Power supplies: fewer external components thanks to Rohm's new Nano Cap Technology

Rohm has developed Nano Cap power supply technology, which ensures stable circuit control of automotive and industrial power supplies, even with ultra-small electrical capacitances in the nF range.  

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After Nano Pulse Control™ and the ultra-low current technology known as Nano Energy™, Rohm has added a third nanotechnology for power supplies, Nano Cap™. The new technology reduces the number of external capacitors required for linear regulators. This eliminates the problem of operational stability that plagues capacitors in analogue circuits and reduces design time in a wide range of applications.

The application context

Electrification is spreading into a large number of applications, starting with the automotive sector. Each of these applications requires various types of voltage generators, all stabilised by capacitors. The result is an increasing demand for external components, with larger printed circuit boards and more expensive BOMs .

In a circuit, typically consisting of a linear regulator and microcontroller, a 1 µF capacitor is typically required at the output of the linear regulator, while a 100 nF capacitor is required at the input of the microcontroller. By relying on Rohm's linear regulator using Nano Cap™ technology, the need for a capacitor at the regulator output is eliminated and operational stability is ensured with only a 100 nF input capacitor. This reduces the number of capacitors and the electrical capacitance required for the power supply circuits and minimises the load.

power supplies with Rohm NanoCap technologyRohm's Nano Cap™ technology

Operational amplifiers using Nano Cap™ technology have already been launched, and linear regulators using Nano Cap™ technology and LED driver regulators with integrated Nano Cap™ are planned for launch in 2020. Rohm is committed to further advancing the development of this technology to eliminate the need for capacitors altogether and to extend its use to operational amplifiers, LED drivers and other analogue ICs.

Nano Cap™ ensures stability at the output of linear regulators, improving the response of analogue circuits while minimising parasitic parameters induced by wiring and amplifiers. This reduces the electrical output capacitance to less than a tenth of the value of conventional solutions. As an example: considering an industry requirement of ±5.0% max. for output voltage fluctuation (focusing only on fluctuation in this case) versus load current fluctuation of 50 mA, with an electrical capacitance of 100 nF, chips equipped with Nano Cap™ achieve an operational stability of ±3.6% when evaluated, compared to conventional linear regulators, whose output voltage can vary within a range of ±15.6%.

 

Other power supply nanotechnologies from Rohm

Other power supply nanotechnologies centred on power ICs developed by Rohm are Nano Pulse Control™ and Nano Energy™ .

Nano Pulse Control™ is the ultra-fast PWM control technology for power ICs. It achieves an ON switching time (power IC control pulse width) in the order of nanoseconds (ns), realising the conversion from high to low voltages with the use of a single IC. Conventional solutions, on the other hand, require 2 or more power ICs.

Nano Energy™ is an ultra-low current technology, characterised by current consumption without load in the order of nA, achieved by minimising the trade-off that occurs when reducing current consumption with ultra-low loads.

 

 

 

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