GAEP Delivers High Voltage Capacitors to SNS

General Atomics Energy Products, a Division of General Atomics Electronic Systems

PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Randy Hartsock 858-522-8403
September 19, 2001, San Diego, CA

GENERAL ATOMICS ENERGY PRODUCTS TO DELIVER HIGH VOLTAGE
CAPACITORS FOR THE SPALLATION NEUTRON SOURCE (SNS)

General Atomics Energy Products (GAEP) announced today that it that it has received orders for seven different high voltage plastic case capacitors used in modulators designed by Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) for the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS). The SNS program is a major Department of Energy program involving many of the United State's national laboratories, which will result in a new tool for studying materials at the atomic level.

The capacitors are used in two different modulator designs, with output voltages of 80 kV and 150 kV. The seven models were custom-designed for use in specific parts of the modulators, including IGBT snubbers, DC filters, and pulse forming networks. A total of more than 2000 capacitors will be delivered under the new orders. GAEP's project engineer for the SNS capacitors is Robert A. ("Bob") Cooper, who has been with the company over 25 years. Mr. Cooper was also the project engineer for the large ATLAS capacitors developed for LANL several years ago.

High Voltage SNS Capacitors One key feature of the GAEP capacitors designed for SNS is very low inductance. Inductance can limit the rate at which energy can be extracted from a capacitor, and is the result of magnetic fields generated around electrical conductors. Low inductance is one of the features of using GAEP's plastic-case capacitor technology. Other features include compact size, high reliability, and low equivalent series resistance (ESR). These features benefit systems that generate microsecond risetime current pulses at high repetition rates, such as modulators driving microwave sources and excimer lasers.

GAEP has previously supplied large numbers of its plastic case capacitors for modulators used in the DARHT-II accelerator, as well as for industrial lasers, medical oncology accelerators, and a variety of research and development applications.

GAEP is a leading supplier of high energy density capacitors for large pulse power systems, medical defibrillators, lithotriptors, lasers, and accelerators, and a variety of other applications. GAEP is part of General Atomics Electronic Systems Inc., an affiliate company of General Atomics. The capacitor product line, formerly part of Maxwell Technologies, Inc., was purchased by General Atomics in March 2000. General Atomics Electronic Systems Inc. also designs and manufactures high voltage power supplies, radiation monitoring systems, and terminal automation products.