New Step-Down, High Brightness LED Driver IC Introduced  

SAN JOSE, Calif.—Micrel Inc., a manufacturer of integrated circuits (ICs) for the worldwide analog, ethernet, and high bandwidth markets, recently introduced the MIC3201, a new Step-Down High Brightness LED (HBLED) driver with high-side current sense. The first in a new series of high brightness LED drivers targeting MR-16 lamps and other general illumination applications, the device reduces the size, complexity, and cost of the driver solutions for various lighting applications.

“With the ever increasing concern regarding carbon emissions and energy costs, high-efficiency lighting has become one of the highest growth segments of the electronics market,” noted Doyle Slack, senior marketing director of Analog Power, Linear, and RF at Micrel. “Micrel’s LED driver products provide the performance, flexibility, and ease-of-use required by LED lighting system designers to meet these challenges.”

The MIC3201 is capable of driving up to four, 1A HBLEDs in series at more than 90 percent efficiency, with +/-5 percent current accuracy from input voltages of 4.5V to 20V. With its hysteretic control architecture and high-side current sense scheme, the MIC3201 is reportedly well positioned to provide constant current with changes in input voltage and output load. The MIC3201 operating frequency is adjustable up to 1MHz to allow flexibility in the design.