Micrel Inc. has introduced its MIC2810, an efficient, power-management IC that provides three output voltages and power-on reset in a tiny 3 mm x 3 mm MLF(R)-16 package. Comprising a switching dc-to-dc converter and two low drop-out (LDO) regulators, the device is well suited for powering complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs) from a 3.3 V or a 5 V rail.

"The MIC2810 offers the maximum flexibility to power DSPs, CPLDs and graphics chipsets that often require up to three voltages," noted Ralf Muenster, Micrel's director of marketing for power products. "Usually, the lower core voltage has the higher current requirement and an efficient buck regulator is the ideal power solution, while the I/O and memory rails can be powered using LDO regulators.

The MIC2810 is said to be 25% smaller than current solutions on the market.

The device features a wide input range of 2.7 V to 5.5 V. Output 1 is a high-frequency, high-efficiency dc-to-dc switching regulator for up to 600 milliamperes while outputs 2 and 3 are low dropout linear regulators. One of the linear regulators can be directly connected to the output of a dc-to-dc converter or directly to the main power rail.

The MIC2810 can be operated with very small ceramic output capacitors for stability and to reduce the solution footprint and cost. The dc-to-dc converter provides virtually no noise in light-load mode and just 75 microvolts Vrms of output noise in LOWQTM mode. This enables designers to avoid higher noisy light-load modes that have traditionally interfered with sensitive RF circuitry. The device operates at 2 MHz PWM in normal mode, at more than 93% efficiency; and requires only a tiny 2.2 microfarad output capacitor and a 2.2 microhenry inductor for stability.

This power-on reset circuit monitors all three output voltages. There are also independent 'enables' for the switching and two linear regulators thereby enhancing design flexibility.

The MIC2810 is available in volume; prices start at $2.25 for 1K quantities.

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