A solid state circuit breaker that may include a metal oxide varistor (MOY) that is connected in series to a thyristor, the MOY to clamp voltage of current flowing through the solid state circuit breaker; the thyristor including a gate to control flow of the current to the MOY along a first path to the MOY; a breakover diode to activate at a target voltage level to allow the current to flow to the MOY along a second path; and a Zener diode to close the gate and allow current to flow along the first path in response to the current on the second path.