Welcome to the September Analog Dialogue
For a power supply to be stable, a certain gain and phase margin is needed. Typically, a phase margin target of at least 45° and a gain margin target of at least 10 dB is required for a power supply to be considered stable. This article, “Loop Response Measurement Options When the Top Feedback Resistor Is Inaccessible,” will detail how to measure the loop response of a power supply when there is no obvious injection point (that is, inaccessible or missing a top feedback resistor). There are two scenarios where this can occur. A power supply module can have either an inaccessible internal top feedback resistor, or it can have an output sense pin with no top feedback resistor.
LTspice® is Analog Devices’ powerful tool for time-based piecewise linear circuit model simulation. Although it comes with large libraries of discrete components, not every component is included in the stock libraries provided at the time of download from ADI, such as gallium nitride (GaN) FETs. For power controller designs, GaN FETS are often used as the switches. By incorporating an embedded model statement, collaborators can easily access the necessary device models within the simulation file, simplifying collaboration and design sharing. This article, “Using GaN FET Models in LTspice Simulations,” proposes a simple, self-contained, and completely portable method for comparing different GaN device types in any LTspice simulation file.
The article “Maximize Power Capability in Thermal Design—Part 1: The Basics” is this month’s next feature. With the increasing power density of electronic circuits and the presence of severe working environments such as high ambient temperatures, thermal performance has become a growing concern for monolithic power products. This article delves into the general thermal concepts of power IC applications and provides quantified thermal analysis of various factors that influence the overall thermal performance.
Gigabit Multimedia Serial Link (GMSL™) is a popular SERDES technology that can be used in camera applications across several end markets. This month’s RAQ, “Simplify On-Board Security Systems and Increase Video Performance with GMSL,” describes the camera link technologies in today’s on-board security system architectures as well as key features and limitations, while providing insight into why GMSL solutions are a competitive alternative to IP camera and analog camera solutions. Read the related blog: “When GMSL Won’t Talk: Your Guide to Securing Link Lock.”
Dive into the world of active mixers with our latest StudentZone article, “ADALM2000 Activity: Active Mixers.” The objective of this lab activity is to understand the basic concept of active mixers.
And as we have for over 58 years, we invite you to be part of the dialogue in Analog Dialogue. You can get in touch through our blog, Facebook page, or email. Let us know how we’re doing and what you’d like to see from us in the coming months.