A few useful formulas for magnetic-products

design
Gregory Mirsky - March 27, 2008

The purpose of this article is to provide an electronics designer with some useful magnetic equations
and at the same time explicitly present the physical processes ruling the magnetics performance.

The materials below are good for design of magnetics intended for work in the smallest low-power
switching converters as well as in high-power products because operation of electronic devices of
any size is governed by the same physical laws. The design of high-power supplies operating at high
conversion frequencies requires the use of multifilar wire or thin copper foil in order to reduce the
proximity (skin) effect and increase efficiency, but in very-low-power supplies the windings can use
thin enough single-stranded wire, which is capable of carrying the operating current at low losses.
(You can find answers to questions associated with the winding wire selection in Fundamentals of
Power Electronics, Second Edition, by R.W.Erickson and D.Maksimovic, ISBN 0-7923-7270-0.)

This article is mostly devoted to magnetic core selection, the necessary gap assessment, determining
magnetic cores parameters, and evaluation of the energy-storage capability of gapped cores.

How flux density depends on the inductance factor Al value:

From Faraday's law we know that

e = -N * Ae * dB/ dt
(1)

and

e = -L * dI / dt,
(2)

where e is the induced electromotive force; N is number of wire turns in the coil; Ae is the core
cross-sectional area, m2; L is the coil inductance, H; I is the current flowing through the coil, A; and t
is the time of observation, s.

These equations determine the electromotive force in the coil as produced by the applied current
variation (2) or by an external magnetic field change (1).

From (1) and (2) obtain:

 N * Ae * dB = L * dI
(3)

In this equation we got rid of the time variable and can determine processes in the coil regardless of
the timeline.

Assuming

L = Al* N2 by definition, obtain

Ae * dB = N * Al * dI
(4)

Integrating both sides of this equation, obtain

B = N * Al * I / Ae
(5)

Equation (5) links the flux density B in the core with the current invoking it, the core material
properties Al and core geometry Ae. Magnetic path length is included in the parameter Al (see
below).

When designing a magnetic product it is usually important to keep its core nonsaturated. Equation
(5) allows us to easily determine the maximum admissible current that would keep the flux density
below saturation at a given core geometry, or core geometry necessary to keep the core unsaturated
at given maximum current. It also allows to select the inductance factor Al , or core gap, that would
keep the core unsaturated at given geometry and maximum current.

What is the Inductance Factor Al ?

In order to obtain expression for Al, we will keep working with the fundamental Ampere and Faraday
laws.

From Faraday's law

N * Ae * dB = L * dI
(3)

Or in an integral form

L = N * Ae * B / I
(6)

We can anticipate that the inductance factor links the core physical properties along with its
geometry, with the inductance L and should not depend on the current in the winding, i.e. the core
should have Al even when no current is applied. In other words, the inductance factor is an
autonomous property of the core. The Inductance Factor Al depends on whether there is a gap in the
core or not.

Using Ampere's law, which is also known as a Full Current Law, we can write up an expression for a
gapped core assuming that a gap is put "in series" with the magnetic path:
 N * I = Hm * lm + Hg * lg,
(7)

where Hm is the magnetic field strength in the magnetic path lm, A/m; lm is the magnetic line mean
length, m; Hg is the magnetic field strength in the gap, A/m; and lg is the gap length, m.

It is important to keep in mind that the magnetic field strength may change within the same piece of
material, but the flux density B cannot because its lines are uninterruptible.

Remembering this, obtain

N * I = B/ ( µ * µ0) * lm + B/ µ0* lg = B/ ( µ * µ0) * (lm + µ * lg)

(8)

Hence,

B = µ * µ0 * N * I /(lm + µ * lg)
(9)

Substituting (9) into (6), obtain:

L = N2 * Ae * µ * µ0 / (lm + µ * lg)
(10)

Comparing (10) to the definition of L as

L = N2 * Al
(11)

one can notice that

Al = µ * µ0 * Ae / (lm + µ * lg)
(12)

We obtained expression for the inductance factor as a function of just the core material properties
and core geometry.

A few other formulae can be derived from (12):

If you need a specific gap for the known Al of a known core size (Ae, lm), you can use (disregarding
the fringing effect):

lg = µ0 * Ae / Al – ( lm / µ )

If you need a specific gap for the known inductor having known parameters L, Im, Bsat, lm and Ae, you
can revert to

lg = ( L * Im2 * µ0)/ Ae * Bsat2 – lm / µ

Energy stored by an inductor with gap

Many inductors are intended to store electromagnetic energy. For example, chokes, flyback
inductors, PFC inductors, and many others transfer energy to load in two or more cycles.

If an inductor is connected to a voltage source V0, this source produces current in the winding; this
current complies with Ampere's Law:

I(t) = H(t) * (lm + lg)/ N

(13)

where

H(t) = Hm * t / T0
(14)

Here T0 is the observed time interval.

And

I(t) = Hm * ((lm + lg)/ N) * t / T0

(15)

The magnetic field induces electromotive force E, opposing the initial voltage V0 applied to the
inductor, and its value is

E = N * Ae * dB / dt

Or

E * dt = N * Ae * dB
(16)

Integrating both parts, obtain

E = N * Ae * Bm / T0
(17)

Instantaneous power value

P(t) = I(t) * E = Hm * (lm + lg)/ N * t / T0 * N * Ae * Bm / T0

(18)

And energy stored by the inductor as an integral of power over a time interval

W = H * B * Ae * (lm + lg)/ 2 = H * B * V / 2,
(19)

where V = Ae * (lm + lg) is the core's volume.

As the flux density B magnetic lines are uninterruptible, we can replace value for H with B / µ * µ0
for the magnetic path and B / µ0for the gapand make sure that almost the whole energy is stored in
the gap rather than core:

W = B2 / (µ * µ0) * Ae * lm + B2 / µ0* Ae * lg
(20)

The right part of the sum is usually much greater than the left one for the core materials have
permeability µ of the order of a thousand.

This important relationship shows that most of energy is stored in a media with the lowest relative
permeability µ. This is why transformers do not to store energy and they should not! Their cores
have no gap and therefore permeability is high, and energy storing capability is miserable.

For gapped cores design, either volume of the gapped portion should be used, or a resulting
permeability value.

Read more In-Depth

Technical Features

Calculation of number of turns and inductance factor of an inductor operating at a given

current

Very often number of turns and appropriate core parameters, such as inductance factor and size,
should be specified for an inductor having predetermined inductance L. The first step to be made is
the sampling of a core material and size from a manufacturer's list. It means a cross-sectional area
Ae should be selected and saturation flux density chosen.

From (5) it is easy to obtain for extreme values of B and I

N = Bsat * Ae/ (Imax * Al )

(21)

Substituting Al value from (11), we can get

N = Imax * L / (Bsat * Ae)

(22)

This formula defines number of turns for a core of a specific geometry, represented by Ae. The lower
the Bsat, the larger the number of turns that should be applied.

Formula (22) gives the number of turns for the given inductance but says nothing about the core
gap. Its value can be derived from (12) using (11).

Example:

How many turns should be wound and what core cap applied (A l used) for an inductor that should
operate at 6.62A maximum current and have 11- µH inductance and which has a limit of flux density
B sat of 0.26T?

We select the core RM5 having Ae of 24.8 mm2.

Substituting these values into (22), obtain

 N = 6.62 * 11*10-6 / (0.26 * 24.8*10-6) = 11 (turns)

Consequently, from (11):

Al = 11*10-6 / 112 = 90.9 nH/turn2

I strongly recommend using special facilities for gapping cores to nonstandard gaps or buying cores
from the magnetic-core manufacturers who make custom-gapped cores.

Current transformer parameters limitation

Current-transformer operation intended for power transfer is analyzed in Reference 1, but there is
one aspect which is related to both power transfer and current-limiting purposes. This is how the
load or terminating resistor affects the core saturation. The result may seem a little bit unexpected.

Again, from Faraday's Law it is easy to get

E * dt = - N * AedB
(23)

For the current transformer, E is the electromotive force generated by the secondary winding due to
the magnetic flux density change dB evoked by the primary side current flowing through the hole in
the core assuming a toroidal core is used or just the primary side winding.

After integrating both sides of this equation it is easy to obtain

B = (E * t) / (N * Ae),
(24)

where t is the time interval during which the primary current flows.

Primary current may flow for a fraction of the input waveform period T, which means that the input
current waveform has a duty-cycle D below 1. Therefore, (24) can be re-written as

B = (E * D * T) / (N * Ae)
(25)

Voltage E generated on the secondary side, causes secondary current if the secondary winding is
terminated with a resistor R or a load having resistance designated the same way.

If the termination resistor R or load are present, a secondary current Is exists in the secondary
winding. Its value may be determined from the Ohm's Law:

Is = E/ R
(26)

At the same time, Is is the primary current I transformed into the secondary winding as Is:

Is = I / N
(27)
Substituting (26) and (27) values into the (25), obtain

B = (I * R * D) / (N2 * Ae * f),
(28)

where f = 1 / T, frequency of the input current

The promised unexpected result is that the core flux density is directly proportional to the
terminating resistor. A very big terminating resistor value may cause the core saturation and
therefore the maximum voltage developed across the secondary winding would not exceed the value
of

E = 4 * f * Bsat * Ae *N.
(29)

This paradox has a physical interpretation: the secondary side current causes a magnetic field,
which demagnetizes the core and prevents its saturation. If the secondary side is shorted out, the
core will never saturate because the residual flux density B will be very close to 0. This is why the
current power and sensing transformers run coolest when shorted out. At the same time if the
terminating resistor R is out of the circuit, this does not mean that the flux density B goes to infinity
– its value is restricted by the core properties, as described by the (29).

Reference

1. G.Mirsky. The Right Calculations Add Up To The Ideal Power Current Transformer, Electronic
Design, March 1, 2007

Author information

Gregory Mirsky is CEO of Milavia International, a consulting company he co-founded in 2004. He

has a PhD in physics and mathematics from Moscow State University for Education and Science.