AAT4614
Adjustable Current Limited Load Switch with Fault FlagSmartSwitchTM
PRODUCT DATASHEET
4614.2009.10.1.3 9
www.analogictech.com
Output Capacitor
In order to insure stability while current limit is active, a
low capacitance (approximately 0.47F) is required. No
matter how large the output capacitor, output current is
limited to the value set by the AAT4614 current limiting
circuitry, so very large output capacitors can be used.
For example, USB ports are specified to have at least
120F of capacitance downstream from their controlling
power switch. The current limiting circuit will allow an
output capacitance of 1000F or more without disturbing
the upstream power supply.
ON/ON(Enable Input)
In many systems, power planes are controlled by inte-
grated circuits which run at lower voltages than the
power planes themselves. The enable input (ON) of the
AAT4614 has low and high threshold voltages that
accommodate this condition. The threshold voltages are
compatible with 5V TTL and 2.5V to 5V CMOS systems.
Both active high and active low options are available for
all packages.
Connecting to Capacitive Load
When switching the AAT4614 onto a capacitive load, the
AAT4614 will charge the output capacitive load at a rate
no greater than the current limit setting.
FAULT Output
The FAULT Flag (FLT) is provided to alert the system if an
AAT4614 load is not receiving sufficient voltage to oper-
ate properly. If current limit or over-temperature circuits
in any combination are active for more than approxi-
mately 4ms, the FAULT Flag is pulled to ground through
an approximately 100 resistor. The filtering of voltage
or current transients of less than 4ms prevents capacitive
loads connected to the AAT4614 output from activating
the FAULT Flag when they are initially attached. Pull-up
resistances of 1k to 100k are recommended. Since
FLT is an open drain terminal, it may be pulled up to any
unrelated voltage less than the maximum operating volt-
age of 5.5V, allowing for level shifting between circuits.
The FLT Pin is not available for the SOT23-5 package.
Thermal Considerations
Since the AAT4614 has internal current limit and over-
temperature protection, junction temperature is rarely a
concern. However, if the application requires large cur-
rents in a hot environment, it is possible that tempera-
ture, rather than current limit, will be the dominant
regulating condition. In these applications, the maxi-
mum current available without risk of an over-tempera-
ture condition must be calculated. The maximum inter-
nal temperature while current limit is not active can be
calculated using Equation 1.
Eq. 1: TJ(MAX) = IMAX2OUT-SW(MAX) · RDS(ON)(MAX) · RΘJA + TA(MAX)
In Equation 1, IMAX is the maximum current required by
the load. RDS(ON)(MAX) is the maximum rated RDS(ON) of the
AAT4614 at high temperature. RJA is the thermal resis-
tance between the AAT4614 die and the board onto
which it is mounted. TA(MAX) is the maximum temperature
that the PCB under the AAT4614 would be if the AAT4614
were not dissipating power. Equation 1 can be rear-
ranged to solve for IMAX, as shown in Equation 2.
Eq. 2: IMAX =
TSD(MIN) - TA(MAX)
RDS(ON)(MAX) · RθJA
TSD(MIN) is the minimum temperature required to activate
the AAT4614's over-temperature protection. With the
typical specification of 125°C, 115°C is a safe minimum
value to use.
For example, if an application is specified to operate in
50°C environments, the PCB operates at temperatures
as high as 85°C. The application is sealed and its PCB is
small, causing RθJA to be approximately 150°C/W. Using
Equation 2,
Eq. 3: IMAX = = 0.93(A)
115 - 85
0.23 · 150