Technical Features

January 2013
QSPICE: A Mission to Get SPICE Right

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Figure 1: MOSFET channel punch-through showing outputs from previous SPICE simulators vs. QSPICE

Qorvo’s QSPICE™ simulator for analog and mixed-signal simulation provides power designers with the tools to confidently evaluate their designs. Free to use, QSPICE improves SPICE basics, supports large amounts of digital logic without performance penalties, and delivers the speed and accuracy needed for rel
Date:
11/29/2024
Flash corruption: software bug or supply-voltage fault?

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Figure 1: Typical CPU section and firmware memory map

Embedded systems commonly use Flash memory to store firmware. Occasionally, the firmware stored in the Flash memory in some systems is accidentally corrupted, preventing the system from booting up
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Date:
01/27/2013
Convert a buck regulator into a high-current LED driver

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Figure 1: Projected relative cost of LED Luminaire and percentage due to the cost of LEDs (Source: DOE SSL 2011 Manufacturing Roadmap)

LEDs promise to change the world, and few doubt that they will. However, a key limiter to more rapid adoption is the cost of the LEDs themselves. The cost breakdown of LED luminaires varies, but it
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Date:
01/26/2013
90-W plug-n-play Power over Ethernet over 100-m CAT-5e cable

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Figure 1: A typical PoE system

PoE (Power over Ethernet) has been increasing in popularity due to its flexible and cost-effective method of delivering both power and data over a single Ethernet cable. This allows equipment to be
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Date:
01/21/2013
Five considerations for deploying Ethernet in wind farms

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Figure 1: A network topology for wind-farm applications makes use of redundant devices and cabling to maximize system uptime and minimize the operational consequences of single points of failure.

Data is a key element to the successful operation of a wind farm. Real-time data access allows operators to monitor wind turbine uptime, performance, and power output—even from remote locations. This
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Date:
01/21/2013
Modeling and simulation for wind and solar energy

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Figure 1: Shading and current distribution inside the solar module

The market for green and renewable energy is growing, but also presents numerous new challenges when it comes to technology, environment, and acceptance. Concerning technology, these challenges require
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Date:
01/20/2013
Such a dense power grid however may not be as vulnerable to power outages as some experts fear. One might assume that it is much harder to synchronize the many generators and machines of consumers,
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Date:
01/20/2013
The smart grid surrounds us these days. In the U.S., approximately 36 million smart electricity meters have deployed since 2007 (reference 1). In Europe, both Italy and Sweden have each achieved complete
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Date:
01/19/2013
Renewable energy prices; weather driven and volatile

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Figure 1: Wholesale energy prices will be increasingly driven by the weather.

Pöyry Management Consulting has conducted a series of studies over the last two years to investigate how European energy markets would need to evolve in the face of the radical changes expected from
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Date:
01/19/2013
Optimizing output noise through low-noise power design

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Figure 1: Micrel's MIC94300 integrated design reduces the combined footprint of filter and load switch by as much as 65%.

The proliferation of portable connectivity devices over the last decade has seen most of us become more reliant on technology than ever before. At home and at work, as we embrace technology, we demand
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Date:
01/09/2013
Active network management offered as grid panacea

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Figure 1: Active Network Management creates a new layer of grid management.

The power industry faces some significant future challenges: to create a more visible and controllable electricity grid to deliver power more reliably, efficiently, and cost effectively and find smarter
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Date:
01/09/2013
Properly implemented, galvanic isolation is an effective defense against disturbances in the ground plane often referred to as ground loops, which occur as a result of varying electrical potentials. Physical limitations require that electrical components on a PCB connect to the ground plane at different physical
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Date:
01/03/2013
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