Estimations of magnetic core loss are of great interest to power
electronics engineers and magnetic material scientists. However,
conventional measurement methods, like four-wire and
calorimeters are typically not accurate at high frequency, or
are too complicated and time consuming. A CPES research team has
developed a series of new methods to measure high-frequency
magnetic core loss that are simple, fast, accurate and adaptive
for any excitation waveform and dc flux level. The new methods
compare the core being tested with air core by using reactive
cancellation concept, explains Mingkai Mu, a Ph.D. student who
invented these methods. “Since the air core is lossless,” he
says, “the difference in the two cores represents the loss for
the core being tested.” The measurement accuracy of the new
method is more robust with phase discrepancy, which is the major
problem for high-frequency core loss measurement, he notes. The
new methods are appropriate for high frequency (1 MHz–100 MHz,
or even higher) measuremen