The "old" Fairchild Semiconductor was a broadly based chip supplier: the more recent incarnation of the company that now bears that name has focused on its identity as a power-semiconductor supplier (branding itself "The Power Franchise") and as a source of discretes. Now, Fairchild is entering—or re-entering—the arena of high-performance op-amps, specifically amplifiers for video signal chains, where the company already provides components such as video-filter drivers.

It bases its latest parts on a new process, BCP6T, which is a low-capacitance, complementary bipolar silicon-on-insulator platform. Against comparable products in the market today, the company says it can deliver higher bandwidth, more output current and—in particular—better DC performance. Freescale designed the FHP3x50 voltage-feedback amplifier family for use in high-definition video products such as set-top-boxes. Full-power bandwidth is 210 MHz (–3 dB), and the chips have 1100 V/µsec slew rate and 0.07%/0.03° differential gain and phase error. Gain flatness of 0.1 dB extends to 50 MHz, and Fairchild says the pulse response is very good with fast slewing edges and minimal pre-, under- or over-shoot. Input bias current is 0.05 mA, and the devices use 3.6 mA. Output drive capability is ±55 mA. The chips are packaged as triples and quads. For standard-definition systems, the fast rail-to-rail amplifiers of the FHP3x30 family come as singles, dual and quads and offer unity-gain bandwidth of 170 MHz, driving ±100 mA outputs. Fairchild also claims competitive advantages in gain/phase error, gain flatness and pulse response over other devices of the same class. As well as their suitability for video signal chains, those devices are also capable general-purpose amplifiers, Fairchild adds. Prices range from $0.49 to $0.86 (1,000).