MIC22600_11 Datasheet, PDF (13/32 Pages) Micrel Semiconductor – 1MHz, 6A Integrated Switch Synchronous Buck Regulator

Micrel, Inc.
Figure 2 shows an efficiency curve. The portion, from 0A
to 1A, efficiency losses are dominated by quiescent
current losses, gate drive and transition losses. In this
case, lower supply voltages yield greater efficiency in
that they require less current to drive the MOSFETs and
have reduced input power consumption.
Figure 2. Efficiency Curve
The region, 1A to 6A, efficiency loss is dominated by
MOSFET RDS_(ON) and inductor DC losses. Higher input
supply voltages will increase the Gate-to-Source voltage
on the internal MOSFETs, reducing the internal RDS_(ON).
This improves efficiency by decreasing conduction loss
in the device but the inductor DCR loss is inherent to the
device. So inductor selection becomes increasingly
critical in efficiency calculations. As the inductors are
reduced in size, the DC resistance (DCR) can become
quite significant. The DCR losses can be calculated as
follows:
L_PD = I_OUT2 × DCR
From that, the loss in efficiency due to inductor
resistance can be calculated as follows:
Efficiency Loss =
⎡
⎢^1−
⎢⎣
⎜⎜⎝⎛
V_OUT ×I_OUT
(V_OUT ×I_OUT )+ L_PD
⎟⎟⎠⎞⎥⎥⎦⎤ ^×100
MIC22600
Efficiency
vs. Inductance
95
90
85
L = 1µH
80
L = 4.7µH
75
70
65
60
55
500
200 400 600 800
OUTPUT CURRENT (mA)
Figure 3. Efficiency vs. Inductance
Efficiency loss due to DCR is minimal at light loads and
gains significance as the load is increased. Inductor
selection becomes a trade-off between efficiency and
size in this case.
Alternatively, under lighter loads, the ripple current
becomes a significant factor. When light load efficiencies
become more critical, a larger inductor value maybe
desired. Larger inductance reduces the peak-to-peak
inductor ripple current, which minimize losses. The
graph in Figure 3 illustrates the effects of inductance
value at light load.
Compensation
The MIC22600 has a combination of internal and
external stability compensation to simplify the circuit for
small, high efficiency designs. In such designs, voltage
mode conversion is often the optimum solution. Voltage
mode is achieved by creating an internal 1MHz ramp
signal and using the output of the error amplifier to
modulate the pulse width of the switch node, thereby
maintaining output voltage regulation. With a typical gain
bandwidth of 100-200kHz, the MIC22600 is capable of
extremely fast transient responses.
The MIC22600 is designed to be stable with a typical
application using a 1µH inductor and a 47µF ceramic
(X5R) output capacitor. These values can be varied
dependant upon the tradeoff between size, cost and
efficiency, keeping the LC natural frequency
(
1
) ideally less than 26 kHz to ensure
2× Π × L ⋅C
stability can be achieved. The minimum recommended
inductor value is 0.47µH and minimum recommended
output capacitor value is 22µF. With a larger inductor,
there is a reduced peak-to-peak current which yields a
greater efficiency at lighter loads. A larger output
capacitor will improve transient response by providing a
larger hold up reservoir of energy to the output.
June 2011
13
M9999-062411-D