| Summary: | A modern education in electrical engineering requires the development of a modern infrastructure capable of supporting new technologies and increasingly power efficient circuit designs. However, there is a requirement that a versatile infrastructure for power converter development also be accessible to a massive student base, easily expansive to future technologies, and generate a positive experience for students beginning to learn power electronics from a hands-on perspective. This thesis details the development, validation, and application of a robust power converter development platform, the Tritotem Development Board III (TDBIII), capable of supporting a modern power electronics curriculum which quantifiably improves upon the powerrating, bandwidth, and robustness to failure of its predecessor. Further, this thesis expands the curriculum to consider the benefits of Gallium Nitride Field Effect Transistor (GaN-FET) switching converters, detailing the development of a platform intended to clearly display their performance benefits over Silicon-based converters, as well as demonstrating the key design principles that become more significant when designing GaN-based converters.
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