Design Methodology for Interleaved Converters Based on Coupled Inductors with ZVS and Closed-Loop Controllability Constraints

Intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) platforms and electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft demand onboard power conversion systems that simultaneously achieve high gravimetric power density, robustness, and fault-tolerance. In this context, modular battery architectures based on per-string power electronic interfaces emerge as a key enabler for voltage regulation, fault isolation, and in-flight reconfiguration. However, the stringent mass and volume constraints of electric aviation place magnetic components among the primary limiting factors of converter scalability. This paper presents a design methodology for interleaved converters with coupled inductors that explicitly decompose common-mode, differential-mode, and uncoupled inductance components. The proposed approach enables independent adjustment of current ripple and dynamic response, allowing zero-voltage switching (ZVS) operation while ensuring stable and controllable behavior under close-loop current regulation. The methodology is experimentally validated on a 4 kW two-phase interleaved GaN-based boost converter operating at 500 kHz. Experimental results demonstrate a peak efficiency of 97%, with less than 1% variation across the operating range, and stable dynamic behavior under load transients. These results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed design methodology as a scalable solution for high-power-density, high-reliability power converters in electric aviation battery systems.