This circular-patterned silicon wafer is a novel type of what is called a thyristor. It promises to have a major impact on lowering the operating costs of high-voltage direct current (HVDC) power transmission lines now under construction in the United States and abroad. HVDC transmission lines can carry twice as much power as their alternating current
counterparts (AC), slashing transmission costs and requiring narrower rights of way. However, these advantages have been partially offset by the high cost of the converter stations required to transform AC into DC for long-distance transmission and then back to AC again at the point of consumption. The new thyristor (inspected
here by inventor Dr Victor A. K. Temple, a physicist at the General Electric Research and Development Centre in New York) offers a new approach to this conversion challenge. Through its innovative design, it can now handle large currents while itself consuming little power, reducing over-all conversion losses significantly.
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Press, 17 November 1982, Page 45
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155Untitled Press, 17 November 1982, Page 45
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