A Single-Phase Z-Source Buck-Boost Matrix Converter

This paper proposes a new type of converter called a single-phase Z-source buck-boost matrix converter. The converter can buck and boost with step-changed frequency, and both the frequency and the voltage can be stepped up or stepped down. In addition, the converter employs a safe-commutation strategy to conduct along a continuous current path, which results in the elimination of voltage spikes on switches without the need for a snubber circuit. The operating principles of the proposed single-phase Z-source buck-boost matrix converter are described, and a circuit analysis is provided. To verify the performance of the proposed converter, a laboratory prototype was constructed with a voltage of 40 V-rms/60 Hz and a passive RL load. The simulation and the experimental results verified that the converter can produce an output voltage with three different frequencies 120, 60, and 30 Hz, and that the amplitude of the output voltage can be bucked and boosted.