Linear Technology offers a variety of devices that simplifyconverting power from a USB cable, but the LTC®3455represents the highest level of functional integration yet. The LTC3455 seamlessly manages power flowbetween an AC adapter, USB cable and Li-ion battery,while complying with USB power standards, all from a4mm × 4mm QFN package. In addtion, two high efficiencysynchronous buck converters generate low voltage railswhich most USB-powered peripherals require. TheLTC3455 also provides power-on reset signals for themicroprocessor, a Hot SwapTM output for poweringmemory cards as well as an uncommitted gain blocksuitable for use as a low-battery comparator or an LDOcontroller. The PCB real estate required for the entire USBpower control circuit and two DC/DC converters is only225mm2.
The LTC®3414 offers a compact and efficient voltage regulatorsolution for point of load conversion in electronicsystems that require low output voltages (down to 0.8V)from a 2.5V to 5V power bus. Internal power MOSFETswitches, with only 67mW on-resistance, allow theLTC3414 to deliver up to 4A of output current with efficiencyas high as 94%. The LTC3414 saves space by operatingwith switching frequencies as high as 4MHz, enabling theuse of tiny inductors and capacitors.
Easy-to-use and compact point-of-load power suppliesare necessary in systems with widely distributed, highcurrent, low voltage loads. The LTC®3415 provides acompact, simple and versatile solution. It includes a pairof integrated complementary power MOSFETs (32mΩtop and 25mΩ bottom) and requires no external senseresistor. A complete design requires an inductor andinput/output capacitors, and that’s it. The result is a fast,constant frequency, 7A current mode DC/DC switchingregulator.
Low power standby requirements are typically associatedwith battery-powered systems. Automotive systems,for example, commonly require power supplies tomaintain output voltage regulation even under no-loadconditions—while drawing minimal quiescent current topreserve battery life. Rising energy costs, however, haveextended the need for low current standby operation toline-powered systems, such as small plugged-in appliancesfor home and business.
Automobile electronic systems place high demands ontoday’s DC/DC converters. They must be able to preciselyregulate an output voltage in the face of wide temperatureand input voltage ranges—including load dump transientsin excess of 60V and cold crank voltage drops to 4V. Theconverter must also be able to minimize battery drain inalways-on systems by maintaining high effi ciency over abroad load current range. Similar demands are made bymany 48V nonisolated telecom applications, 40V FireWireperipherals and battery-powered applications with autoplug adaptors. The LT3437’s best in classperformancemeets all of these requirements in a small thermallyenhanced 3mm × 3mm DFN package.
A number of conventional solutions have been available forthe design of a DC/DC converter where the output voltageis within the input voltage range—a common scenarioin Li-Ion battery-powered applications—but none werevery attractive until now. Conventional topologies, suchas SEPIC or boost followed by buck, have numerousdisadvantages, including low effi ciency, complex magnetics,polarity inversion and/or circuit complexity/cost. TheLTC®3785 buck-boost controller yields a simple, effi cient,low parts-count, single-converter solution that is easyto implement, thus avoiding the drawbacks associatedwith traditional solutions.
Video cable driver amplifi er output stages traditionallyrequire a supply voltage of at least 6V in order to providethe required output swing. This requirement is usuallymet with 5V supplies by adding a boost regulator or asmall local negative rail, say via the popular LT®1983-3.Such additional circuitry is unnecessary in typical 1VP-Pvideo connections, such as HD component video, if thecable driver amplifi ers simply offer near rail-to-rail outputcapability when powered from 5V.
Automotive batteries, industrial power supplies, distributedsupplies and wall transformers are all sources ofwide-ranging high voltage inputs. The easiest way to stepdown these sources is with a high voltage monolithicstep-down regulator that can directly accept a wide inputrange and produce a well-regulated output. The LT®3493accepts inputs from 3.6V to 36V and LT3481 acceptsinputs from 3.6V to 34V. Both provide excellent lineand load regulation and dynamic response. The LT3481offers a high effi ciency solution over a wide load range andkeeps the output ripple low during Burst Mode® operationwhile the LT3493 provides a tiny solution with minimalexternal components. The LT3493 operates at 750kHzand the LT3481 has adjustable frequency from 300kHzto 2.8MHz. High frequency operation enables the use ofsmall, low cost inductors and ceramic capacitors.
Speed and accuracy don’t always go hand-in-handin DC/DC converter systems—that is, until now. TheLTC3811 is a dual output, fi xed frequency current modeDC/DC switching regulator controller designed for one oftoday’s most demanding power supply applications: highcurrent, low voltage processor core supplies.
Many system designers need an easy way to producea negative 3.3V power supply. In systems that alreadyhave a transformer, one option is to swap out the existingtransformer with one that has an additional secondarywinding. The problem with this solution is that manysystems now use transformers that are standard, offthe-shelf components, and most designers want toavoid replacing a standard, qualifi ed transformer with acustom version. An easier alternative is to produce thelow negative voltage rail by stepping down an existingnegative rail. For example, if the system already employsan off-the-shelf transformer with two secondary windingsto produce ±12V, and a –3.3V rail is needed, a negativebuck converter can produce the –3.3V output from the–12V rail.
