Characterization of Double-Layer Capacitors (DLCs) for power electronics applications

The Double-Layer Capacitor (DLC) for power applications is a new device. A simple resistive capacitive equivalent circuit is insufficient to characterize its terminal behaviour. Based on physical reasoning, an equivalent circuit is proposed to provide the power electronics engineer with a model for the terminal behaviour of the DLC. The equivalent model consists of three RC branches, one of them with a voltage dependent capacitor. A method to identify the circuit parameters is presented. Measurements of carbon-based DLCs for power applications are presented, analysed, and the equivalent circuit response is compared with experimental results.