New Industry Products

Microchip Technology Expands Low-Power, 22-Bit Delta-Sigma A/D Converter Family

February 13, 2006 by Jeff Shepard

Microchip Technology Inc., a leading provider of microcontroller and analog semiconductors, today announced an addition to its low-power, high-resolution delta-sigma analog-to-digital (A/D) converter family. The MCP3550 joins the recently announced MCP 3551 and MCP 3553 A/D converters as one of the lowest power, smallest A/D converters on the market with greater than 16-bit resolution.

This new 22-bit device is available in an 8-pin mini small outline package (3.1 mm x 3.1 mm x 1.18 mm) and offers low-current operation of only 120 microamperes, typical. It rejects noise in the 50 or 60 Hz line frequencies, resulting in highly accurate measurements for consumer, industrial, battery-powered and portable devices.

The MCP3550 A/D converter features integral nonlinearity (INL) of ± 2 pulses per minute (ppm) typical, power consumption of 0.6 milliwatts maximum at 5 volts, and output noise as low as 2.5 microvolts root mean square (RMS). The device rejects 50 or 60 Hz noise greater than 120 dB, which makes its measurements impervious to noise from power supplies in these line frequencies. The result is highly accurate measurements and a superior level of effective resolution.

"Our customers are challenged to design smaller and smaller devices that use fewer components, while providing highly accurate measurements and longer battery life," said Trent Butcher, senior product marketing engineer with Microchip's Analog and Interface Products Division. "With its industry-leading low current operation, frequency rejection and 22-bit resolution, the MCP3550 A/D converter addresses these challenges. Plus, it is available in the small, 8-pin MSOP package that is ideal for space-constrained applications like portable and battery-powered electronic devices."

The MCP3550-50 (50 Hz rejection) has a sample rate of 12.5 samples per second (sps), and the MCP3550-60 (60 Hz rejection) has a sample rate of 15 sps. Both versions offer auto calibration with every conversion, and an extended temperature range of -40 degrees Celsius to +125 degrees Celsius.

The new converter targets a variety of applications, including: industrial — instrumentation, pressure sensors, weigh scales, handheld meters and multimeters); medical heart-rate monitors and blood-glucose meters); consumer (weigh scales and handheld meters); and automotive (sensor interfaces).

The devices cost $3.20 each in 10,000-unit quantities for the 8-pin small outline integrated circuit (SOIC) package, and $3.23 each in 10,000-unit quantities for the 8-pin MSOP.