Tiny Difference Amps: Small Size, Small Price, Big Performance

- Analog Devices’ AD827x high-speed difference amplifiers reduce board space for power-efficient, robust process- and motor-control applications.

NORWOOD, Mass.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--Analog Devices, Inc. (ADI), a global leader in high-performance semiconductors for signal-processing applications and leading provider of amplifier technology, introduced today three new low-power difference amplifiers that are as small as 4.9 mm x 3 mm and featuring slew rates up to 10 times faster than competing products. Designed for high-performance, power-critical applications, the AD8276, AD8277 and AD8278 difference amplifiers are half the size of competing devices and much smaller than discrete alternatives consisting of resistor arrays and operational amplifiers. The amplifiers also eliminate the added expense and design overhead associated with complex peripheral protection circuitry.

The slew rate of 1.1-V/μs (volts per microsecond) combined with an input range of two times the power supply make the AD827x products well suited for robust voltage and current sensing in process-control, motor-control, and power-management applications. In addition, the low price is unprecedented with versions available at under $1 USD each.

The AD827x low-power difference amplifiers combine the benefits of a wide supply range of 2.5-V to 36-V and low power with a 550-kHz bandwidth that is two times faster than other low-power difference amplifiers. In addition, these difference amplifiers feature 220-μA maximum quiescent current with an 86-dB CMRR (common-mode rejection ratio) that is 10-dB greater than competing devices. AD827x difference amplifiers reject external interferences in low-power systems without increasing system power dissipation. Response time includes a 1.1-V/μS slew rate and 15-μS settling time to 0.01 percent. The settling time is more than five times faster than other amplifiers in their class and ensures shorter propagation delays in control loops. On-chip resistors are laser-trimmed for accurate gain, low gain drift, and high common-mode rejection.

Availability, Pricing and Complementary Parts

Product	Sampling Availability	Temperate Range	Price Each Per 1,000	Packaging
AD8276 Single Channel Gain=1	NOW	-40^oC - + 125^oC	$0.95	8-lead SOIC and MSOP packages
AD8277 Dual Channel Gain=1	NOW	-40^oC - + 125^oC	$1.60	14-lead SOIC package
AD8278 Single Channel Gain=0.5/2	NOW	-40^oC - + 125^oC	$0.95	8-lead SOIC and MSOP packages

The AD827x difference amplifiers work well with other low-power components, such as ADI’s ADCs (analog-to-digital converters) including the AD7450 12-bit SAR ADC and AD7982 18-bit PulSAR® ADC, as well as low-power operational amplifiers, including the AD8500 precision CMOS op amp, AD8538 auto-zero op amp, and AD8603 rail-to-rail input-output op amp.

Using the AD8276 Difference Amp as a Low-cost Current Source

Current sources using the low-power AD8276 difference amplifier and the AD8603 op amp are affordable, flexible, and small in size. Performance characteristics, such as initial error, temperature drift, and power dissipation, are excellent. Engineers can quickly and with confidence design this circuit by accessing circuit note CN-0099 from ADI’s Circuits from the Lab collection. Circuits from the Lab is a design assistance resource that provides design engineers with tested circuit solutions for many common applications. Each circuit has been verified by ADI test engineers and can be easily integrated into designs, resulting in reduced design risk and faster time-to-market. Close to 100 circuit notes are available, featuring some of ADI’s most popular products and how they address common design challenges.

For more information, visit http://www.analog.com/pr/AD8276, http://www.analog.com/pr/AD8277 and http://www.analog.com/pr/AD8278. For product information on amplifiers, visit http://www.analog.com/pr/amplifiers-and-comparators.

About Analog Devices

Innovation, performance, and excellence are the cultural pillars on which Analog Devices has built one of the longest standing, highest growth companies within the technology sector. Acknowledged industry-wide as the world leader in data-conversion and signal-conditioning technologies, Analog Devices serves over 60,000 customers, representing virtually all types of electronic equipment. Celebrating over 40 years as a leading global manufacturer of high-performance integrated circuits used in analog and digital signal processing applications, Analog Devices is headquartered in Norwood, Massachusetts, with design and manufacturing facilities throughout the world. Analog Devices' common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “ADI” and is included in the S&P 500 Index. http://www.analog.com

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