Driver chip pumps up six LEDs

The SC606 is a charge pump driver for up to six white or coloured LEDs.

New from Semtech, the SC606 is a charge pump driver for up to six white or coloured LEDs.

The dual US-patented driver is designed to deliver consistent LED brightness and extended battery life in advanced lithium ion (Li-ion) battery-powered handheld devices.

The SC606 can power six LEDs in a configuration that is ideal for advanced PDA, cellphone or other multifunction devices that need to power a display, keypad backlighting and a flash, or other combination of functions.

The six LEDs are divided into three pairs, each of which can be programmed independently from the others.

Output range for each pair can be adjusted from 0-32mA with 500uA resolution, and tight current regulation is guaranteed for a total device output up to 120mA.

LED brightness levels for each pair can be controlled via an I2C serial bus that allows designers to easily control dimming, brightness or blinking LED applications.

"Use of I2C control enables designers to quickly modify LED driver designs to accommodate the changing system requirements in existing and future handheld devices", said CS Mitter, Semtech's Director of Power Management for Handheld Products.

"Highly flexible control, along with very tight and predictable accuracy/matching, give designers the solution they need to differentiate their product in an aggressive market".

The SC606 is a member of Semtech's advanced fractional charge pump family and is based on the company's patented Mahxlife technology, an inductorless design that yields highly efficient, tightly regulated output voltages for consistent LED brightness and longer battery life.

The SC606 leverages the Mahxlife technology to deliver current accuracy of +/-6.5% over a wide range of input voltages.

Typical current accuracy is 2%.

The SC606 delivers more than 90% power efficiency with a built-in three mode self-regulating feature that adjusts the voltage conversion ratio based on input voltage levels.

At high input voltages, the device maintains a 1x voltage conversion mode as long as possible to reduce the power drain.

Under lower voltage levels, the device will automatically switch to 1.5x mode and then to 2x mode when necessary.

The SC606 is available immediately in production quantities and is priced at $1.30 each in 1000-piece lots.

The device is available in a 4 x 4mm MLP-16 package.

An evaluation board is also available.

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