Low noise switching regulators from AnalogicTech are an Industry first

At lower currents, the AAT2120 and AAT2158 switching regulators produce half the ringing amplitude of competing switching regulators. This characteristic translates directly into lower noise injection into the system. In system tests, spurious energy injected by the switching regulators was reduced by 3dB. At higher currents, the two new converters produce approximately 25% less output ripple. By reducing injected noise and output ripple, these two new devices can improve the dynamic range performance of RF systems compared to powering these systems with traditional switching regulators.



At the same time the AAT2120 and AAT2158 offer all the traditional power efficiency advantages of traditional switching regulators. Power efficiency for the AAT2120 and AAT2158 reach up to 96% and 95% respectively. Moreover, by operating at high switching frequencies, both devices minimise the size of external components.



The AAT2120 supplies up to 500mA output current, while the AAT2158 delivers up to 1.5A output for applications requiring higher levels of power. Both devices operate from an input range of 2.7 - 5.5V DC and support output voltages as low as 0.6V.



For protection purposes, both step-down converters offer internal soft-start, over-temperature and current limit protection. The new converters also extend system run time by adding 100% duty cycle low-dropout operation.



Qualified across the -40 C to +85 C temperature range, the AAT2120 is available in a Pb-free, 8-pin 2 x 2mm2 STDFN package. The AAT2158 is also qualified across the -40 C to +85 C temperature range and comes in a Pb-free, 16-pin 3 x 3mm2 QFN package.



“Designers of noise-sensitive systems, such as mobile phones, media players or Bluetooth™ accessories, prefer to use higher efficiency switching regulators to maximise battery life, but are often unable to do this because traditional switching regulators inject too much noise into the system,” commented Bill Weiss, product line director for AnalogicTech. “Instead they turn to low-noise, but lower efficiency linear regulators. Using a unique architecture, which dramatically reduces spectral noise and output ripple, the AAT2120 and AAT2158 offer designers their first chance to take advantage of the power efficiency advantages of switching regulators in noise-sensitive communication, high speed interface and other applications.”



AnalogicTech will announce two additional members of its low-noise switching regulator product family, the 400mA AAT2146 and the dual 600mA AAT2713, in Q1 of next year.