Tiny IC packs analog and logic functions
At just 1.155×1.155 mm, the Renesas GreenPAK SLG46801 configurable mixed-signal IC is small enough for use in smart rings and watches. Its 9-ball WLCSP makes it the smallest device in the GreenPAK family, combining an ultra-compact footprint…
SBRFP rectifiers cut losses in automotive systems
Diodes’ automotive Field-Plated Super Barrier Rectifiers (SBRFP) provide low forward voltage and low reverse leakage current. The 2-A SBRFP2M60P1Q and SBRFP2M60SAFQ, 3-A SBRFP3M60SAFQ, and 8-A SBRFP8A60P5Q are drop-in replacements for comparable…
160-W power supply withstands harsh conditions
Advanced Energy’s DF150 160-W AC/DC power supply is built for extreme environments in defense and industrial applications. The first entry in the Defiant Future (DF) series of ruggedized, high-reliability power supplies, the DF150 is certified…
AI agents speed silicon-to-system engineering
AgentEngineer domain-specific, long-horizon agents from Synopsys accelerate engineering across silicon-to-system design. Built on the Autopilot open platform for autonomous engineering, the agents apply AI to workflows spanning verification,…
64-bit soft SoC expands FPGA processing
Efinix offers the Sapphire RV64, a configurable 64-bit RISC-V soft SoC optimized for the company’s Trion and Titanium FPGAs. The SoC incorporates a cached RISC-V processor core and optionally includes a DDR DRAM controller interface. It also…
Cesium atomic clocks: The backbone of precise 5G timing
As 5G networks expand in scale, complexity, and societal importance, the underlying timing infrastructure that keeps them synchronized has become a strategic technology domain. While radio access innovations—massive multiple‑input multiple‑output…
Wire pushbuttons in series to simplify DPOT up/down circuit
A curious connection of control buttons makes a simpler-is-better digital potentiometer interface possible.
Two recent submissions to the Design Ideas kitchen (see Related Content) have shown different basic step-per-push pushbutton interfaces…
When AI agents make decisions, trust becomes infrastructure
AI agents are beginning to change something more fundamental than how organizations use software. They are beginning to receive authority.
A conventional AI system can provide information, summarize data, identify alternatives, or recommend…
Getting ready for 6G networks
As 5G-Advanced continues to roll out, bringing AI/ML integration, integrated sensing and communication (ISAC), RedCap, and non-terrestrial network capabilities, support for 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Release 19 (R19) is emerging,…
Creating higher voltages, part 1: Voltage boosters
There are several ways to boost a relatively low AC or DC voltage by a factor of two or three, each with tradeoffs and constraints.
Lower-voltage circuitry dominates much of design and associated discussions, with ICs and systems operating…
Rethinking RTL flows with AI-driven hybrid formal verification
Modern RTL verification flows generate more evidence than engineers can always review with equal priority. Simulation, assertions, coverage, and formal analysis each expose different classes of behavior, but a large design can produce hundreds…
TP-Link’s Tapo P115: Smart plug subtracts Apple, adds energy tracking
Take a baseline device, remove a subsequently added protocol and replace it with a function, and…you end up with a bigger-than-expected revision?
As I alluded to in a blog post a week-and-a-half back, I’m nearing the finish line of my teardown…
