Manufacturers of optocouplers characterize their devices for CTR (current-transfer ratio), and an optocoupler’s data sheet will list its CTR ranges. Unfortunately, the CTR range may be too wide for some applications, requiring you to screen ...
This circuit of only a few components is powered by two AA batteries and features a mode that extends its power savings. Imagine a smart light switch which not only automatically turns itself on when it gets dark, but also adjusts its level of ...
This Design Idea mates a precision current source IC with precision difference amp chips to create a programmable current source or sink. The resistor-programmable current source/sink in Figure 1 illustrates the basic topology, taking advantage of ...
In many applications, there are requirements of low power, high performance differential amplifiers to convert small differential signals to a readable ground referenced output signal. Input voltages at two inputs usually share a large common-mode ...
It is advantageous to know if there is a valid signal on a differential signal bus. This Design Idea detects differential data transmission and reports a loss of signal (LOS) to a microcontroller or other monitoring device. The circuit of Figure 1 ...
Many applications require special differential amplifiers that achieve both high performance and low power dissipation. A simple solution is to use a dual non-inverting precision amplifier with a resistive gain network, but the DC common-mode level ...
Figure 1 shows two large-signal- measurement methods. The first uses a two-resistor voltage divider and an output buffer, and the second comprises an attenuating inverter and a high-value input resistor. Both of these approaches introduce ...
A typical switched-capacitor charge pump requires no inductors, is easy to design, and can double a positive voltage or convert a positive voltage to an equivalent negative voltage. However, in some applications, only a positive supply is ...
This design for a photonic switch needs more than approximately 70 V at the cathode of a duo-lateral optical position-sensing device. This voltage gets speedy response at longer wavelengths, such as 980 nm. The circuit uses fast transimpedance ...
I recently purchased a new oscilloscope for home use. It’s a 250 MHz scope, but I was curious what the actual 3 dB frequency was as most scopes have a bit more upper end margin than their published rating. The signal generators I have either ...