Texas Instruments achieves industry’s lowest drift with family of high-voltage bipolar DACs
Texas Instruments has introduced a four-channel, high-voltage, bipolar digital-to-analog converter (DAC). Developed on TI’s HPA07 analog CMOS process technology, the 16-bit DAC8734 is part of a new family of high-performance, bipolar DACs, including pin-compatible 12- and 14-bit family members featuring up to six times lower drift than competing devices along with the widest operating temperature range and the highest initial accuracy.
The DAC8734 offers automated test equipment (ATE) and medical equipment designers space savings and flexibility in a 6 mm x 6 mm QFN-40 or 7 mm x 7 mm TQFP-48 package. The device is capable of driving ±16 V or 0 to +20 V across four channels, eliminating the external operational amplifier typically required for additional voltage gain. Designers need to add only a single voltage reference, such as the REF5050, for bipolar operation.
Key features and benefits of the DAC8734
· Lowest drift over time and temperature provides high stability:
o 2 ppm over 500 hours; 3 ppm over 1000 hours
o Bipolar output:
§ Zero error temperature coefficient (TC) of ±0.5 ppm FSR/°C;
§ Gain error TC ±0.5 ppm FSR/°C
o Unipolar output:
§ Zero error TC of ±0.2 ppm FSR/°C;
§ Gain error TC ±0.5 ppm FSR/°C
· Widest operating temperature range of -40°C to 105°C helps ensure performance in extreme environments
· Integral non-linearity of ±1 LSB, maximum (0.006% FSR), is achievable even at 16-bit resolution. To further boost precision, the family is trimmed during manufacturing to a maximum gain error of 4 LSB (at 16 bits). Built-in user calibration further reduces gain error down to ±1 LSB, maximum, with a zero error of up to 1/8 LSB
· The device’s programmable output range of 2x to 4x the reference voltage for bipolar operation at ±2 V to ±16 V maximizes design flexibility