New Industry Products

Alpha & Omega Introduces High Output Voltage WLED Backlight Driver

January 27, 2010 by Jeff Shepard

Alpha & Omega Semiconductor, Inc. (AOS) expanded its EZBoost™ family with their first white LED backlight driver, the AOZ1950. The AOZ1950 is designed and optimized for providing backlighting solutions for the latest portable devices using medium-sized LCD panels such as netbooks, portable media players, and portable navigation devices.

The AOZ1950 is a high-performance current-mode boost regulator that operates from an input voltage range of 2.7 to 5.5V. Its integrated AOS Trench MOSFET boost switch allows the device to generate a regulated output voltage as high as 55V with an input switch current of 750mA. The high voltage and low on-resistance boost switch allows the AOZ1950 to power up to 12 LEDs in series. In addition, the AOZ1950 integrates several system safety features such as output over-voltage protection, a "true-off" input switch, short-circuit protection, and a cycle-by-cycle current limit.

"The AOZ1950 is an ideal LED driver solution for medium-sized LCD panels. The integrated Trench MOSFET boost switch delivers a higher output voltage than competing devices, allowing 20% more LEDs to be driven for bigger and brighter panels," said Alan Moore, Marketing Manager for AOS’ Power IC Products.

"Additionally, the device’s integrated protection features allow for a more robust system design while at the same time reducing overall external component count."

The AOZ1950 is available in a 10-pin 3 x 3mm DFN package and operates over the -40 to +85°C ambient temperature range. Pricing in 1,000 piece quantities begins at US$1.20.