LDOs save power in microcontroller designs

A voltage-select pin gives designers the ability to switch between two voltage levels to customise and cut power consumption in half during operation.

New 150mA low-dropout linear regulators (LDOs) from Texas Instruments feature dual-level voltage output for MSP430 microcontroller-based, battery-powered devices.

Consuming the lowest quiescent current in the industry at 500nA, the LDOs voltage-select pin gives designers the ability to switch between two voltage levels to customise and cut power consumption in half during operation.

The ultra-low-power TPS780xx LDOs with selectable dual-level output voltages allow designers to dynamically shift to a lower voltage level in a battery-powered design when the microprocessor is in sleep mode.

The two voltage levels are preset at the factory by applying a unique architecture using EPROM, which provides multiple output voltage options.

The LDO requires no external parts to implement the device's dynamic voltage scaling (DVS) feature for an 8 or 16bit MSP430 or other microcontroller design.

The TPS780xx is stable with any output capacitor greater than 0.1uF.

The devices come in a 6-pin 2 x 2mm, SON package, which is targeted at portable applications, such as mobile handsets, digital still cameras and MSP430 microcontroller-based applications that require low power, while maintaining a small footprint.

The TPS780xx family of LDOs are sampling today.

Volume production is expected in March.

Suggested retail pricing in 1000-piece quantities is US $0.75.

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