Serving the Electronic Design Community Since 1956
On acronyms, jargon, and terminology
July 1, 2008 11:38 am | Articles | CommentsEvery special-interest group has their own language, and only part of the reason is to exclude others from the conversation. Jargon also helps define common terms necessary to conduct business or discuss philosophies and procedures within the group. Engineering is a very special discipline, and EEs are a further esoteric subset with its own plethora of acronyms, slang and terms.
Switching Supplies Meet EMC Requirements
July 1, 2008 11:32 am | Product Releases | CommentsMeeting EMC noise performance requirements, Astrodyne’s ECA30 Series encapsulated switching power supplies accepts universal input from 90 to 264 VAC and provides output power of 30 W with single, dual, and triple outputs from 5 to 48 VDC. The RoHS 2002/95/EC-compliant devices operate over an ambient temperature range from -10°C to 50°C. The UL/EN60950-1-specified
DSP Builder features Second-Generation Model-Based Synthesis Technology
July 1, 2008 10:34 am | Product Releases | CommentsFeaturing second-generation model-based synthesis technology, the DSP Builder Version 8.0 fro Altera, increases productivity for DSP designs by an order of magnitude. This technology allows DSP designers to generate timing-optimized RTL code based on Simulink design descriptions. With this Builder feature, designers can acquire
Dual-SMBus Microcontroller Supports 400 Kbps per Side
July 1, 2008 8:50 am | Product Releases | CommentsWith two system management buses (SMBus), Silicon Storage Technology’s SST89C58RC FlashFlex 8-bit microcontroller family supports up to 400 Kbps data throughput in each bus. The 6-mm2 QFN-packaged devices yield operating voltages from 2.7 to 5.5 V and 1 KB on-chip RAM. The microcontrollers
MOSFET Driver Delivers 5A for DC/DC converters
July 1, 2008 8:23 am | 3M Electronics Solutions Division | Product Releases | CommentsDesigned to drive upper and lower power N-Channel MOSFETs in a synchronous converter, the LTC4447 from Linear Technology, can deliver 5A for buck or boost DC/DC converters. This driver, combined with power MOSFETs and one of Linear Technology's DC/DC controllers, forms a complete synchronous regulator that can be used as a step-down or step-up DC/DC converter. The device drives both
Innovative Technology to Maximize Output of Solar Panels
July 1, 2008 6:14 am | by Jason Lomberg | Blogs | CommentsIn 1839, French physicist Alexandre Edmond Becquerel discovered the “photovoltaic” effect, or the natural phenomenon which allows the conversion of solar into electrical energy. Over the next 150 years, this inexorably led to solar-powered satellites, solar cars, and solar-panel technology for domestic use. Among their many strengths, financial savings (after the initial investment), environmental conservation, and minimal upkeep, solar panels always suffered weaknesses inherent in a technology that relies on a giant ball of ionized gas 150 million kilometers away.
Power Supplies Offer Constant Current or Voltage
July 1, 2008 5:44 am | Product Releases | CommentsHoused in 1U-high aluminum cases and providing up to 450 W, the WL7 Series of switchmode power supplies from Acopian have a constant voltage/constant current crossover, and both voltage and current can be programmed with 0- to 10-V control voltages.
Connector Supports Hard Disk Drives
June 30, 2008 12:49 pm | Product Releases | CommentsSupporting 1.8” form factor drives, FCI’s Micro serial ATA (SATA) plug connector have compatibility with applications such as notebook PCs, set-top boxes, game consoles, audio/video, and portable storage. The SATA-IO-standardized device meets SFF 2.6 specification with 16 positions (7 with a pitch for signal of 1.27 mm and 7+2 positions with a pitch for power of 1.27 mm). The RoHS-compliant
FPGAs Provide System-On-Chip Functionality
June 30, 2008 11:54 am | Product Releases | CommentsUsing flexiFLASH architecture, Lattice Semiconductor’s LatticeXP2 family of non-volatile automotive FPGAs provides look up tables from 5 to 17 K, 276 Kb on-chip embedded FlashBAK RAM in 18 Kb dual-port blocks, and from 0.6 to 2.2 Kb of Serial TAG memory. The 90-nm devices support DDR2 memory interfaces at 400 Mbps, ADC/DACs at up to 750 Mbps and 7:1 LVDS display interfaces at above 600 Mbps. The AEC-Q100-standardized FPGAs support up to 5 sysDSP
Nextreme Strives to Increase Efficiency of Heat-to-Power Conversion
June 30, 2008 10:47 am | Blogs | CommentsWith soaring energy costs, all sectors are feeling the crunch, including the thermoelectrics industry. But Nextreme Thermal Solutions has a plan to stem the tide. One potential solution is to convert a system’s thermal energy byproduct into a functional resource. Using a grant from the North Carolina Green Business Fund, Nextreme plans to optimize their thin-film growth process with the goal of doubling the power output of a single device from 250mW to 500mW.
Reference Design Creates SFP Optical Modules
June 30, 2008 9:58 am | Product Releases | CommentsIncorporating the recently PHY1040 laser transceiver and limiting amplifier IC and an off-the shelf 8-bit microcontroller with embedded flash, a hardware and software reference design from Phyworks can create Small Form-factor Pluggable 125 Mbps to 1.25 Gbps optical modules with digital configuration and monitoring capability. The system architecture allows users to configure the PHY1040 in software to meet specific optics and network requirements and
Embedded Systems: Two Routes Lead to Software Defined Radio
June 30, 2008 6:35 am | Articles | CommentsA bit of C code that runs on a microprocessor does not create a software-defined radio (SDR). Most SDRs use a traditional signal-sampling technique, followed by much software massaging of data. But semiconductor companies can now put more of the analog signal-handling elements on a chip. This column provides an update on both techniques.
Power MOSFETs Offer High Current Density
June 28, 2008 4:34 am | International Rectifier | Product Releases | CommentsWith a footprint 40% smaller than a standard SO-8 and a height of 0.7 mm, a family of 30-V DirectFET MOSFETs enable a smaller footprint and higher power density in synchronous buck converter designs. The IRF6724M, IRF6725M, IRF6726M, and IRF6727M have a common MT and MX footprint as previous generation devices
Online Database Provides LED Ray Data
June 27, 2008 9:32 am | Osram Opto Semiconductors | Product Releases | CommentsIncluding information such as emission patterns, the coordinates of the emission point, as well as the direction, intensity, and wavelength, an online database at www.osram-os.com/ray-files from OSRAM Opto Semiconductors provides ray data files for its entire LED portfolio. Engineers can immediately view and download all the ray data and a custom CAD model for board design
IC Eliminates Data Control Cables
June 27, 2008 9:17 am | Product Releases | CommentsRidding the need of data control cables, Intersil Corporation’s ISL34340 SERDES IC transports 27 bits of video data and bi-directional I2C into a single LVDS cable measuring up to 10 meters long. The 64-lead EPTQFP-packaged device has a DC balanced 8b/10b code and video flow that allows 24 RGB bits and three video control bits into a single LVDS pair. The IC includes embedded termination
