In-Depth Technical Features

Accelerating consumers’ NAS adoptions: assessing your product options
By Brian Dipert, Senior Technical Editor, 6/25/2009
Network storage is a notably bright spot in the otherwise-blah consumer-electronics economy. Carefully select and cull hardware, software, and their jointly implemented features to ensure product success.

Diagnostic ultrasound gets smaller, faster, and more useful
By Paul Rako, Technical Editor, 6/25/2009
The signal path in ultrasound machines is a multichannel transmitter-receiver system with blazingly fast data rates. Engineers need to weigh a host of options in designing these complex machines.

Little-known flash-memory features protect data and IP
By Bill Stafford, Numonyx, 6/25/2009
Features from block locking to encrypted-password-access mechanisms can prevent unintentional disruption, malicious damage, or copying.

Error amplifier limitations in high-performance regulator applications
By Timothy Hegarty, National Semiconductor, 6/24/2009
As power supply switching frequencies increase, higher loop crossover frequencies are necessary to keep pace with the escalating load transient slew rate demands, and to reduce the number and size of filter components. For voltage-mode-controlled supplies, the voltage loop error amplifier must work harder to provide its compensating gain loop contribution.

Applications and considerations of capacitive proximity sensing
By Yi Hang Wang, Cypress Semiconductor, 6/19/2009
Capacitive proximity sensing is a clever way to interact with user interfaces without having to physically touch the interface controls. It is based on the principles of capacitive sensing, which detect the presence or absence of a conductive object.

Characterize optocouplers in the feedback loop of high-frequency power converters
By John Bottrill, Texas Instruments, 6/19/2009
Optocouplers will add a phase shift that can make your power supply unstable. Here is how you can measure and compensate the loop.

Tee up your multiprocessing options
By Robert Cravotta, Technical Editor, 6/11/2009
A good processor taxonomy helps you understand processing architectures' sweet spots. You should probably look at multicore options in the same way.

USB 3.0: A simple idea full of challenges
By Ron Wilson, Executive Editor, 6/11/2009
Combining 5 Gbps with the convenience of USB sounds like a sure win, but many issues are hiding behind the premise.

RF Engineers Automate Tests
By Martin Rowe Senior Technical Editor, Test & Measurement World, 6/11/2009
Many test engineers sidestep the built-in capabilities in today's RF-test equipment and devise their own algorithms, applications, and automated tests.

Designing portability into silicon IP
By Joseph Pun, Gennum Corp, Snowbush IP Group, 6/11/2009
Design foundry portability into IP cores, rather than applying it after the fact.

Troubleshooting a transaction-level model
By Andrea Kroll, PhD, JEDA Technologies, 6/11/2009
Seemingly minor violations of the TLM 2.0 standard can turn a system-level model into an agent of evil in your design flow.

Stress out; strain gauges in
By Paul Rako, Technical Editor, 5/28/2009
The careful selection and application of strain gauges can ensure good results from this difficult measurement.

Evolving to DDR3 technology
By John Nieto, Inphi Corp, 5/28/2009
The move from DDR2 to DDR3 requires new design techniques to improve signal integrity and gain the maximum benefit from the latest memory-interface technology.

Electronic ballast circuits enhance resonant-mode power supplies
By Tom Ribarich, International Rectifier Corp., 5/15/2009
This article explains the basic functionality of a typical electronic ballast circuit, highlights the similarities between the two applications, and describes a typical resonant-mode power-supply solution using a standard electronic ballast control IC. Experimental results are also shown to verify final performance and functionality.

Thin air: ATSC reception isn't always easy
By Brian Dipert, Senior Technical Editor, 5/14/2009
The looming transition from analog to digital television promises high-quality images and immersive audio, but reality can fall short of the hype, especially in environments with challenging topographies or climates.

Eliminate Sallen-Key stopband leakage with a voltage follower
By Martin Cano, National Semiconductor, 5/14/2009
Novel design techniques help reduce stopband leakage in your filter designs.

LED lighting: panel debates quality versus cost
By Ron Wilson, Executive Editor, 5/8/2009
LED lighting can be great—but LEDs won’t make a replacement for screw-in light bulbs any time soon.

A universal algorithm for implementing an infrared decoder
By Mrinal Ray, Ittiam Systems Pvt. Ltd., 5/6/2009
A microcontroller-based remote-control design provides the flexibility and ease of upgrade necessary to support a diversity of modern infrared protocols.

RFIDs power themselves
By Randy Torrance, Chipworks, 5/4/2009
The IC Insider takes a look at the charge pump of Alien Technology's Alien Higgs RFID.

Power fortunes: Estimating power in FPGA designs
By Ron Wilson, Executive Editor, 4/23/2009
As FPGAs enter new applications, designers must estimate power consumption early, closely watch it, and then attempt to measure the results.

40- and 100-Gbps Ethernet brings new test challenges
By Martin Rowe, Senior Technical Editor, Test & Measurement World, 4/23/2009
IEEE P802.3ba will define an architecture for 40- and 100-Gbps Ethernet, giving rise to new test equipment and test techniques.

EDN’s 2008 Innovator and Innovations of the Year: And the Winner Is …
By Staff, 4/23/2009
A challenging economic environment in 2008 brought out the best in several members of the electronics industry. And EDN’s annual Innovation Awards program has once again honored the most innovative technological advances as well as the designers behind those advances.

Use alternative approaches to evaluate dc/dc synchronous buck converters
By David Divins, International Rectifier, 4/23/2009
Linear systems, online tools, and full simulations help you analyze your designs.

Shedding some light on the stimulus package
By Barbara Jorgensen, Contributing Writer, 4/22/2009
How are distributors seeking opportunities in infrastructure and energy provisions?

Leakage power analysis attack on cryptographic device realized in CMOS 90-nanometer technology
By Milena Jovanovic, University of Montenegro, 4/15/2009
Leakage current may be the gate no one thought to lock that allows cracking of hardened systems.

Getting to 4G through design and test
By Steve Scheiber, Contributing Technical Editor, 4/9/2009
4G telecommunication technology carries explicit requirements for minimum network speed. Designers must find a way to reliably and cost-effectively reach those targets.

Online tools home in on analog design
By Paul Rako, Technical Editor, 4/9/2009
Analog design gets easier and more convenient, thanks to free web applications and downloadable tools.

Managing high-voltage lithium-ion batteries in HEVs
By Michael Kultgen, Linear Technology Corp, 4/9/2009
Skyrocketing energy prices and the growing concern over carbon emissions have focused attention on electric and hybrid-electric vehicles. New lithium-battery designs will be key technologies for efficient EVs and HEVs.

Maxim MAX17061 WLED driver recipe calls for three flavors of DAC
By Randy Torrance, Chipworks, 3/27/2009
The IC Insider: Unity-resistor-string, binary-weighted, and R-2R ladder DAC architectures help Maxim Integrated Products’ high-efficiency driver IC power large LCD panels that use an array of LEDs as a light source.