Leader in Pulsed Power
ITOPP
ITOPP specializes in the design, development, manufacturing, testing, operation and maintenance of Pulsed Power systems
With decades of experience in pulsed-power engineering, ITOPP has developed recognized expertise in the design, integration, and optimization of systems such as Marx generators, Linear Transformer Drivers (LTDs), and advanced capacitor bank architectures.
The company supports defense and security, nuclear deterrence, and energy programs through advanced pulsed power solutions, complemented by strong capabilities in high-power microwave technologies. Operating exclusively on a custom-engineering basis, ITOPP designs and manufactures fully integrated systems tailored to each client’s specific requirements, ensuring performance, reliability, and precision in the most challenging environments.
In addition, ITOPP provides operational condition maintenance services for its equipment as well as for systems supplied by other manufacturers, ensuring sustained performance and long-term reliability in the field.
Marx Generator
The system operates by charging multiple capacitors in parallel to a defined voltage and subsequently discharging them in series through synchronized switching, most commonly using gas-filled spark gaps, while solid-state switches such as thyristors may be employed in lower voltage or power configurations. In an N-stage Marx generator, the theoretical output voltage scales linearly with the number of stages, reaching levels from a few kilovolts up to several megavolts. Marx generators can be designed for a wide range of operating regimes, from low-energy trigger sources to high-energy systems storing several hundred kilojoules, delivering fast pulses with durations ranging from a few nanoseconds to a few microseconds in single-shot or repetitive modes.
ITOPP Know-How in Marx Generator Technology
With more than 25 years of experience, ITOPP has developed advanced expertise in the engineering, optimization, and maintenance of Marx generator systems, including stage architecture, switching synchronization, insulation, and pulse shaping, enabling the adaptation of existing designs or the development of fully customized generators tailored to specific voltage, current, repetition rate, and application requirements.
Linear Transformer Driver Generator
The Linear Transformer Driver (LTD) technology allows a direct attack of the load without shaping the output pulse. The pulses produced may have pulse durations of between 1 μs and less than 100 ns, output voltages greater than mega volts and / or currents exceeding a mega amp.
Simple, compact and modular, this technology is perfectly suited to numerous research applications where a large current or voltage is required, such as:
- Plasma physics with a large range of densities and temperatures;
- studying of intense particle beams;
- creation of extreme conditions in matter.
With a similar principle to that used in the IVA (Inductive Voltage Adder), LTD technology has a number of advantages:
- Compactness;
- limited requirements for utilities;
- modularity and simplicity;
- adaptability to a broad range of load impedances;
- reduced manufacturing, operating and maintenance costs.
ITOPP has developed strong and distinctive know-how in Linear Transformer Driver (LTD) technology, covering the full chain from conceptual design to experimental validation. Building on a modular and scalable architecture, ITOPP masters the design of high-performance LTD stages capable of delivering extremely fast, high-current and high-voltage pulses with precise control of pulse shape. This expertise includes capacitor integration, low-inductance switching, magnetic core optimization, and system assembly, enabling compact, robust, and reliable pulsed-power generators. Through multiple large-scale demonstrators and advanced applications such as flash X-ray sources and ultra-fast diagnostics, ITOPP has proven its ability to adapt LTD technology to demanding scientific and industrial environments.
Capacitor bank
With decades of experience, ITOPP has developed deep expertise in the design, integration, and maintenance of capacitor bank systems. These systems store large amounts of electrical energy and release it over very short timescales, using multiple capacitors arranged in series and/or parallel to meet specific voltage, current, and energy requirements.
ITOPP designs and manufactures capacitor banks tailored to customer needs, taking into account charging voltage, stored energy, pulse duration and shape, number of successive pulses, operating frequency, and environmental conditions. Each system integrates all necessary functions for operation, control, maintenance, and safety, including energy storage, switching and tripping, pulse shaping, capacitor charging, and comprehensive safety features.
This expertise is applied across a wide range of applications, such as:
- High power lasers;
- study of magnetic fields;
- pulsed electric fields;
- pulsed magnetic fields.
ITOPP can adapt existing capacitor bank architectures or develop fully customized solutions to meet specific performance, safety, and robustness requirements, while ensuring ease of handling and seamless integration with other pulsed power subsystems.
Operational Condition Maintenance
ITOPP provides comprehensive maintenance services for pulsed power systems, whether its own or from other manufacturers. These services cover equipment installation, handling support, as well as preventive and corrective maintenance.
The company can deploy highly qualified experts for on-site operations, ranging from short-term interventions to year-round assignments.
ITOPP brings together a wide range of core competencies, including electrical engineering, simulation, automation, vacuum technology, mechanics, and metrology. Its teams also hold specialized certifications required for advanced operations, such as SF6 handling, laser systems, and radiation protection.
High Power Microwave (HPM) Effectors
ITOPP is a specialist in advanced pulsed power and high-power microwave systems, delivering innovative HPM solutions for demanding defense, security, and scientific applications. Drawing on extensive expertise in high-voltage engineering, system integration, and electromagnetic design, ITOPP develops two complementary technology families, enabling tailored solutions adapted to specific mission requirements.
Pulsed-Power High-Power Microwave Systems
ITOPP develops high-performance HPM systems based on advanced pulsed power generator technology, designed to deliver extremely high peak power and ultra-short microwave pulses. These systems integrate energy storage modules, pulse forming networks, high-voltage switching stages, and microwave generation subsystems into a tightly optimized architecture. The result is the generation of intense and controlled electromagnetic fields with high efficiency, robustness, and scalability.
Thanks to their ability to deliver very high instantaneous power levels, these systems are particularly suited for demanding applications such as electromagnetic effects testing, system vulnerability assessment, advanced defense missions, and counter-drone operations, where high-power electromagnetic emissions can be used to disrupt or neutralize unmanned aerial systems within a controlled engagement zone.
Solid-State High-Power Microwave Systems
ITOPP also designs solid-state HPM systems based on modular gallium nitride (GaN) amplifier technology combined with advanced planar antenna solutions. This approach enables efficient, precise, and highly controllable emission of high-power electromagnetic waves within a compact and modular architecture. The solid-state design ensures high reliability, flexible scalability, and simplified maintenance, making it suitable for integration into a wide range of operational platforms.
These systems are well adapted to applications requiring controlled and localized electromagnetic effects, including protection of critical infrastructure and short-range stopping or immobilization of uncooperative vehicles such as motorcycles and other light, fast-moving platforms.
ITOPP combines these complementary technological approaches to address a broad spectrum of operational needs. The company assists its clients in selecting the most appropriate solution from the available technologies, ensuring optimized equipment in terms of performance, integration, safety, and operational effectiveness.
Switching Specific Pulsed Power Components
ITOPP has developed a comprehensive range of components and instruments for pulsed power systems, with particular expertise in switching technologies. As a specialist in fast switching, ITOPP offers a range of tailored switches designed to meet the specific requirements of its customers.
The key parameters to be defined to select the optimized solution are:
- Operating voltage
- Maximum current
- Transferred charge (number of coulombs)
- Pulse duration
- Acceptable jitter
- Operating frequency
- Available volume
ITOPP can deliver gas switches (all types of spark gaps), vacuum switches (thyratrons or pseudospark), or solid switches.
The company also designs measurement sensors, high-power charge and discharge units, and pre-magnetized bays, complementing its core switching capabilities.
