This paper analyzes the steady-state and dynamic characteristics of the watkings-johnson converter. the major contributions of this paper includ identification of the following characteristics unique to the watkins-johnson converter: (1) The output voltage of the converter is nearly constant at the continous conduction mode (CCM), and at discontinousou conduction mode (DCM) it decreses linerly as the output curretn increases. (2) The control-to-output transfer function is a second-order one with a left-half-plane (LHP) zero determined by the combination of the output capacitor and equivalent series resistor of the converter. This LHP zero signinificantly improves the stability of the converter. (3) The control-to-output transfer function reduces to a first-order one, as the converter moves from CCM to DCM. (4) The parastic resistance of the inductor does not cause any significant influence on poles and zeros of the transfer function.