Performance analysis and thermal modeling of a high-energy-density prebiased inductor

This paper presents a methodology for analyzing the thermal performance of compact planar wound components. A high-energy-density prebiased choke is used to demonstrate and validate the proposed approach. Loss predictions from electromagnetic finite-element analyses are coupled to an equivalent lumped-circuit thermal model and used to determine the operating thermal envelope for the wound component. Results from the proposed method are directly compared with test measurements taken from the prototype choke and are shown to be in good agreement. A sensitivity analysis indicates that copper loss is the dominant component in such devices and that ac resistance effects are more prominent than core loss.