Buck-Boost LED Driver Reaches 98% Efficiency, Features Internal PWM Dimming and Spread Spectrum without Flicker

Buck-Boost LED Driver Reaches 98% Efficiency, Features Internal PWM Dimming and Spread Spectrum without Flicker Keith Szolusha Four-switch converters combine two converters (a buck and boost) into a single converter, with the obvious advantage of reduced solution size and cost, plus relatively high efficiency conversion. High performance 4-switch converters have carefully designed control schemes. For instance, for highest efficiency, a 4-switch converter should operate with only two switches when only step-up or step-down conversion is needed, but bring in all four switches as approaches V OUT. A well-designed buck-boost converter gracefully transitions between the three regions of operation boost, buck and buck-boost by taking into account the challenge of combining three control loops 2-switch boost, 2-switch buck and 4-switch operation. Figure 1. 4V 60V 4-switch synchronous buck-boost LED driver powers a 25V, 2A (50W) string of LEDs at up to 98% efficiency. 0.004Ω 4.8µH The 60V 4-switch buck-boost LED driver is designed to drive high power LEDs and to flawlessly transition between 2-switch boost, 4-switch buck-boost, and 2-switch buck regions of operation. 4V TO 60V + 47µF 63V 100V 499k 221k 0.47µF ANALOG DIM EXTERNAL SYNC SSFM OFF : WÜRTH 7443550480 4.8µH : INFINEON BSC067N06LS3 : INFINEON BSC100N06LS3,: INFINEON BSC093N04LS M5: VISHAY Si7611DN D1: NXP PMEG6010CEJ 200k SSFM ON SW1 LSP BST1 BG1 GND EN/UVLO CTRL2 CTR SYNC/SPRD SS LSN RT FB ISP ISN PWMTG PWM 5.1Ω TG1 V OUT FAULT V C 10nF 2.0k 4.7nF SW2 BST2 400kHz 1M 34.8k 1.0V 2.0T PWM OR EXT PWM OFF 200k 200Hz INT PWM D1 10µF 0.05Ω M5 LED+ 25V 2A LED A patent-pending 4-switch buck-boost current-sense resistor control scheme provides a simple, yet masterful, method for the IC to run in peak current mode control in all regions of operation with a single sense resistor. It also allows the IC to run in CCM operation under normal load conditions and DCM operation at light load conditions while maintaining cycle-by-cycle peak inductor current control and preventing negative current. This new generation buck-boost LED driver features spread spectrum frequency modulation and internally generated PWM dimming. These two features work together the supports flicker-free PWM dimming with either internal or external PWM dimming, even when spread spectrum is turned on (technique patent-pending). 14 February 2016 : LT Journal of Analog Innovation

design features The 60V 4-switch buck-boost LED driver is designed to drive high power LEDs and to flawlessly transition between 2-switch boost, 4-switch buckboost and 2-switch buck regions of operation. EFFICIENCY (%) 100 95 90 85 80 75 70 0 BOOST BUCK-BOOST EFFICIENCY BUCK V LED = 25V = 2A f SW = 400kHz 10 20 30 40 50 (V) 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 60 (A) Figure 2. Efficiency and LED current vs input voltage for the 50W LED driver in Figure 1. Efficiency peaks at 98% and doesn t stray far from that peak, ranging from 95% to 97% throughout the typical 9V 16V automotive input range. Also shown, the peak inductor current limit can maintain stable output with reduced output power at low. Figure 3. Thermal imaging of the buck-boost LED driver in Figure 1 shows well contained temperature rise for wide ranging. 25V, 2A LEDs = 6V NO HEAT SINK NO FORCED AIRFLOW 98% EFFICIENT, 50W SYNCHRONOUS BUCK-BOOST LED DRIVER The high power buck-boost LED driver in Figure 1 drives 25V of LEDs at 2A from a wide input voltage range. The 60V buck-boost converter operates down to 4V input. When the input voltage is low, input and peak switch currents can be pushed high. When drops enough to hit the peak inductor current limit, the IC can maintain stability and regulate at its peak current limit, albeit at reduced output power, as shown in Figure 2. This is advantageous from a system design perspective: riding through a low cold-crank condition with a reduction of output brightness is a welcome alternative to cranking up the current limit and sizing up the inductor, cost, board space and input current just to keep the lights full brightness during transient low conditions. Efficiency of the 50W LED driver in Figure 1 is as high as 98% at its highest point (Figure 2). Over the typical automotive battery input range of 9V to 16V, the converter operates between 95% and 97% efficiency. With high power MOSFETs and a single high power inductor, the temperature rise for this converter is low, even at 50W. At 12V input, no component rises more than 25ºC above room temperature, as shown by the thermal scans in Figure 3. At 6V input, the hottest component rises less than 50ºC with a standard 4-layer PCB and no heat sink or airflow. There is room to increase power output; hundreds of watts are possible with a single stage converter. The 50W LED driver can achieve 1000:1 PWM dimming at 120Hz without flicker. The high side PWM TG MOSFET provides PWM dimming of a grounded LED string on the output. As a bonus, it acts as an overcurrent disconnect during short-circuit faults. The PWM input pin doubles as the standard logic-level PWM input waveform receiver for external PWM dimming and as a novel analog input that determines the internally generated PWM duty cycle. 25V, 2A LEDs = 12V 25V, NO HEAT 2A LEDs SINK VNO IN FORCED = 6V AIRFLOW 25V, 2A LEDs = 16V 25V, NO HEAT 2A LEDs SINK VNO IN FORCED = 12V AIRFLOW 25V, 2A LEDs = 28V NO HEAT SINK NO FORCED AIRFLOW February 2016 : LT Journal of Analog Innovation 15

The s novel SSFM reduces average EMI even more than peak EMI. You can see that there is 18dBµV or more reduction of average EMI while there is still about 5dBµV of peak EMI reduction. I = 24V V LED = 25V 1A TO 2A TRANSIENT 200µs/DIV PEAK CONDUCTED EMI (dbµv) 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 (LW) CISPR25 CLASS 5 (MW, AM) (SW) 0 SSFM OFF SSFM ON 10 Hz 1MHz 10MHz FREQUENCY (CB) 30MHz AVERAGE CONDUCTED EMI (dbµv) 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 (LW) CISPR25 CLASS 5 (MW, AM) (SW) 0 SSFM OFF SSFM ON 10 Hz 1MHz 10MHz FREQUENCY (CB) 30MHz Figure 4. LED current shows a stable response to a CTRL pin driven 1A to 2A Figure 5. Spread spectrum frequency modulation (SSFM) reduces peak and average EMI below CISPR25 limits. Average EMI has even greater reduction than peak EMI with SSFM. INTERNALLY GENERATED PWM DIMMING The has two forms of PWM dimming: standard external PWM dimming, and internally generated PWM dimming. s unique internal PWM dimming feature eliminates the need for external components such as clocking devices and microcontrollers to be able to generate a highly accurate PWM dimming brightness control at ratios as high as 128:1. SPREAD SPECTRUM REDUCES EMI Spread spectrum frequency modulation reduces EMI in switching regulators. Although the switching frequency is most often chosen to be outside the AM frequency band (530kHz to 1.8MHz), unmitigated switching harmonics can still violate stringent automotive peak and average EMI requirements within the AM band. Adding spread spectrum to a 400kHz switch mode power supply can drastically reduce the EMI of high power headlight drivers, within the AM band and other regions such as medium and shortwave radio bands. Figure 6. Infinite-persist scope traces show PWM dimming and SSFM working together for flicker-free brightness control with both externally and internally generated PWM dimming. The IC s internally generated PWM frequency, such as 200Hz, is set by a resistor on the pin. The voltage on the PWM pin, set between 1.0V and 2.0V, determines the internal generator s PWM dimming duty cycle for accurate brightness control. The duty cycle of internal dimming is chosen as one of 128 steps and internal hysteresis prevents duty cycle chatter. The better than ±1% accuracy of the internally generated PWM dimming is unchanged in boost, buck and buck-boost regions of operation. I 5µs/DIV INFINITE PERSIST = 24V V LED = 25V SPREAD SPECTRUM ON 1000:1 DIMMING: EXTERNAL PWM SOURCE, 120Hz I 10µs/DIV INFINITE PERSIST = 24V V LED = 25V SPREAD SPECTRUM ON 128:1 DIMMING: INTERNAL PWM DIMMING, 200Hz 16 February 2016 : LT Journal of Analog Innovation

design features In some converters, spread spectrum and flicker-free LED PWM dimming do not work well together. Linear s patent-pending PWM dimming and spread spectrum operation is designed to run both functions simultaneously with flicker-free operation, even at high dimming ratios. 0.015Ω 10µH Figure 7. Compact solution featuring the in a QFN and dual-package MOSFETs. This 4V 60V input, 4-switch buck-boost converter powers 12V 16V at 1A (16W) LEDs with minimum board space and high efficiency. 4V TO 60V + 47µF 63V 100V SW1 LSP BST1 BG1 LSN 10nF SW2 BST2 5.1Ω 25V GND TG1 QFN 100 499k V OUT 1M EFFICIENCY (%) 98 96 94 92 90 88 86 84 82 80 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 INPUT VOLTAGE (V) 221k 0.47µF ANALOG DIM EXT SYNC SSFM OFF 200k SSFM ON : WÜRTH 74437336100 : INFINEON IPG20N06S4L-11 : VISHAY SiZ342DT : VISHAY Si2307DS D1: NXP PMEG4010CEJ EN/UVLO FAULT CTRL2 CTR SYNC/SPRD SS V C 2.0k 4.7nF RT FB ISP ISN PWMTG PWM 400kHz 53.6k 1.0V 2.0T PWM OR EXT PWM OFF 200k 200Hz D1 0.1Ω LED+ 1A LED When activated, SSFM drops the s 50W LED driver EMI below both the peak and average EMI requirements of CISPR25 in the AM band (see Figure 5). Average EMI has a more difficult requirement 20dBµV lower than the peak limit. For this reason, the s novel SSFM reduces average EMI even more than peak EMI. You can see that there is 18dBµV or more reduction of average EMI, while there is still about 5dBµV of peak EMI reduction. Spread spectrum is very useful in limiting the converter s effect on other EMI-sensitive automotive electronics such as radio and communications. In some converters, spread spectrum and flicker-free LED PWM dimming do not work well together. SSFM, a source of changing switching frequency, can look like noise to the outside world in order to spread EMI energy, smearing non-spread peak values but it can work together with PWM dimming for flicker-free operation. Linear s patent-pending PWM dimming and spread spectrum operation is designed to run both functions simultaneously with flicker-free operation, even at high dimming ratios. At 1000:1 PWM dimming with external PWM, and at 128:1 internally generated PWM, spread spectrum continues to operate with flicker-free LED current as shown in the infinite-persist scope photos of Figure 6. February 2016 : LT Journal of Analog Innovation 17

The constant-current and constant-voltage capability of LED drivers make them suitable as battery chargers, especially when the driver also has C/10 detection and reporting. Space-saving design uses four MOSFETs in two packages: 5mm 5mm & 3mm 3mm dual FET packages LESS SPACE: 16W LED DRIVER (FIGURE 6) in 4mm 5mm QFN QFN PACKAGE AND DUAL PACKAGE MOSFETs FOR COMPACT BUCK-BOOST SOLUTIONS The is available in two package types, a 28-pin leaded FE package, and a smaller 4mm 5mm QFN. Designers who require access to pins for onboard testing and manufacturing protocols may prefer the 28-pin FE package, but others will be pleased with the small footprint of the QFN. Those that are space-constrained can pair the QFN with a set of 3mm 3mm or 5mm 5mm dual package MOSFETs. A synchronous buckboost controller does not require a lot of board space very high efficiency can be achieved throughout the main automotive range when dual package MOSFETs are chosen for a very small PCB footprint. MORE POWER: 50W LED DRIVER (FIGURE 1) in 28-lead TSSOP (FE) Figure 8. Comparison of the compact solution shown in Figure 6 with the solution of Figure 1. The compact solution, with 5mm 5mm and 3mm 3mm dual-package MOSFETs, reduces board space in this 4-switch synchronous buck-boost converter. The 4V to 60V input and 16V, 1A buckboost LED driver shown in Figure 7 uses two such dual-package MOSFETs and the QFN, achieving greater than 95% peak efficiency. The space savings are shown in Figure 8. The dual package MOSFETs experience only a 15 C temperature rise at high and low input voltage operating conditions, as shown in Figure 9. The dual package MOSFETs can handle 12V, 2A+ (25W) loads while maintaining high efficiency. To further reduce the solution size, the smaller, 3mm 3mm, dual- MOSFET packages can be used in both locations. For for a slightly higher power rating, or to accommodate higher voltages, the larger, 5mm 5mm, packages can be used for both dual MOSFETs. CONSTANT-CURRENT, CONSTANT- VOLTAGE AND C/10 FLAG FOR SLA BATTERY CHARGERS The constant-current and constant-voltage capability of LED drivers make them suitable as battery chargers, especially when the driver also has C/10 detection and reporting. The C/10 detection in toggles the state of the FAULT pin and can be used to change the regulated charge voltage of a SLA battery to Figure 9. The compact system in Figure 6 exhibits only a 15 temperature rise on the dual MOSFETs at both low and high. 16V, 1A LEDs = 6V 16V, 1A LEDs = 56V 18 February 2016 : LT Journal of Analog Innovation

design features Figure 10. A 7.8A sealed lead-acid (SLA) buck-boost battery charger featuring high efficiency, four small 3mm x 3mm MOSFETs, and both charge and float voltage regulation. 8V TO 60V EXT SYNC 374k 68.1k + C/10 CURRENT ADJUST 33µF 100V 0.47µF 10k SPREAD NO SPREAD 10k 10k 15k 174k 250kHz 100V TG1 EN/UVLO BST1 4 4.2µH PWM SW1 7.87k 10nF 2mΩ LSP FAULT M5 C/10 LSN CTRL2 BG1 5.1Ω 2.2µF CTR SW2 GND RT SYNC/SPRD SS V C 22nF BST2 FB V OUT ISP ISN : WURTH 7443630420, : INFINEON BSC100N06LS, : INFINEON BSZ014NE2LS5IF M5: NXP 2N7002 + 0.012Ω BATT+ 7.9A V CHRG = 14.6V V FLOAT = 13.6V 100µF 25V 4 Figure 11. Efficiency of the SLA battery charger. EFFICIENCY (%) 100 98 96 94 92 90 88 86 84 82 Figure 12. The three charge states of an SLA battery charger include constant-current charge, constantvoltage charge and float voltage regulation. BATTERY CURRENT (A) 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 PHASE 1 PHASE 2 PHASE 3 CONSTANT CURRENT CHARGE I CHARGE = 7.8A V CHRG = 14.6V CONSTANT VOLTAGE CHARGE CONSTANT VOLTAGE FLOAT V FLOAT = 13.6V 15.0 14.6 14.2 13.8 13.4 13.0 12.6 12.2 BATTERY VOLTAGE (V) 80 8 12 16 20 24 28 INPUT VOLTAGE (V) 0 11.8 0 50 100 150 200 250 TIME (MINUTES) Figure 13. Thermal performance of the SLA battery charger SLA BATTERY CHARGER = 59.5V SLA BATTERY CHARGER = 13V February 2016 : LT Journal of Analog Innovation 19

The 84W AC LED lighting converter powers 15V 25V of LEDs at 120Hz AC currents peaking as high as 6A. A full-wave rectifier converts 24VAC at 60Hz into a 120Hz half-wave at the input of the. Four-switch conversion allows the to move between boost, buck-boost and buck regions of operation and to regulate an AC LED output with high power factor at the input. IN1 IN2 M6 LT4320 M5 TG1 OUTP OUTN BG1 24V RMS PULSATING 120Hz 68.1k 37.4k 30.1k 1M CTR EN/UVLO P TG1 BST1 SW1 BG1 C IN R SENSE 0.004Ω 7.8µH 1M 36.5k C OUT 4 24VAC 60Hz M7 M8 10V PWM FAULT LSP LSN SW2 BST2 10nF 5.1Ω R LED 0.015Ω Figure 14. 84W, 120Hz AC LED lighting from 24VAC, 60Hz input has 93% efficiency and 98% power factor to meet green standards in new building lighting. 0.47µF CTRL2 SS FB V OUT ISP ISN PWMTG V C SYNC/SPRD GND RT 3k 10nF 75.0k 500kHz : WURTH 744325780 7.8µH, : INFINEON BSC067N06LS3, : INFINEON BSC032N04LS M5 M8: INFINEON BSZ100N06LS3 15V 25V 0A 6A PULSATING LEDs 120Hz a different, yet regulated float voltage when the charge current drops off. The -based, 7.8A SLA battery charger shown in Figure 10 features 97% peak efficiency (Figure 11), and supports constant-current charge, constant-voltage charge and float voltage maintenance in all three regions of operation boost, buck and buck-boost. This charger handles short-circuit, battery disconnect and prevents reverse battery current. DCM operation and the novel peak inductor sense resistor design detect peak current at all times and prevent current from rushing backward through the inductor and switches a potential pitfall of some 4-switch buck-boost battery chargers that use forced continuous operation. The charge profile shown in Figure 12 demonstrates the 7.8A constant-current charge state, the constant-voltage charge state and the low current float state of this buck-boost SLA battery charger. Figure 13 shows thermal scans of the charger running at various. GO GREEN WITH HIGH POWER AC LED BUILDING LIGHTING High power LED lighting designs for new buildings and structures is both environmentally friendly and robust. With very low failure and replacement rates, LEDs offer excellent color and brightness control while reducing hazardous waste materials and increasing energy efficiency. Halogen lighting that is typically fitted with 24VAC transformers can be replaced by more efficient AC LED lighting using the. The 84W AC LED lighting converter in Figure 14 powers 15V 25V of LEDs at 120Hz AC currents peaking as high as 6A. A full-wave rectifier converts 24VAC at 60Hz into a 120Hz half-wave at the input of the. Four-switch conversion allows the to move between boost, buck-boost and buck regions of operation and regulate an AC LED output with high power factor at the input. The waveforms in Figure 15 demonstrate 98% power factor while maintaining 93% efficiency at a very high power. The thermal scan in Figure 16 shows the full wave rectifier. 20 February 2016 : LT Journal of Analog Innovation

design features The 60V 4-switch synchronous buck-boost LED driver can power large, high power LED strings, and can be used in compact, highly efficient designs. It features spread spectrum frequency modulation for low EMI and flicker-free external and internal PWM dimming. I IN 2A/DIV V LED 5V/DIV P 5V/DIV (24VAC) 20V/DIV 2A/DIV I 2A/DIV 2A/DIV 5ms/DIV 5ms/DIV 5ms/DIV Figure 15. Input current and voltage waveforms for the 84W, 120Hz AC LED driver demonstrate 98% power factor. CONCLUSION The 60V 4-switch synchronous buck-boost LED driver can power large, high power LED strings, and can be used in compact, highly efficient designs. It features spread spectrum frequency modulation for low EMI and flicker-free external and internal PWM dimming. Synchronous switching offers high efficiency through its wide input voltage range, but it also features DCM operation at light loads to prevent reverse current and maintain high efficiency. The constantcurrent and constant-voltage operation, combined with its C/10 detection, make the suitable for high power SLA battery charger applications with both charge and float voltage termination. n Figure 16. The LT4320 ideal diode used in the 24VAC LED lighting solution stays cool and keeps efficiency high; discrete components remain below 55 C February 2016 : LT Journal of Analog Innovation 21