  The aviation industry aims to reduce CO2 emission by reducing energy
consumption and benefitting from more electrical systems than those based on
fossil fuels. The more electric aircraft (MEA) can take advantage of the drives
based on wide bandgap (WBG) based power modules that are lighter and can bear
higher voltages and currents. However, the fast-rise and repetitive voltage
pulses generated by WBG-based systems can endanger the insulating property of
dielectric materials due to the partial discharges. PDs cause the local
breakdown of insulation materials in regions with high electric field
magnitude. In the case of power electronic modules, silicone gel, which is a
predominant type of encapsulation material, is susceptible to these PDs. In
this study, it is aimed to investigate the impact of rise time on various PD
characteristics including PD true charge magnitude, inception and extinction
fields, duration, and so forth. Besides, those systems that are anticipated to
operate under harsh environmental conditions such as naval or aviation
industries, may expect additional threat. Therefore, this paper puts forth the
combination of low pressure conditions and fast rise, high frequency square
wave pulses. The results demonstrate that more intense and more intense ones
are going to be imposed at lower pressures. COMSOL Multiphysics interfaced with
MATLAB is used to simulate the PD detection process based on the experimental
data found in the literature.
