Pulse battery charger employing 1000 ampere transistor switches

A pulse charger which uses water-cooled 1000-amp transistor switches has been developed to determine empirically the best methods of rapidly charging large cells in the one- to two-volt range. The pulse charger is capable of delivering a positive current from 0 to 1000 amps and extracting a negative current from 0 to 1000 amps. The charger can supply a 1000-amp DC charge or can switch 1000 amps at a rate of 1000 Hz. Special attention is given to problems associated with rapid switching of high currents through use of transistors.