New Industry Products

Micrel Announces the MIC2596 and MIC2597 Family of Hot-Swap Power Controllers

May 02, 2001 by Jeff Shepard

Micrel Semiconductor Inc. (San Jose, CA) announced a new family of -70V hot-swap power controllers designed for telecom switch applications. Manufactured in 20-pin TSSOP and thermally enhanced TSSOP packages, the MIC2596 and MIC2597 incorporate two completely independent -70V channels. Each channel integrates a high-voltage MOSFET with adjustable current limiting.

The MIC2596 and MIC2597 have on-chip over-current and over-temperature protection, as well as shutdown capabilities in the event of a short circuit. The two channels are thermally isolated so that a fault in one channel does not affect the other. Additionally, on/off control and fault status signals are logic-compatible.

The MIC2596 and MIC2597 can detect open-load conditions when a cable or line card is removed. The MIC2596 incorporates an auto-retry feature that will continuously attempt to restart the load in the event of a fault condition. The MIC2597 operates as a circuit breaker, latching off in the event of a fault condition.

At a nominal -48V, the devices can provide over 15W per channel with the standard TSSOP package, and more than 30W per channel with the exposed-pad TSSOP package.

“Micrel designed the MIC2596 and MIC2597 to address emerging telecom switch and line-card applications that distribute small amounts of power within very stringent space and cost constraints," said Larry Mazer, product marketing manager for Micrel. “The two devices eliminate many of the cost and space problems associated with other telecom hot-swap solutions. They are designed for easy use with no compromise in performance.",/p>

The MIC2596 and MIC2597 are currently available in 20-pin TSSOP packaging for $4.00, when purchased in 1,000-piece quantities.