Product category:
Analogue and Mixed Signal ICs
News Release from: ZMD America | Subject: SARah
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 03 March 2008
ASIC expertise leads to standard SAR
family
With a total of 28 members in all, the SARah family of pin compatible 8, 10 and 12bit successive approximation register ADCs offers a wide range of configuration choices.
ZMD has expanded its product portfolio with a complete family of successive-approximation (SAR) analogue-to-digital convertors (ADCs) SARah is based on a scalable family concept enabling upwards and downwards compatibility
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 10 May 2006 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
ZigBee transceiver is matched with Renesas MCU
ZMD is working with Renesas Technology America to offer sub1-GHz ZigBee wireless sensor networking solutions.
RF transceiver boosts in-building performance
Available now from ZMD is the company's second-generation ZMD44102 RF transceiver integrated circuit and starter kits.
With a total of 28 members in all, the SARah family offers a wide range of configuration choices.
Designers can select 8, 10 or 12bit versions with internal or external voltage references.
There are two-, four- and eight-channel versions available.
Further reading
Transceiver turns to mesh networking
Ubiwave and ZMD have developed a complete sub-1GHz workbench solution built on the ZMD44102 RF transceiver.
Two-in-one chip cuts conditioning real estate
A new dual signal conditioner chip gives designers twice the functionality in less than half the real estate occupied by two individual SOP8 packages sized at 5 x 6.30mm.
Conditioner diagnoses piezoresistive bridges
The ZMD31015 is a signal conditioner IC with on-chip diagnostics for use with nearly all piezoresistive bridge sensors.
The common pinout and software compatibility increases the ability of the manufacturers to easily develop variants of their system solutions.
SAR ADCs are widely used in industrial process control, power generation and consumer white goods applications, where they contribute to better appliance performance and greater energy efficiency.
Advanced ASIC product knowhow and process technology allows ZMD to deliver superior accuracy in this ADC family concept.
"We've been building ADCs for many years as part of our ASIC and custom product lines", explains Bernhard Huber, Business Line Manager for Standard Components at ZMD.
"Our extensive experience in ADC design has enabled us to create the industry's largest stand-alone SAR ADC family of pin- and software-compatible devices".
By offering such a large range, ZMD allows customers to standardise on a design and then select the correct part for each application with minimal engineering effort.
ZMD's proven design and manufacturing experience adds other key advantages.
SARah is ideal for battery-powered applications such as data loggers or test equipment that require low-power consumption and accurate voltage measurements in order to optimise battery life.
All SARah family members offer high accuracy at very low power consumption.
With sampling rates up to 300Ksample/s, SARah delivers +/-0.25LSB differential nonlinearity and +/-0.25LSB integral nonlinearity across the temperature range of -25 to +85C.
To further reduce overall system power, SARah devices have a shutdown pin as well as software-controllable shutdown modes.
Turn-on time is rapid, so the device can be powered down between conversions.
All family members have a serial interface that supports SPI, QSPI and Microwire protocols - industry standards for ADCs.
In addition, the devices have been designed to work together in applications that require large numbers of ADC channels.
SARah devices can work from an internal voltage reference (reducing parts count in small designs) or an external voltage reference, which allows multiple devices to share a common reference.
Similarly, each device can generate its own clock or operate from a clock common to all devices.
As one of the key building blocks in system signal path designs, ADCs accurately capture real-world analogue information and convert it for further processing in the digital domain.
Comprising the majority of the ADC market, SAR convertors are widely considered to be the most cost-effective for applications that require precise digital modelling of analogue signals.
Almost all types of real-time industrial control and motion control applications use SAR ADCs.
In power generation applications such as windmills and solar panels, they are key to new energy-efficient designs.
ZMD offers a USB-based demonstration and development platform, unique in the industry.
Support software, including FFT (fast Fourier transform) code, is available.
The common software model allows code to be re-used across multiple designs, thus saving customers development time.
All family members are available in SSOP packages rated for -25 to +85C operation.
Pricing ranges from US $3.00 (Eur 2.20) to US $6.00 (Eur 5.00) in quantities of 1000 units.
• ZMD America: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Electronicstalk email newsletter
• Electronicstalk Home Page
