UV LED Triggered Spark Gap for Repeatable Nanosecond Pulses

We present progress towards a UV (280nm) LED triggered spark gap as a cheap solution for a repeatable discharge in high voltage ns pulsed power sources. While spark gaps are the simplest high voltage switches, the discharges can have several microseconds of jitter. Alternative switches that hold off 10kV or more and provide less jitter can be cost prohibitive and difficult to obtain. By using pulsed emission from a UV LED, we hope to provide highly repeatable pre-ionization in the gap. This allows for controlled timing of the discharge and faster switching times. We present progress to date and details of the switching characteristics of the triggered gap.