Gallium-nitride (GaN) power semiconductors are well-established, but compared with silicon (Si) devices, GaN is still an evolving power device technology. Most power designers have at least explored the use of GaN, whether it’s been depletion-mode (d-GaN) normally-on devices, enhancement-mode (e-GaN) normally-off devices, a cascode combination of a Si MOSFET with a d-GaN device to form […]
FAQ
Basic current sensing considerations in power system design
Size constraints and a need for high efficiency are forcing designers to use more sophisticated current sensing techniques in modern electronics. Teoman Ustun, ACEINNA The historical mindset of power design being an afterthought in the overall system architecture is changing. Before the focus of electronic design shifted to power efficiency, it was a common practice […]
Saving energy with MCU power management
MCU low-power features such as built-in energy harvesting help optimize applications where long battery life is important. Masamitsu Muratani, Renesas The spectacular growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) is driving the need for devices that are smarter, faster, and can last for long periods on small and inexpensive batteries. To meet such requirements, Renesas […]
How trimming affects thick-film resistor performance
Ordinary thick-film resistors can display varying qualities depending on how the manufacturer elected to trim the device. It pays to know what to look out for. Kory Schroeder, Stackpole Electronics Inc. Surface-mount thick-film chip resistors are the predominant type of resistor in electronic circuits today. This technology is inexpensive; thick-film resistors are produced by screen-printing […]
Better thermal management of eGaN FETs
A few simple thermal management guidelines can help conduct heat away from GaN FETs. Assaad Helou, Efficient Power Conversion Enhancement-mode gallium nitride (eGaN) FETs offer high power-density with ultra-fast switching and low on-resistance, all in a compact form factor. However, the power levels these high-performance devices provide can be limited by extreme heat-flux densities. If […]
Optimizing power delivery networks
A few rules of thumb help navigate the nuances and common pitfalls of power system design using power modules. Jeff Ham, Vicor Corp. With industry emphasis on minimizing and eliminating waste wherever possible, it is the responsibility of the system designer to optimize the overall power architecture. Every piece of electronic equipment has a power […]
Configurable SiC digital gate drivers and the electrification revolution
Silicon-carbide MOSFETs and digital gate drivers work together to make electrified metro, subway, and other heavy transportation vehicles possible. Nitesh Satheesh, Tomas Krecek, Perry Schugart, Xuning Zhang, Kevin Speer, Microchip Technology Green initiatives continue to transform power electronic system designs in industrial, aerospace, and defense applications, and especially the transportation sector. Silicon Carbide (SiC) technology […]
Don’t push on that icon and other 3G sunset issues
Have you ever had to transition someone from a flip phone to a smartphone? Things you instinctively know how to do become obstacles. Fortunately, you can talk to a smartphone rather than just talking through it. With 3G heading into sunset, some cellphone users will need to upgrade to LTE or 5G before their phones…
What’s all this VNA calibration stuff?
In general, the electrical characteristics of circuits associated with high-frequency instruments vary significantly with time. Signal sources, receivers, and interconnections drift with vibrations, cable flexing, temperature, humidity, and so forth. That’s why vector network analyzers (VNAs) are only treated as being time-invariant over short time periods (a few hours). Thus a VNA must be calibrated […]
Basics of induction heating, Part 5: Do-It-Yourself versions
Induction heating is widely used in industry and even consumer appliances as a contact-free heating technique with many distinct advantages. We conclude this article by looking at how advanced amateurs can build their own induction-heating system. Induction heaters are among the many dramatic projects constructed by experimenters and hobbyists. After all, it’s impressive to heat […]