New Industry Products

Buck Converters Combine 7A-Peak Current and High Efficiency

February 24, 2014 by Jeff Shepard

Diodes Incorporated has introduced a pair of synchronous dc-dc buck converters for use in applications such as monitors, TVs and STBs. The AP65500 and AP65400 deliver continuous load currents of 5A and 4A respectively, 7A peak, with an efficiency as high as 96%. The devices operate at a switching frequency of 340kHz and incorporate a light-load efficiency improvement algorithm that maintains the devices' low-loss performance across a wide load range.

The buck converters provide current mode control for point-of-load power management and offer excellent line and load regulation, as well as a fast response to transient loads. A wide operating voltage range of 4.75V to 18V means the devices readily support 5V, 9V and 12V bus systems. The output is adjustable from 0.8V to 16V.

To safeguard downstream circuit components, the buck converters’ built-in protection features include current limit and output over-voltage protection, under-voltage lockout and thermal shutdown. To prevent excessive in-rush current and output-voltage overshoot, the converters also provide a programmable soft-start function.

The buck converters’ compact SO-8EP packaging, high level of component integration including low RDS(ON) high- and low-side MOSFETs, and their minimal external support circuitry, simplify board layout and minimize space requirements for a wide range of distributed power architectures. The AP65500 and AP65400 synchronous DC-DC buck converters are priced at $0.75USD and $0.65USD respectively, each in 10k piece quantities.