Low-Voltage PWM DC/DC Controllers Are Highly Efficient

Said to provide an advanced solution for distributed power and point-of-load regulation in a wide range of systems, a new family of low-voltage PWM synchronous dc/dc controllers feature a combination of space savings, low input and output voltages and power efficiency. The TPS4000x devices are the first in a series of controllers for use by DSP and microprocessor cores, supervisory circuits, ASICs, FPGAs and other low-voltage logic in advanced systems. The controllers employ the company’s Predictive Gate Drive technology and achieve overall converter efficiencies greater than 95%. They step down input voltages ranging from 2.25 to 5.5Vand are capable of driving both upper and lower N-channel MOSFET output transistors. Output voltages can be supplied down to 0.7V, with a precision reference of 1%. Packaged in a 10-pin PowerPad MSOP, pricing is $1.44 each/ 10,000. TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INC., Dallas, TX. (800) 477-8924, ext 4500.