Charge pump halves voltage double current
Charge pump halves voltage to double current "efficiency"
03.27.2024 Circuits

Capacitor type charge pumps are a well-known, simple, efficient, cost-effective method for inverting and multiplying voltage supply rails. Perhaps less well known, however, is that they also work just as well for dividing voltage...

Add grounded-switch feature TOPSwitch on off
Add a grounded-switch feature for TOPSwitch on/off control
03.26.2024 Circuits

The Power Integrations TOPSwitch family of integrated flyback-regulator ICs provides exceptional performance in small, low-pin-count packages. For the lowest-pin-count packages, the multifunction, or M, pin serves multiple purposes...

Auxiliary supply requirements SiC GaN gate
Auxiliary supply requirements for SiC/GaN gate driver systems
03.22.2024 Articles

Wide bandgap power semiconductor devices like Silicon Carbide (SiC) MOSFETs are enjoying growing popularity in many modern power electronic applications like E-mobility and renewable energy. Their extremely fast switching speed capability helps to increase efficiency...

Supersized log-scale audio meter
Supersized log-scale audio meter
03.21.2024 Circuits

At the end of the DI for a Simple log-scale audio meter I promised to show how to upgrade it to work better...

High-power LED drivers require no external
High-power LED drivers require no external switches
03.20.2024 Circuits

As the latest generation of new LEDs achieves higher levels of power and efficiency, use of these devices extends to new areas, such as flashlights and vehicular applications...

Keep heat down power op amps
Keep the heat down in power op amps
03.19.2024 Articles

When you include a power op amp, such as PA05 from Apex Microtechnology, in your design, it is desirable to minimize the supply-to-output differential to a minimum to reduce power dissipation and to fully exploit the amplifier's output range...

Creating very fast edge rate generator
Creating a very fast edge rate generator for testing (or taking the pulse of your scope)
03.18.2024 Circuits

I recently purchased a new oscilloscope for home use. It’s a 250 MHz scope, but I was curious what the actual –3 dB frequency was as most scopes have a bit more upper end margin than their published rating...

Multiturn position sensor provides true power-on
Multiturn position sensor provides true power-on capabilities with zero power
03.15.2024 Articles

This article outlines the current methods used to enable true power-on (TPO) multiturn sensing capabilities and introduces a new simplified solution that is set to reshape both the industrial and automotive position sensing markets...

Efficient voltage doubler is made generic
Efficient voltage doubler is made from generic CMOS inverters
03.14.2024 Circuits

When a design needs auxiliary voltage rails and the associated current loads are modest, capacitor pump voltage multipliers are often the simplest, cheapest, and most efficient way to make them...

Voltage inverter uses gate output pins
Voltage inverter uses gate's output pins as inputs and its ground pin as output
03.13.2024 Circuits

When analog circuits mix with digital, the former are sometimes dissatisfied with the latter’s usual single supply rail. This creates a need for additional, often negative polarity, voltage sources that are commonly provided by capacitive charge pumps...