Precision Current Sensing Signal Chains

The precision current sensing signal chains offer a wide range of accurate, robust, and industry-proven current measurement solutions that can be adopted in all environments to measure current in low, medium, or high power applications. They have been developed by combining extensive application-level knowledge with best-in-class current sensing technologies, enabling precise and robust measurement of DC and AC. These cover the most common industrial sensors such as shunt, Hall effect, and current transformers to address your specific measurement needs.

Coupled with Analog Devices’ unrivalled suite of design support tools, our precision current sensing signal chains provide a simplified design journey, allowing you to get to market quicker with a solution that generates superior insights within your end application.

Our technology combines precision amplifiers, voltage references, analog-to-digital converters, and isolation products, empowering designers to build a solution optimized for their most important parameters with confidence.

Learn how ADI’s precision current sensing signal chains can be applied to solve your most difficult current measurement challenges in applications as diverse as motor control inverters, DC-to-DC converters, valve/solenoid control, protective relays, AC-to-DC metering, and PV inverters.

Precision Current Sensing Signal Chains

Generic Signal Chains for Current Measurement

Shunt: Common-Mode Voltage Level Up to 18 V

Optimized for low offset, high bandwidth and speed, precision measurement of small currents.

Instrumentation Amplifier	Ref	ADC
AD8421 3 nV/√Hz, low power instrumentation amplifier	ADR4550 Ultralow noise, LDO XFET^® 5.0 V voltage reference with current sink and source	AD4000 16-Bit, 2 Msps/1 Msps/500 kSPS, precision, pseudo differential, SAR ADCs

Shunt circuit: common-mode voltage level up to 18 V

Shunt: Common-Mode Voltage Level Up to 70 V

Optimized for bidirectional current measurements in the presence of PWM-type input common-mode voltages.

Current Sense Amplifier	Ref	ADC
AD8418A Bidirectional, zero-drift, current sense amplifier	ADR4550 Ultralow noise, LDO XFET^® 5.0 V voltage reference with current sink and source	AD4000 16-Bit, 2 Msps/1 Msps/500 kSPS, precision, pseudo differential, SAR ADCs

Shunt circuit: common-mode voltage level up to 70 V

Shunt: Common-Mode Voltage Level Up to ±600 V

Optimized solution for highly robust, multichannel current measurement applications.

Difference Amplifier	ADC	Isolation	Ref
AD8479 Very high common-mode voltage precision difference amplifier	AD7172-4 Low power, with 4- or 8-channel, 24-bit, 31.25 kSPS, sigma-delta ADC with true rail-to-rail buffers	ADuM3471 Isolated switching regulators (3/1 channel directionality)	ADR4550 Ultralow-noise, high-accuracy 5.0 V voltage reference

Shunt circuit: common-mode voltage level up to ±600 V

Shunt: Common-Mode Voltage Level Up to ±1060 V

Optimized for measurement accuracy, with an isolation barrier for increased robustness and safety, offering a good balance between power consumption, size, and design complexity.

ADC

ADuM7703
16-Bit, isolated, sigma-delta ADC

Shunt circuit: common-mode voltage level up to ±1060 V

Contactless Sensing: Current Transformer

Optimized for isolated and robust precision current measurement with a CT sensor.

ADC	Ref
AD7606C-16 8-Channel DAS with 16-bit, 1 Msps bipolar input, simultaneous sampling ADC	ADR4525 Ultralow-noise, high-accuracy 2.5 V voltage reference

Contactless sensing – current transformer circuit

Contactless Sensing: Hall 5 V Output

Optimized for high precision and wide bandwidth Hall-based current measurement.

Amplifier	ADC	Ref
ADA4807-1 3.1 nV/√Hz, 1 mA, 180 MHz, rail-to-rail input/output amplifier	AD4000 16-Bit, 2 Msps/1 MSPS/500 ksps, precision, pseudo differential, SAR ADCs	ADR4550 Ultralow-noise, high-accuracy 5.0 V voltage reference

Contactless sensing – hall 5 V output circuit

Resources

Tools

Filter Wizard

ADC Driver Tool

Virtual Eval Tool

Simulation

AD7606 Family Software Model
(Download zip)

Video

AD7606C-18: 8-Channel DAS, 1 Msps Input, Simultaneous Sampling ADC

VT2302: AD7606 ADC Family and Software Tool Overview

Application Notes

Differential Overvoltage Protection Circuits for Current Sense Amplifiers

Common-Mode Transients in Current Sense Applications

Common-Mode Step Response of Current Sense Amplifiers

Technical Articles

High-Side Current Sensing: Difference Amplifier vs. Current-Sense Amplifier

Difference and Current Sense Amplifiers

Differential Overvoltage Protection Circuits for Current Sense Amplifiers

Next-Generation SAR ADC Addresses Pain Points of Precision Data Acquisition Signal Chain Design

Evaluation Boards

EVAL-ADE9000-Shield

Current Measurement: Motor Control Inverter

Shunt: Highest Measurement Precision

Optimized solution for measurement accuracy. Includes isolation barrier for increased robustness and safety, offering a good balance between power consumption, size, and design complexity.

ADC

ADuM7701
16-Bit, isolated sigma-delta modulator

Shunt circuit: highest measurement precision

Shunt: Medium Precision and Performance

Optimized solution for bidirectional current measurements in the presence of PWM-type input common-mode voltages.

Amplifier	ADC	Ref
AD8418A Bidirectional, zero-drift, current sense amplifier	AD4683 AD4000 AD4683 is a pseudodifferential input, 1 Msps/ 500 kSPS, dual, simultaneous sampling, 16-bit, SAR ADCs AD4000 is a 16-Bit, 2 Msps/1 Msps/500 kSPS, precision, pseudodifferential SAR ADC	ADR4533 ADR4550 ADR4533 is an ultralow-noise, high-accuracy 3.3 V voltage reference ADR4550 is an ultralow-noise, high-accuracy 5.0 V voltage reference

Shunt circuit: medium precision and performance

High Power Current Transformer Sensor

Isolated and robust high voltage and high current simultaneous sampling measurement solution optimized for CT (current transformer) sensors.

ADC	Ref
AD7606-4 4-Channel DAS with 16-bit, bipolar input, simultaneous sampling ADC	ADR4525 Ultralow-noise, high-accuracy 2.5 V voltage reference

High power current transformer sensor circuit