 you pic1 a no inal saturation "lu; density "or the core aterial 7usually 1)1Gauss "or silicon steel trans"or er la inations8. $4viously3 you6ll need to 1no! the pea1 signal level3 and the lo!est "re&uency. Again3 "or guitar3 the lo!est "re&uency is 02 A+3 and )1 A+ "or 4ass. 5he pea1-to-pea1 signal voltage can 4e ta1en to 4e the >M voltage inus a4out ,0J saturation on the output tu4es. Assu ing that this is a s&uare !ave is conservative@ assu ing a sine !ave !ill lead to saturation in so e cases - 4ut you ight !ant that3 so thin1 a4out it. /or e;a ple3 a ),0J >M gives a )00J p1-p1 AC !ave3 !hich !ould 4e a 200Jr s s&uare !ave3 or a 1)2Jr s sine !ave. Co pute the nu 4er o" pri ary turns that !ill 1eep that voltage "ro at that lo!est "re&uency 4y co puting saturating the iron

G E 79L10LL08D71"4A8 (here 9E Applied AC signal voltage 1E '., to ).))3 depending on stac1ing "actor. ) is a good starting place "or hand stac1ing. 5his para eter is o"ten ta1en to 4e ).)) "or sine !ave e;citation and presu ed per"ect stac1ing. >e conservative. " E lo!est signal "re&uency 4 E a; "lu; density3 so e!here 4et!een 101G 7!ell designed3 lo! distortion hi"i output trans"or ers8 and 1.1G 7po!er trans"or ers8@ 1)1G is a good start "or guitar a ps A E area o" the stac1ed tongue3 s&uare inches. 5his is one place that the art o" trans"or er design co es in. 2t turns out that the pea1 "lu; density in the iron can 4e directly related to the a ount o" distortion that the

trans"or er !ill cause - the lo!er3 the 4etter. 2" you choose to go "or a uch lo!er distortion3 you ust li it the "lu; density 4y using even ore turns. 5his ay cause you to have to use "iner !ire3 !hich ay cause too uch copper loss3 or it ay "orce you to a 4igger core si+e. %sually3 it is not necessary to 1eep "lu; density under 101Gauss even in hi-"i output trans"or ers i" you6re using )I silicon steel 7the ost co on trans"or er iron8. $nce you have t!o pri ary turns calculated3 you pic1 the larger o" the t!o as the nu 4er o" pri ary turns. 2t usually !or1s out that the nu 4er o" turns you calculate "or the desired pri ary inductance !ill 4e larger than the nu 4er you calculate to 1eep the "lu; density do!n to so e speci"ic level3 4ut not al!ays. Co pute *econdary turns "ro GsDGp or FsDFp

it wire to core window

0,I target !indo! "ills 9ven layers3 argins3 spiral !indings3 etc. 2nterlayer and inter!inding insulation. Choose !ire si+es3 etc. /ro our earlier calculations3 !e 1no! ho! any turns have to "it in. 2t re ains to pic1 !hich !ire si+es to !ind. 2t is very di""icult to actually "ill up ore than a4out 0,I o" the !inding !indo! in 9-2 la inations3 so !e use 0,I as a starting target. 5he pri ary has to carry the !hole po!er output plus losses3 so !e start 4y assigning it a4out hal" the availa4le area3 or )2.,I o" the !indo!. 5he secondaries !ill get the sa e. /ro there3 !e can divide the nu 4er o" turns 4y the area to get the nu 4er o" turns per s&uare inch "or the given !ire3 and consult a !ire ta4le "or the nearest s aller !ire si+e. 5his is the 4iggest practical !ire si+e that !ill "it in the allotted !indo! area to a "irst appro;i ation. (e also can calculate the !ire si+e 4ased on the currents. (ire ta4les list the si+e o" the !ire in :circular ils:. 2" !e assign a reasona4le value o" area per current3 that is another !ay o" "inding a starting !ire si+e. >y e;perience3 conservatively rated trans"or ers usually !or1 the copper !ire at a4out .,0 circular ils per a pere3 and ore-stress"ul use is so ething li1e 1000 circular ils per a pere. 2" you 1no! the current3 you can si ply divide the current into the listed circular ils "or !ire and then p# # ic1 the !ire si+e that gives you closest to the !or1ing current density you !ant. 5his !ire si+e is li1ely to 4e s aller than the si+e pic1ed 4y the : a;i u area: ethod. 2" it6s 4igger3 you either have to !or1 the !ire !ith higher current density 7 ore copper loss3 higher te peratures8 or go to a 4igger core that lets you have ore !indo! area. 2n ost cases3 the a; area !ire si+e !ill give you an upper 4ound and the current density a so"tly de"ined lo!er 4ound on the !ire si+e. You have to repeat this set o" calculations "or each secondary. $nce you settle on !ire si+es3 you have to co pute the actual "it. 5he !iring should co e out not only in a4out the right !indo! space3 4ut in even layers on the coil "or er.

%sing the !ire ta4les3 co pute the nu 4er o" turns per layer 74eing sure to use the dia eter o" the !ire (25A insulation83 leaving a argin at the end o" the coil "or er o" a4out 1D1-: to 1D0: depending on !ire si+es3 !ith the 4igger !ires having the 4igger argins. $nce you 1no! turns per layer3 you can "ind the nu 4er o" layers. (hen you have !ire si+es3 layers3 argins3 etc.3 you can co pute the 4uild up o" !ire over the coil "or er3 including !ire3 insulation3 interlayer insulation3 and all. 5his ust co e in less than the !indo! height3 or you have to start over !ith a 4igger !indo! 74y using a 4igger la ination83 "e!er turns 4y using a larger stac1 o" iron3 or s aller !ire and higher copper loss. 5!o or three passes through this !ill get you a "it on !ire si+e in the !indo!.

Compute lea!age inductance for primary over secondary"

Co pute /h "ro :4asic =ea1age: *elect a ne! interleave "actor 4ased on /h and =l. (ith a 4asic 4uildup o" !ire in a !indo!3 you can calculate the lea1age inductances. /or a si ple pri ary-over-secondary !inding3 you can calculate the lea1age reasona4ly !ell 4y 1no!ing the physical di ensions o" the !indo!3 and !indings in the !indo!. /ro there3 the lea1age inductance is reduced 4y the s&uare o" the nu 4er o" interleavings. (hen you pic1 a ne! interleaving you ust do the sa e construction o" !indings and 4uild up you did !ith the initial !ire si+es to chec1 the "it in the !indo!.

O#tain $aterials
5his is tough. * all orders to la ination a1ers are li1ely to di""icult. You ight try unstac1ing and un!inding a suita4ly si+ed -0A+ po!er trans"or er i" the iron la inations are thin enough. 7Gote - good audio trans"or ers have historically used iron o" a4out 0.01): thic1ness3 a4out t!ice the thic1ness o" a co puter card - !hich is itsel" 4eco ing al ost un1no!n.8 %n!inding one is also one o" the 4est introductions to trans"or er !inding techni&ue that you can get. %n!ind one !ith the o4jective that you could put it 4ac1 together i" you !anted to. (hen you get done un!inding3 you6ll 4e se i-educated a4out ho! the !inding should 4e done.

Wind the coils Stac! the laminations Test performance

%everse &ngineering an Output Transformer ' (ondestructively)

5his &uestion popped up at A page3 and it needs a long ans!er3 so 26 here. going to type it in

(hat si ple tests can 4e done to capture the specs o" a vintage output trans"or erN You ay not 4e a4le to "ully 4lueprint the iron through any si ple calculation3 4ut you ight 4e a4le to then provide so e spec to produce anotherN

/ortunately3 you can discover al ost everything you need through nondestructive tests. (e6ll assu e you have a !or1ing trans"or er running properly in the circuit it !as designed "or. 5his !on6t 4e trivial3 4ut it6s !ell !ithin the reach o" a odestly-e&uipped ha radio operator or !ell e&uipped a p tech. 2n-circuit tests (ith the trans"or er in the circuit3 run the circuit at "ull non-distorted po!er 7no visi4le sine !ave distortion8 and easure the AC voltages on each !inding. (ith no signal in the circuit3 easure the CC voltages at each point on the pri ary. Cesigned JoltsDturn constant Re ove the trans"or er "ro the circuit. %sing a 4all-point carpet needle3 thread so e "ine agnet !ire through the spaces and holes 4et!een the core and !indings. 5his does not have to 4e neat3 you just need to get the turns in there. Count the turns LaccuratelyL as you put the . 10 is pro4a4ly enough. Crive the trans"or er secondary !ith a non-distorted sine !ave o" a "e! volts and )00 to 1000A+ through the trans"or er. Accurately easure the voltage on the secondary and on your added 10 turns as !ell as the pri ary. ?a1e certain that all !indings e;cept the driven secondary are open circuited3 no load at all. 5he voltage on the 10 turn !inding lets you calculate the volts per turn that the trans"or er is running at. /ro this3 you can calculate the nu 4er o" turns on any !inding3 su4ject only to the accuracy !ith !hich you a1e the easure ents3 4y easuring the voltage ratio to the 10 turn !inding and the nor al !inding3 then ultiplying 4y the nu 4er o" turns on the test !inding. Co this "or all !indings. %sing the AC voltages you easured "or nor al operation3 you can no! calculate the a;i u voltsDturn "or the trans"or er. JoltageDturns ratios Aaving easured all the voltages in nor al operation3 you have the turns ratios and i pedance ratios too3 !ith just calculation. (iring resistances (ith an accurate oh eter3 easure the CC resistances o" all the !indings. /or !indings under 100 oh s3 you pro4a4ly need a eter designed "or easuring lo! oh s.

Bri ary inductance *et up a test circuit !ith a high po!er transistor or ?$*/95 s!itch to s!itch 12JCC into the series connection o" the trans"or er pri ary and an accurately 1no!n resistor to ground. Barallel the series resistorDpri ary !ith a cla p diode that is nor ally reverse 4iased. Crive the s!itch !ith a varia4le duty-cycle pulse generator and slo!ly increase the duty cycle "ro very tiny3 !atching the voltage across the resistor and inductor !ith an oscilloscope. 5he voltage across the resistor3 !hich is proportional to the current through the inductor3 !ill ra p up linearly !hen the s!itch is on and ra p do!n linearly through the diode !hen the s!itch is o"". 9nsure you never use a duty cycle o" ,0I or ore3 as that does not let the inductor current go to +ero 4e"ore it is started 4ac1 up again. 2n this case3 the inductor current !ill ra p into saturation and 4urn so ething out. Accurately easure the ra p ti e "or a ra p up to so e oderate current3 li1e ay4e ,0-.0 a. Co pute the inductance "ro the R-= ti e constant. /or pri ary inductances3 ensure that all other !indings are open circuited. You !ill "ind pri ary inductances in the range o" ,-,0Ay "or ost usical a pli"ier trans"or ers. Ai"i outputs ay have pri ary inductances in the 1006s o" Ays. =ea1age inductance Repeat the pri ary pulse inductance test3 4ut this ti e short the secondary !inding. 5he inductance !ill 4e lo!er 4y a "actor o" 1000 to over 1003000@ the less the ratio o" lea1age inductance to pri ary inductance3 the 4etter the trans"or er3 and the harder it is to !ind. Bri ary sel" capacitance and ri ary to secondary capacitance 5hese are easura4le3 4ut uni portant "or usical a pli"ier output trans"or er use. 5hey !on6t a1e a di""erence in the design. Core easure ents Accurately easure the si+e o" the la inations and the depth o" the stac1. %se so e agni"ication and calipers and eagle-eye the thic1ness o" the la inations. >-A curve 2" you6re dead set on duplicating the trans"or er3 there6s a test you can do. ?ore on that one later. Go! that you have all this3 !hat do you do !ith itN 2" you thin1 a4out it3 this is pretty uch the sa e as a ne! trans"or er design !here you6ve already deter ined the nu 4er o" turns and core si+e3 !hich speeds things up a lot. All you have to do is "it the !ire into the !indo! 4y selecting !ire si+es and turns per layer3 and then choose the interleaving to get the lea1age inductance do!n. (ire "itting is easy once you6ve done it once3 and is pure drudgery. 2nterleaving is the hard part. 5here are !hole chapters in trans"or er 4oo1s on interleaving. 5he net o" it is that the lea1age inductance o" a si ple pri ary-over-

secondary is calcula4le !ith reasona4le accuracy "ro the physical easure ents o" the !indo! and the !indings. /ro there3 the lea1age inductance goes do!n 4y the s&uare o" the nu 4er o" interleavings. /ro so e si ple calculations out o" the !ire "itting3 you can esti ate the lea1age !ith no interleaving3 and then a1e a good guess a4out ho! any interleavings to do. A$(9J9R.... there is no nondestructive !ay to "ind out the interleavings the original trans"or er had. You can 4uild and test until it is close3 though3 i" you6re persistent enough.