MIC2774
Micrel
To summarize, the various potential error sources are:
• Variation in V
REF
: specified at ±1.5%
• Resistor tolerance:
chosen by designer (typically ≤ ±1%)
• Input bias current, I
IN
:
calculated once resistor values are known, typically
very small
Taking the various potential error sources into account, the
threshold voltage will be set slightly below the minimum V
CORE
specification of 0.950V so that when the actual threshold
voltage is at its maximum, it will not intrude into the normal
operating range of V
CORE
. The target threshold voltage will
be set as follows:
Given that the total tolerance on V
TH
for the IN pin is [V
REF
tolerance] + [resistor tolerance]
= ±1.5% + ±1% = ±2.5%,
and V
TH(max)
= V
CORE(min)
,
then V
CORE(min)
= V
TH
+ 2.5% V
TH
= 1.025 V
TH
,
Application Information
Programming the Voltage Threshold
Referring to the “Typical Application Circuit”, the voltage
threshold on the IN pin is calculated as follows:
V
TH
=
V
REF
×
(
R1
+
R2
)
R2
In order to provide the additional criteria needed to solve
for the resistor values, the resistors can be selected such
that the two resistors have a given total value, that is, R1
+ R2 = R
TOTAL
. Imposing this condition on the resistor val-
ues provides two equations that can be solved for the two
unknown resistor values. A value such as 1MΩ for R
TOTAL
is a reasonable choice since it keeps quiescent current to a
generally acceptable level while not causing any measurable
errors due to input bias currents. The larger the resistors, the
larger the potential errors due to input bias current (I
IN
). The
maximum recommended value of R
TOTAL
is 3MΩ.
Applying this criteria and rearranging the V
TH
expression to
solve for the resistor values gives:
R2
=
where V
REF
= 0.300V
(
R
TOTAL
)
(
V
REF
)
V
TH
therefore, solving for V
TH
results in
V
CORE(min)
0.950
V
TH
=
=
= 0.9268V
1.025
1.025
R1
=
R
TOTAL
−
R2
R
Application Example
Figure 1 below illustrates a hypothetical MIC2774L-23 ap-
plication in which the MIC2774L-23 is used to monitor the
core and I/O supplies of a high-performance CPU or DSP.
The core supply, V
CORE
, in the example is 1.0V ±5%. The
main power rail and I/O voltage, V
I/O
, is 2.5V ±5%. As shown
in Figure 1, the MIC2774 is powered by V
I/O
. The minimum
value of V
I/O
is 2.5V –5% = 2.375V; the maximum is 2.5V
+5% = 2.625V. This is well within the device’s supply range
of 1.5V to 5.5V.
Resistors R1 and R2 must be selected to correspond to the
V
CORE
supply of 1.0V. The goal is to insure that the core
supply voltage is adequate to insure proper operation, i.e.,
V
CORE
≥ (1.0V –5%) = 0.950V. Because there is always
a small degree of uncertainty due to the accuracy of the
resistors, variations in the devices’ voltage reference, etc.,
the threshold will be set slightly below this value. The po-
tential variation in the MIC2774’s voltage reference (V
REF
)
is specified as ±1.5%. The resistors chosen will have their
own tolerance specification. This example will assume the
use of 1% accurate resistors. The potential worst-case er-
ror contribution due to input bias current can be calculated
once the resistor values are chosen. If the guidelines above
regarding the maximum total value of R1+R2 are followed, this
error contribution will be very small thanks to the MIC2774’s
very low input bias current.
Solving for R1 and R2 using this value for V
TH
and the equa-
tions above yields:
R1 = 676.3kΩ
≈
673kΩ
R2 = 323.7kΩ
≈
324kΩ
The resulting circuit is shown in Figure 1.
Input Bias Current Effects
Now that the resistor values are known, it is possible to cal-
culate the maximum potential error due to input bias current,
I
IN
. As shown in the “Electrical Characteristics” table, the
maximum value of I
IN
is 10nA. (Note that the typical value
is a much smaller 5pA!) The magnitude of the offset caused
by I
IN
is given by:
V
ERROR
=
I
IN(max)
×
(
R1 || R2
)
=
V
ERROR
= ±
2.189
×
10
−
3
V =
2
V
ERROR
= ±
2.189mV
2
The typical error is about three orders of magnitude lower
than this - close to one
microvolt!
Generally, the error
due to input bias can be discounted. If it is to be taken
into account, simply adjust the target threshold voltage
downward by this amount and recalculate R1 and R2. The
resulting value will be very close to optimum. If accuracy
is more important than the quiescent current in the
resistors, simply reduce the value of R
TOTAL
to minimize
offset errors.
8
V
ERROR
= ±
1
×
10
−8
A
×
2.189
×
10
5
Ω
=
1×
2
M9999-102605
6
October 2005
MICREL [ MICREL SEMICONDUCTOR ]
