LTC3406B-2 Datasheet, PDF (9/16 Pages) Linear Technology – 2.25MHz, 600mA Synchronous Step-Down Regulator in ThinSOT

LTC3406B-2
APPLICATIO S I FOR ATIO
Aluminum electrolytic and dry tantalum capacitors are
both available in surface mount configurations. In the case
of tantalum, it is critical that the capacitors are surge tested
for use in switching power supplies. An excellent choice is
the AVX TPS series of surface mount tantalum. These are
specially constructed and tested for low ESR so they give
the lowest ESR for a given volume. Other capacitor types
include Sanyo POSCAP, Kemet T510 and T495 series, and
Sprague 593D and 595D series. Consult the manufacturer
for other specific recommendations.
Using Ceramic Input and Output Capacitors
Higher values, lower cost ceramic capacitors are now
becoming available in smaller case sizes. Their high ripple
current, high voltage rating and low ESR make them ideal
for switching regulator applications. Because the
LTC3406B-2’s control loop does not depend on the output
capacitor’s ESR for stable operation, ceramic capacitors
can be used freely to achieve very low output ripple and
small circuit size.
However, care must be taken when ceramic capacitors are
used at the input and the output. When a ceramic capacitor
is used at the input and the power is supplied by a wall
adapter through long wires, a load step at the output can
induce ringing at the input, V_IN. At best, this ringing can
couple to the output and be mistaken as loop instability. At
worst, a sudden inrush of current through the long wires
can potentially cause a voltage spike at V_IN, large enough
to damage the part.
When choosing the input and output ceramic capacitors,
choose the X5R or X7R dielectric formulations. These
dielectrics have the best temperature and voltage charac-
teristics of all the ceramics for a given value and size.
Output Voltage Programming
The output voltage is set by a resistive divider according
to the following formula:
V_OUT = 0.6^{⎛⎝⎜}1+ ^{RR21⎞⎠⎟}
(2)
The external resistive divider is connected to the output,
allowing remote voltage sensing as shown in Figure 3.
0.6V ≤ V_OUT ≤ 5.5V
V_FB
LTC3406B-2
GND
R2
R1
3406B F03
Figure 3. Setting the LTC3406B-2 Output Voltage
Efficiency Considerations
The efficiency of a switching regulator is equal to the
output power divided by the input power times 100%. It is
often useful to analyze individual losses to determine what
is limiting the efficiency and which change would produce
the most improvement. Efficiency can be expressed as:
Efficiency = 100% – (L1 + L2 + L3 + ...)
where L1, L2, etc. are the individual losses as a percentage
of input power.
Although all dissipative elements in the circuit produce
losses, two main sources usually account for most of the
losses in LTC3406B-2 circuits: V_IN quiescent current and
I²R losses. The V_IN quiescent current loss dominates the
efficiency loss at very low load currents whereas the I²R
loss dominates the efficiency loss at medium to high load
currents. In a typical efficiency plot, the efficiency curve at
very low load currents can be misleading since the actual
power lost is of no consequence as illustrated in Figure 4.
1
VIN = 3.6V
0.1
0.01
0.001
VOUT = 2.5V
VOUT = 1.8V
VOUT = 1.2V
VOUT = 1.5V
0.0001
0.1
1
10
100
LOAD CURRENT (mA)
1000
3406B F04
Figure 4. Power Lost vs Load Current
sn3406b2 3406b2fs
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