Fairchild Semiconductor’s PWM controllers improve efficiency at light load

SAN JOSE, USA: Fairchild Semiconductor (NYSE: FCS), as part of the global focus on energy savings, has developed a portfolio of pulse-width modulated (PWM) controllers, which enable notebook power-supply designers to meet the stringent international energy-saving regulations.

These include the ENERGY STAR External Power Supply (EPS) version 2.0 requirement that mandates 87 percent average active-mode efficiency to obtain compliance.

To meet these requirements, Fairchild has developed integrated PWM controllers, like the FAN6754, which offers designers high-voltage startup to improve energy savings at light load by 25 percent when compared to alternate solutions. It also eliminates external protection circuits by incorporating over-voltage, over-current and over-temperature protection plus brownout and line-compensation functions.

Other advantages of Fairchild’s PWM controllers include frequency hopping, which reduces EMI emissions by as much as 5-10 dB, and internal soft start (8 ms) to reduce voltage stress on the MOSFET at start up.

Additionally, Fairchild’s PWM controllers incorporate several design features that lower the overall power consumption of notebook adapters, such as a proprietary green-mode function that provides off-time modulation to continuously decrease the switching frequency under light-load conditions.

Fairchild’s PWM devices offer a host of robust, accurate protection features built-in to protect the power supply and the load from failure, all without adding external components or circuitry.

The FAN6754 is part of a comprehensive portfolio of power products that improve efficiency to meet stringent energy efficiency standards, reduce component count, simplify design and improve power factor in today’s electronics.