Analog Devices Press Release - December 16, 2010

Analog Devices Introduces Industry’s Smallest Isolated DC-to-DC Converter

- New iCoupler® digital isolation device with isoPower® dc-to-dc converter technology delivers 50 percent
  reduction in size and cost compared to optocoupler-based solutions.


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ADuM6000 block diagramNORWOOD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Analog Devices, Inc. (ADI), a global leader in high-performance semiconductors for signal-processing applications, is expanding its extensive portfolio of digital isolation products with the industry’s smallest isolated dc-to-dc converter. Offering a 5-kV rms (root-mean square) isolation rating in a 10-mm × 10-mm package, the ADuM6000 is a 0.5 watt device that integrates ADI’s proprietary iCoupler digital isolation technology and isoPower dc-to-dc converter. The new digital isolator allows designers to free up valuable circuit-board real estate while eliminating the time-consuming step of securing medical or other safety approvals (such as IEC-60601-1), all at a fraction of the cost of alternative devices, including optocouplers. Safety is a key requirement in medical and industrial designs, and the ADuM6000 protects the device and end users from exposure to voltage levels that could compromise safety and reliability. Watch a video on the ADuM6000 digital isolators.

The ADuM6000 digital isolator enables designers to reduce the form factor of their system module or to maintain the same form factor even as they add more features and functions. With alternate solutions, such as optocouplers and separate, isolated dc-to-dc converters, it may not be possible to add new functionality to existing system modules.

Also now available are the ADuM620x series of dual-channel digital isolators that feature isoPower integrated, isolated dc-to-dc converter technology and 5-kV rms isolation rating. The ADuM620x series includes the ADuM6200, ADuM6201 and ADuM6202 digital isolation products that differ by channel configuration.


Availability, Pricing and Complementary Components

ADuM6000 Series

In some designs requiring USB (universal serial bus) isolation and isolated power, the ADuM4160 USB isolator can be used together with the ADuM6xxx devices.
iCoupler® Technology

With more than 450 million channels deployed throughout the industry, ADI’s proven iCoupler technology is based on chip-scale transformers, rather than the LEDs and photodiodes used in optocouplers. Transformers can support higher data rates and lower power consumption, and are more stable over life as compared to LEDs and photodiodes. By fabricating the transformers directly on-chip using wafer-level processing, iCoupler channels can be integrated with each other and other semiconductor functions at low cost. iCoupler transformers are planar structures formed from CMOS and gold metal layers. A high breakdown polyimide layer underneath the gold layer insulates the top transformer coil from the bottom. CMOS circuits connected to the top coil and bottom coil provide the interface between each transformer and its external signals. For more on ADI’s iCoupler digital isolation technology, visit: www.analog.com/icoupler.

isoPower® DC-to-DC Converter
ADI’s isoPower integrated, isolated dc-to-dc converter uses the same chip-scale transformer technology, but instead of transmitting data, isoPower employs switches, rectifiers, and regulators to generate power that is isolated to the same degree as the data channels.



About Analog Devices, Inc.

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 for 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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Contact

Analog Devices, Inc.
Colleen Cronin
781-937-1622
Colleen.cronin@analog.com












Date Posted 12/18/2010