Power Converters Enter Third Generation

The TinySwitch-III family of power converters, now in its third generation, team up with universal-input power supplies ranging from 3W to 28W. Touting high levels of integration, the devices include a 700V MOSFET alongside low-voltage control circuitry on a monolithic IC. Other features include integrated auto-restart, input under-voltage and output over-voltage protection, hysteretic thermal shutdown, and frequency jittering. Differing from previous generations, selectable current limits provide a choice of three current limit values without any additional pins or external components. Additionally, the chips employ an on/off control scheme that delivers virtually constant efficiency regardless of load. Power consumption is less than 150 mW at 265 Vac; less than 50 mW is possible with bias winding. Available in lead-free, plastic through-hole DIP-8 and surface-mount SMD-8 packages, prices for the 6W TNY274PN and 28W TNY280PN are $0.79 and $1.45 each/1,000, respectively. POWER INTEGRATIONS INC., San Jose, CA. (408) 414-9665.