Simulating dc-dc converters with QSPICE

This course will describe how to simulate power electronic circuits with QSPICE. QSPICE is the latest trending SPICE software by Qorvo and is the successor to LTspice by Analog Devices. QSPICE is projected to be widely adopted by the power electronics and analog electronics industry. This course is targeted towards beginners who have never used a SPICE software before, and will use QSPICE to simulate basic dc-dc converters that any undergraduate will study in introductory course on power electronics. In addition to demonstrating the use of QSPICE as a simulation software, the course will examine a number of non-isolated dc-dc converters in great detail, such as the buck, boost, buck-boost, Ćuk, SEPIC and ZETA converters.

The course will describe how QSPICE can be used to analyse the operation of a dc-dc converter, and therefore, can be used as both an effective learning tool for students, as well as a teaching tool for educators. The course will describe how QSPICE can be used to include hardware details in a simulation by importing third-party SPICE models provided by manufacturers, to bring simulations closer to a hardware prototype. The course will describe in detail the operation of the some of the more complex dc-dc converters such as the SEPIC and the ZETA converters, by using basic network laws and the basic principle of exchange of energy.

QSPICE is a completely free simulation software based on SPICE which has been used for several decades. QSPICE features many exciting improvements over other SPICE software such as the ability to write control code using C++ or Verilog, and greater ability to simulate non-linear components. These features make QSPICE a very powerful tool for a power electronics engineer both in industry and academia.