LT3796/LT3796-1
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3796fb
For more information www.linear.com/3796
operaTion
The LT3796/LT3796-1 are constant-frequency, current
mode controllers with a low side NMOS gate driver. The
operation of the LT3796/LT3796-1 is best understood by
referring to the Block Diagram. In normal operation, with
the PWM pin low, the GATE pin is driven to GND, the TG
pin is pulled high to ISP to turn off the PMOS discon-
nect switch, the VC pin goes high impedance to store the
previous switching state on the external compensation
capacitor, and the ISP and ISN pin bias currents are re-
duced to leakage levels. When the PWM pin transitions
high, the TG pin transitions low after a short delay. At the
same time, the internal oscillator wakes up and generates
a pulse to set the PWM latch, turning on the external power
N-channel MOSFET switch (GATE goes high). A voltage
input proportional to the switch current, sensed by an ex-
ternal current sense resistor between the SENSE and GND
input pins, is added to a stabilizing slope compensation
ramp and the resulting switch current sense signal is fed
into the negative terminal of the PWM comparator. The
current in the external inductor increases steadily during
the time the switch is on. When the switch current sense
voltage exceeds the output of the error amplifier, labeled
VC, the latch is reset and the switch is turned off. During
the switch off phase, the inductor current decreases. At the
completion of each oscillator cycle, internal signals such
as slope compensation return to their starting points and
a new cycle begins with the set pulse from the oscillator.
Through this repetitive action, the PWM control algorithm
establishes a switch duty cycle to regulate a current or
voltage in the load. The VC signal is integrated over many
switching cycles and is an amplified version of the differ-
ence between the LED current sense voltage, measured
between ISP and ISN, and the target difference voltage
set by the CTRL pin. In this manner, the error amplifier
sets the correct peak switch current level to keep the
LED current in regulation. If the error amplifier output
increases, more current is demanded in the switch; if it
decreases, less current is demanded. The switch current
is monitored during the on phase and the voltage across
the SENSE pin is not allowed to exceed the current limit
threshold of 113mV (typical). If the SENSE pin exceeds
the current limit threshold, the SR latch is reset regardless
of the output state of the PWM comparator. Likewise, any
fault condition, i.e. FB1 overvoltage (VFB1 > 1.3V), LED
over current, or INTVCC undervoltage (INTVCC < 4V), the
GATE pin is pulled down to GND immediately.
In voltage feedback mode, the operation is similar to that
described above, except the voltage at the VC pin is set
by the amplified difference of the internal reference of
1.25V (nominal) and the FB1 and FB2 pins. If FB1 and
FB2 are both lower than the reference voltage, the switch
current increases; if FB1 or FB2 is higher than the refer-
ence voltage, the switch demand current decreases. The
LED current sense feedback interacts with the voltage
feedback so that neither FB1 or FB2 exceeds the internal
reference and the voltage between ISP and ISN does not
exceed the threshold set by the CTRL pin. For accurate
current or voltage regulation, it is necessary to be sure
that under normal operating conditions, the appropriate
loop is dominant. To deactivate the voltage loop entirely,
FB1 and FB2 can be connected to GND. To deactivate the
LED current loop entirely, the ISP and ISN should be tied
together and the CTRL input tied to VREF.
Two LED specific functions featured on the LT3796/LT3796-
1 are controlled by the voltage feedback FB1 pin. First,
when the FB1 pin exceeds a voltage 60mV lower (–5%)
than the FB1 regulation voltage and V(ISP-ISN) is less than
25mV (typical), the pull-down driver on the VMODE pin
is activated. This function provides a status indicator that
the load may be disconnected and the constant-voltage
feedback loop is taking control of the switching regulator.
When the FB1 pin exceeds the FB1 regulation voltage by
50mV (4% typical), the FAULT pin is activated.
LT3796/LT3796-1 feature a PMOS disconnect switch driver.
The PMOS disconnect switch can be used to improve
the PWM dimming ratio, and operate as fault protection
as well. Once a fault condition is detected, the TG pin is
pulled high to turnoff the PMOS switch. The action isolates
the LED array from the power path, preventing excessive
current from damaging the LEDs.
A standalone current sense amplifier is integrated in the
LT3796/LT3796-1. It can work as input current limit or open
LED protection. The detailed information can be found in
the Application Information section.