Record-breaking, ultrafast devices provide a step toward protecting the power grid from EMPs

[ATCclears]

The new Sandia device is a diode that can shunt a record-breaking 6,400 volts of electricity within a few billionths of a second—a significant advancement toward being able to protect the nation's electric grid from an EMP. The team, including Sandia electrical engineer Luke Yates, the first author on the paper, is working towards fabricating a diode able to operate at around 20,000 volts, since most grid distribution electronics operate at around 13,000 volts.

Record-breaking, ultrafast devices provide a step toward protecting the power grid from EMPs

Scientists from Sandia National Laboratories have announced a tiny, electronic device that can shunt excess electricity within a few billionths of a second while operating at a record-breaking 6,400 volts—a significant step toward protecting the nation's electric grid from an electromagnetic pulse.

techxplore.com

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