designfeature By Mikhail Ioffe, Fishman Transducers Inc

CHARGE-PUMP ICs HELP PRODUCE SWITCHING POWER

SUPPLIES THAT ARE CHEAP, EFFICIENT, SIMPLE, AND
MUCH MORE “RF-FRIENDLY” THAN SUPPLIES THAT USE
INDUCTORS. MANY VOLTAGE-CONVERTER ICs ARE AVAIL-
ABLE, AND CHOOSING THE RIGHT ONE IS NOT ALWAYS
AS SIMPLE AS IT SEEMS.

The ins and outs

of charge-pump-converter ICs
witched-capacitor, or charge-pump, pow- Japan Radio Company (www.njr.com), still produce

S er supplies have existed for decades, but they this generic IC. A number of ICs are available that
have gained tremendous popularity in recent use the same general principle but have different
years, particularly in portable applications. These specifications and features. Choosing the right con-
switching supplies and their converter ICs are pop- verter IC is not so trivial. A designer has to consid-
ular because they convert dc voltages without using er all the following factors when making a choice:
inductors. Although designers have made great ● input-voltage range,
progress in developing switching power supplies, in- ● switching-frequency range,
ductors are still expensive, bulky, and prone to emit- ● conversion efficiency,
ting RF energy. For low-power designs, a charge- ● maximum output current,
pump topology is almost always preferable to an ● output resistance,
inductor-based approach when the charge pump’s ● quiescent current,
constraints and drawbacks—low power capability ● shutdown mode, and
and limited output-voltage options—do not prevent ● price.
the system from operating properly. Input-voltage range appears to be one of the
Charge-pump power converters operate by trans- toughest parameters to specify when choosing the
ferring the charge from one “flying” capacitor to an- right converter. The design of most new converters
other (Figure 1). When switches S1 and S3 are on, or tailors the ICs for operation with input voltages of
closed, and switches S2 and S4 are off, or open, the in- 1.5 to 5.5V. If you need to convert 9, 12, or 15V in-
put power supply charges C1. During the next cycle, puts, your choices are limited. One of the most ba-
S1 and S3 are off, S2 and S4 are on, and charge trans-
fers to C2 with a change in polarity. The cir-
cuit in Figure 1 represents the most popular Figure 1
S1 S2
application, a voltage inverter. This circuit is the best VIN
approach if you need to generate a voltage with the
C1
opposite polarity of the input. This circuit can also
operate as a voltage doubler, if V1 of the power sup-
C2
ply floats off of ground. S3 S4
Intersil’s ICL7660 was the first charge-pump IC to VOUT
contain all the functions necessary to perform volt- =1VIN
age conversion. Many manufacturers, including
Maxim Integrated Products (www.maxim-ic.com), Charge-pump converters transfer charge from one “flying”
Harris Semiconductor (www.harris.com), National capacitor, C1, to another, C2, by controlling the opening and
Semiconductor (www.national.com), and the New closing of two pairs of switches, S1/S3 and S2/S4.
www.ednmag.com June 10, 1999 | edn 135
designfeature Charge-pump converters

sic and inexpensive converters is the

LTC1044 (Linear Technology LTC1044 LTC1044
Figure 2 100 15
Corp, www.linear.com). The data

OSCILLATOR FREQUENCY (kHz)

OSCILLATOR FREQUENCY (kHz)
COSC=0 pF 14 V+=5V
sheet states that 9.5V is the maximum in- TA=257C 13 COSC=0 pF
put voltage for this IC. Thus, at first 12
10
glance, it looks like you’d have no prob- 11
lem using this IC to convert a standard 10
9
9V output from a Type D battery to a 8
19V output from a “plug-into-the-wall” 1
7
power supply. 6
In reality, the design is more compli- 0.1 5
255 225 0 25 50 75 100 125
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
cated. First, the output voltage of a fresh AMBIENT TEMPERATURE (7C)
(a) SUPPLY VOLTAGE V+ (V) (b)
9V battery can be as high as 9.6V with no
load or a very small load. This situation Data-sheet curves for the LTC1044 show the effects of supply voltage (a) and temperature (b) on
is already dangerous to an LTC1044. the oscillation frequency.
Moreover, some batteries in this case size
carry seven elements instead of six, so the portant IC factors: switching-frequency for most audio applications. Conversely,
output voltage could be more than 11V. range and conversion efficiency. adding external capacitors lowers the
Unfortunately, you have no way of know- switching frequency. Also, you can drive
ing the number of elements except by SWITCHING FREQUENCY AND EFFICIENCY or synchronize almost all converter ICs
measuring the output voltage with a Many applications, such as audio and with an external clock. This feature is
multimeter, a step that most customers data-acquisition systems, are sensitive to handy not only for increasing or de-
don’t take. The LTC1044 can survive residual ripple on power rails, so it is de- creasing the switching frequency, but also
9.6V, but the failure rate is statistically sirable to use high switching frequencies. for helping to fight interference when
significant. However, when the input Using high switching frequencies pre- powering up systems that use a dual-
voltage nears 11V, all of the ICs blow. The vents these frequencies or their harmon- slope ADC. Reference 2 includes an in-
same situation is true for wall plug-in ics from interfering with signals. On the teresting example of driving the
power supplies. other hand, lowering the switching fre- MAX1044 converter from an external
You can never use an unregulated 9V quency can increase the efficiency to as 375-kHz square wave to power up radio
power supply as the input to the much as 98% (Reference 1). circuits.
LTC1044, even if you don’t need regula- You can control the switching fre- Switching frequency strongly depends
tion. The reason is that manufacturers quency of many converters by adding ex- on input voltage. The input voltage of the
rate their power supplies under full load, tra capacitors or jumpers between certain LTC1044 should not exceed 9.5V, but it
and the supply’s input voltage is much pins. In the LTC1044, connecting pins 1 can be as low as 1.5V. When the IC oper-
higher if you use just a fraction of the rat- and 8 boosts the switching frequency ates in standard mode (pins 1 and 7 dis-
ed load. from 10 to 70 kHz, which is high enough connected), the frequency decreases to 1
A more expensive regulated unit kHz as the supply voltage decreas-
could solve this problem, but es (Figure 2a). If you connect pins
not without adding some trou- Figure 3 1 and 8 to boost the frequency and
LTC1044A
bles of its own. A regulator circuit 100 if you don’t want the frequency to
needs some time—usually, a few 98 100 mF
TA=257C be lower than 20 kHz, the input
C1=C2
milliseconds—to catch up with the IL=I mA voltage should never go below 4 to
96
input. During this period, the out- 5V. Also, switching frequency
10 mF
POWER EFFICIENCY (%)

put voltage of the power supply 94 100 mF changes with temperature (Figure
10 mF
equals the input minus some 92 IL=I5 mA 2b). Thus, if the output current is
dropout, which often is sufficient to 90 high, you must take into account
destroy the sensitive LTC1044 cir- 88
the design’s ambient temperature
cuit. An input capacitor of 100 mF range in addition to the internal
86
or more can fix this problem by cre- temperature of the IC. With a 100-
ating in-rush charging current, 84 mA output current, internal loss-
1 mF 1 mF
which makes the transformer and 82 es and the 60V minimum output
rectifier sag. 80 resistance cause the LTC1044A to
So, what’s the point of this long 100 1k 10k 100k dissipate 700 mW. This amount of
0SCILLATOR FREQUENCY (Hz)
discussion when literally the next +
power not only requires some
NOTE: V =10V.
item on Linear Technology’s list of arrangements to remove the heat
inductorless dc/dc converters is a Data-sheet curves often don’t define the design parameters from most packages but also de-
more robust 12V LTC1044A The an- you’re interested in. For the LTC1044A, you have to extrap- creases the switching frequency.
swer requires a discussion of the olate efficiency performance for output currents of 7 to 8 A simple example shows how to
next two items from the list of im- mA from these performance curves at 1 and 15 mA. weigh the trade-offs among input

136 edn | June 10, 1999 www.ednmag.com

designfeature Charge-pump converters

voltage, efficiency, switching fre- be the best choice if only it could

quency, and price. Say, for ex- Figure 4 survive input voltage surges. If you
ample, that you want to design a have little extra room on your
LTC1144
voltage inverter with a maximum 10,000
board, using this IC with some kind
VIN of 9.5V, a switching frequency TA=257C of protection circuitry is a viable
C1=C2=10 mF
greater than 40 kHz, and a maxi- option. Unfortunately, the most
mum output current of approxi- 1000
obvious and cost-effective way to
mately 7 or 8 mA. Naturally, you implement input protection—us-

SUPPLY CURRENT (mA)

want your inverter to be efficient, so ing a zener diode with a resistor—
V+=15V
you have to consider efficiency is out of the question, because the
100
curves and quiescent current. Qui- usual value for voltage tolerances
escent current may play a major role V+=5V for zener diodes does not allow for
in defining overall efficiency in low- efficiently protecting the input. In
10
power applications of less than 10 a worst-case scenario, this type of
mA and for applications that apply design wastes almost 1V of battery
the load for only short periods or voltage on a ballast resistor. Only
1
have long duty cycles. The data 0.01 0.1 1 10 100
when battery voltage drops to
sheets for the LTC1044A indicate a (a)
0SCILLATOR FREQUENCY (kHz) 9.130.95=8.645V, which happens
maximum switching frequency of ICL7622
quickly because you are keeping the
100 kHz and a respectably low sup- 10k value of the resistor low, does the
ply current of 200 mA. The data V+=15V protector circuit stop consuming
TA=257C
sheet also promises an efficiency as RL=`
current. The result is a lot of wast-
0SCILLATOR FREQUENCY (Hz)

high as 98%. ed energy.

Now, take a close look at Figure 1k
Another input-protection op-
3. For your desired combination of tion is to use a low-dropout voltage
parameters, efficiency is so low that regulator. Manufacturers offer a
the data-sheet curves don’t even de- number of good low-dropout-reg-
fine it. First, the curves in Figure 3 ulator ICs. Unfortunately, most of
100
apply only to 1- and 15-mA output these ICs are not low-power, such
currents. And even at 15 mA, which as less than 0.3 mA; not adjustable,
is approximately twice this design which can be a problem because 9V
example’s current requirement, ef- is not a standard VOUT; or simply
10
ficiency is low. In practice, the effi- 1 10 100 1000 10k too expensive. National Semicon-
ciency will be less than 50% because (b) COSC (pF) ductor’s LP2951 is one of the few
the converter consumes about 9 mA exceptions. This IC, which costs ap-
Weighing the trade-offs among input voltage, efficiency,
when pins 1 and 8 connect to a 9V proximately 70 cents in large quan-
switching frequency, and supply current is tougher than it
input. You have to significantly slow tities, can provide 100 mA with a
seems. For the LTC1144, which is a higher voltage upgrade
this chip to get reasonable efficien- maximum dropout of 0.38V and a
of the LTC1044A, supply current increases with frequency
cy of operation, at least under light- supply current of 75 mA.
(a). You can also try the ICL7662 (b) in the pin-compatible
load conditions. The IC is simply Alternatively, a simple three-
LTC1044 socket, but a connection between pins 1 and 8 can
too powerful; the large output-cur- transistor regulator may provide
prevent proper oscillation.
rent capability results in low effi- the necessary input protection
ciency in low-power applications. You this ICL7662 may not work. Tying Pin 1 more cost-effectively than many ICs. The
run into the same problem trying to use to Pin 8 disconnects the internal oscilla- input and load regulations of the circuit
the LTC1144 chip, which is a higher volt- tor from the OSC Pin 7, and the IC os- in Figure 5 are roughly fractions of 1%,
age upgrade of the 1044A. Using the cillates only if a certain amount of para- which is more than enough for protec-
1144, supply current increases with fre- sitic capacitance exists (Figure 4b). Even tion. The voltage drop is only about 200
quency (Figure 4a). after manually starting the oscillator mV with an output current of 10 mA, so
Other IC possibilities include the ex- (with your finger), the frequency is only the circuit does not reduce battery life.
tended-input-range ICL7662 and Si7661 5 kHz. The last candidate from Maxim is The same problem of the zener diode’s
from Maxim Integrated Products. Al- the MAX1044. This IC’s 10V maximum tolerances exists, but, because this circuit
though the ICL7662 allows input volt- input voltage is close to the 9.5V maxi- consumes little current in regulation
ages as high as 20V, the data sheet does- mum of the LTC1044. Thus, you face the mode, the battery loses its juice much
n’t clearly state the efficiency for a high same problems with the MAX1044 as slower than in the resistor+zener case. Al-
switching frequency. However, because you do with the LTC1044. though you can adjust VOUT by changing
this chip is pin-compatible with the the value of R1, this change affects regu-
LTC1044, you can simply try it. Unfor- ADD INPUT PROTECTION lation because the different Q points
tunately, with pins 1 and 8 connected to A simple LTC1044, which costs ap- cause different zener-diode dynamic re-
increase frequency in the LTC1044 case, proximately $1 in large quantities, would sistances. Varying regulation doesn’t

138 edn | June 10, 1999 www.ednmag.com

 designfeature Charge-pump converters

matter much in this case, quency applications or

because the circuit is only Q1 when the output impedance
for protection. However, VIN VOUT of the power supply is low.
VZENER and its tem- + Large flying capacitors in-
perature coefficient Figure 5 1.0M 1.0M 10 mF
crease output ripple because
in this circuit differ from they draw larger pulses of
values presented on techni- 15k current from the input pow-
cal data sheets for zener er supply. The big advantage
diodes. This difference ex- of using larger flying capac-
Q2 Q3 R1
ists because the zener 47k
itors is the ability to get bet-
diode’s current in Figure 5 ter efficiency, particularly
is small, to increase efficien- NOTE: TRANSISTOR TYPE IS NOT CRITICAL. YOU CAN USE with lower frequencies (Fig-
cy. You may need to experi- 2N3904S FOR Q2 AND Q3 AND A 2N3906 FOR Q1. ure 3), and the ability to
ment with the circuit to provide larger output cur-
choose the right compo- A simple three-transistor low-dropout regulator can provide input protection rents. Choosing the right
nent values. This circuit more cost-effectively than many ICs. value of the flying capacitors
costs pennies and allows can be somewhat tricky be-
you to use any battery and almost any of the first 7660 (Reference 3). cause their values affect efficiency, out-
power supply—even an unregulated one. The other way to decrease output re- put current, and output ripple.
sistance and output ripple is to choose When a more robust regulated output
CONSIDER THE OTHER FACTORS larger output capacitors. However, in- or extremely low output ripple is neces-
In addition to input voltage, efficien- creasing the capacitance increases the sary, you probably need to use a low-
cy, and switching frequency, important turn-on time, which is crucial for certain dropout regulator. Again, the circuit in
factors to consider when choosing a con- applications. The best choice is to always Figure 5 works well for most cases. The
verter IC include maximum output cur- use low-ESR components, such as ce- LTC1054 and LTC1550/1551 (Linear
rent, output resistance, quiescent cur- ramic or tantalum, for output capacitors. Technology Corp) each include a built-
rent, and shutdown modes. Output Some converter ICs operate with high- in low-dropout regulator. The LTC1054
current is generally not a problem be- er switching frequencies than other ICs, is pin-compatible with the 7660/1044 se-
cause you can find ICs, such as the such as 600 kHz for the LTC1516, 900 ries and has a respectable input-voltage
MAX660, MAX665, MAX1680, MAX- kHz for the LTC1550/1551, and as high range of 3.5 to 15V, but it is more suit-
1681 (Maxim Integrated Products), as 2000 kHz for the LTC1429. For these able for currents as high as 100 mA. The
LTC1054, and LTC1144 (Linear Technol- ICs, you need to use an input capacitor LTC1550 and LTC1551 are voltage in-
ogy Corp), with currents as high as 100 to bypass the input power supply. This verters with a fixed 14.1V regulated
mA. You can also use converters in par- capacitor must sit as close as possible to output and hence less-than-1-mV out-
allel (Figure 6a). However, running two the converter IC. This input capacitor put ripple. Maxim Integrated Products
or more converters in parallel causes the provides most of the supply current offers a number of converters with reg-
ripple content to include not only indi- while charging the flying capacitors of ulated outputs, mostly for biasing GaAs
vidual switching frequencies, but also the the charge pump. For high-frequency ap- FETs.
difference frequency (Reference 3). The plications, this capacitor should be either
circuit in Figure 6b solves this problem ceramic or tantalum with at least a 0.1- FILTERING REMOVES OUTPUT RIPPLE
by using the NOR gate to help synchro- mF ceramic capacitor in parallel. This in- Filtering is another way to reduce out-
nize the second 7660 with the oscillator put capacitor is unnecessary for low-fre- put ripple. In the case of high switching

VIN
+
V 5V
Figure 6 2 8
2 8 3
10 mF ICL7660
+ 3
ICL7660 2 8 4 5
+

"1"
3 1k
ICL7660 1/4 CD4077
4 5
"n"
4 5 2 8
+ 10 mF 7
3 ICL7660
+ VOUT
4 5 15V
(a) 20 mF +
(b)

You can connect charge-pump converters in parallel (a) to increase output current, but this design increases the ripple. Using a NOR gate to synchro-
nize the two ICs solves this problem (b).

140 edn | June 10, 1999 www.ednmag.com

 designfeature Charge-pump converters

frequencies, the filter can be a low-value clock signal. The values of the resistors
RC or LC filter. Placing a ferrite bead in +VIN +VOUT and capacitors in the figure produce an
front of the output capacitor can also sig- oscillator frequency of approximately 25
nificantly improve output rip- kHz and keep current consumption low.
Figure 7 +
ple. For lower frequencies, sim- 1.5k 2.2 mF For more efficient conversion, use rail-
ple active-filter circuits can solve the to-rail op amps and Schottky diodes.
problem for the price of a VBE voltage Theoretically, it’s possible to multiply a
drop (Figure 7). This filter is cheaper voltage m or 1m times, where m is an
than a regulator circuit and consumes no 1VIN 1VOUT
integer number. In practice, each addi-
current. If the main power supply has a tional stage increases the output resist-
high output impedance, which is the case ance, and diode voltage drops also accu-
for a battery, then you may need a filter 1.5k mulate. Any circuit that can generate a
2.2 mF
at the power supply’s output. Without an + pulse train with the desirable frequency
output filter, the converter IC’s switch- is suitable for voltage conversion. Actu-
ing currents add ripple to the output ally, you can use any alternative current
voltage. Simple active filters are often suitable for waveform to perform conversion, partic-
reducing ripple at low frequencies. ularly when the power requirement is
QUIESCENT CURRENT AND SHUTDOWN MODE small. In some cases, you can even use a
Some converters have very low quies- ited protection. The LTC1044 can con- system signal or some other signal, such
cent current (60 mA for the LTC1514, 12 tinuously withstand a short circuit with- as a local oscillator, to create an extra
mA for the LTC1516, and 6 mA for the out damage but only for input voltages of voltage source. P
LTC1522 (Linear Technology Corp), so less than 5.5V. Other ICs allow short-cir-
many cases need no shutdown mode. cuit conditions only for a certain time, References
However, a shutdown option can be use- such as 10 to 30 sec. As mentioned, heat 1. “Lower Operating Frequency Im-
ful when the load has a long duty cycle. dissipation can be a problem for high- proves ICL7660 Voltage-Conversion Ef-
A powerful IC is necessary to handle current applications. You should consid- ficiency,” Application Notes, Maxim
heavy loads, and more powerful ICs have er this fact when choosing a package style Integrated Products (www.maxim-ic.
higher supply currents. In many portable and when laying out the pc board. Thick com).
applications, shutdown is the only way to traces and copper areas can be helpful. 2.“High-frequency Switching IC Pow-
conserve power. For a data-acquisition Only a few converters, such as the ers Portable Telephone,” Application
system, one way to implement the shut- LTC1514, LTC1516, and LTC1522, have Notes, Maxim Integrated Products
down mode is to use the converter to the luxury of thermal protection. Such (www.maxim-ic.com).
supply power when the ADC is not in protection is uncommon, and manufac- 3. Intersil Application Handbook,
conversion mode and then to shut down turers usually prominently advertise this 1985.
the converter during the conversion cy- feature.
cle. This trick keeps power rails clean. Finally, you should consider the pos- Author’s bio graphy
However, capacitors need to provide sibility that your design may not need a Mikhail Ioffe designs and develops ampli-
enough energy storage for the ADC to ac- special converter circuit. The circuit in fiers, preamplifiers, equalizers, mixers, and
complish its conversion cycle. Figure 8 is useful for powering just a part analog-signal processors at Fishman
Not all converter ICs possess short-cir- of the circuit with a high or inverted volt- Transducers Inc (Wilmington, MA), where
cuit protection, and some have only lim- age. All you need is an extra op amp or he has worked for more than seven years.
He holds an MS from the Leningrad Insti-
tute of Electrical Communications (St Pe-
tersburg, Russia) and is a member of the
VCC
IEEE. In his spare time, he enjoys music,
Figure 8 82k
82k 1VOUT books, various outdoor sports, and travel-
ing. You can reach him at mioffe@
100 pF MMBD301
1 fishman.com.
+

+ 10 mF 10 mF
+ 82k VCC 16V
10 mF + 16V
16V 82k 1M
MMBD301

If you need to power just a part of a circuit with a high or inverted voltage, you may not need a
special converter IC. This simple converter circuit oscillates at 25 kHz to keep current consumption
low.

142 edn | June 10, 1999 www.ednmag.com