Ten Fundamentals You Need to Know About Your DC Power Supply
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Keysight Technologies Ten Fundamentals You Need to Know About Your DC Power Supply Application Note Introduction Understanding how measurement tools operate can provide insight into how to improve testing methods. With modern performance and safety features in power supplies, the lexibility exists to create test setups that are simpler and more effective. Use these 10 fundamentals about your power supply to take advantage of these features. Contents 1 Program Your Power Supply Correctly to Operate in Constant Voltage or Constant Current Mode / 3 2 Use Remote Sense to Regulate Voltage at Your Load / 4 3 Use Your Power Supply to Measure DUT Current / 5 4 Connect Power Supply Outputs in Series or Parallel for More Power / 6 5 Minimize Noise From Your Power Supply to Your DUT / 7 6 Safeguard Your DUT Using Built-in Power Supply Protection Features / 8 7 Use Output Relays to Physically Disconnect Your DUT / 9 8 Capture Dynamic Waveforms Using a Power Supply’s Built-in Digitizer / 10 9 Create Time-Varying Voltages Using Power Supply List Mode / 11 10 Tips for Rack-Mounting Your Power Supply / 12 Glossary / 13 Resources / 14 2 DC Power Supply Fundamentals Program your Power Supply Correctly to Operate 1 in Constant Voltage or Constant Current Mode The output of a power supply can operate current limit setting. This operating mode Possible causes of UNR include: in either constant voltage (CV) mode or is known as constant current (CC). In –The power supply has an constant current (CC) mode depending on Figure 1, the power supply will operate on internal fault. the voltage setting, current limit setting, the vertical line IS with Vout = IS x R L. and load resistance. In most circum- –The AC input line voltage is stances, a power supply output operates Unregulated State below the specified range. in either CV or CC mode. However, there If a power supply is unable to regulate –The load resistance is R , are some unusual circumstances that will C its output voltage or output current, the the value at which the output cause the power supply to enter a third output will become unregulated and indi- will crossover from CV to CC, mode called unregulated (UNR) mode. cate unregulated (UNR) mode. Neither or CC to CV (see Figure 1). Understanding these three modes will the voltage nor the current will be at the make it easier to correctly program your –There is another source of power corresponding set point and the values power supply. connected across your power supply at which they settle are unpredictable. output, such as when outputs are While UNR mode can occur for a variety Constant Voltage used in parallel. of reasons, it is not very common. A power supply will operate in constant –The output is transitioning from CV voltage (CV) mode provided the load to CC, or CC to CV. This transition can does not require more current than the cause a momentary UNR. current limit setting. Based on Ohm’s law, V = I x R, maintaining a constant voltage CV operating line Vout while changing the load resistance RL = RC =Vs / I s requires the current to increase or decrease. As long as the current draw V Iout = Vs/R L is less than the current limit s RL = Load resistance setting, the power supply regulates the RC = Critical (crossover) resistance output at the voltage setting. In Figure 1, RL > RC V = Voltage setting the power supply will operate on the S I S = Current setting horizontal line Vs with Iout = Vs/R L. Constant Current CC operating line If the load resistance decreases, such RL < RC as when a DUT component fails, and the load resistance, R L, is less than R C, where R is the ratio of the power C I I supply voltage setting to the current s out limit setting, the power supply will Figure 1: Power supply output characteristic regulate the current instead. Again, Ohm’s law dictates a change in voltage if the current stays constant at the 3 DC Power Supply Fundamentals Use Remote Sense to Regulate 2 Voltage at Your Load Ideally, lead connections from your power As a general rule, for every 3-gauge –Do not twist or bundle sense leads supply to your load have no resistance. increase in your copper wire, the resis- together with load leads. In reality, lead resistance increases tance doubles. Since you must select the –Prevent an open circuit at the sense with lead length and wire gauge. The proper gauge wire to satisfy the current terminals, as they are part resulting effect when a supply delivers requirements of the load, remote sense of the output’s feedback path. current through the wire may decrease at the load will improve voltage regula- the voltage at the load. To compensate, tion without shortening lead length or - - Keysight Technologies, Inc. uses use remote sensing to correct for these decreasing wire gauge. internal sense protect resistors. voltage drops. These resistors prevent the output When you connect the remote sense ter- voltage from rising more than a Typically, a power supply is shipped minals to the load, the internal feedback few percent if the sense leads from the factory with the sense leads amplifier sees the voltage directly at the inadvertently open. connected locally at the output terminals. load, rather than at the output terminals. However, for setups with long load leads Since the control loop senses the voltage –Most supplies can compensate only or for complex setups with relays and directly at the load, the supply will keep for a maximum load lead drop of connectors, the voltage at the output the load voltage constant, regardless a few volts. terminals will not accurately represent of voltage drops caused by load lead To implement remote sense (Figure 3): the voltage at the load. (Figure 2) gauge, load lead length, output relays, or connectors. 1. Disconnect the sense terminal Depending on the gauge and length of connections from the main outputs. wire, the resistivity of your load connec- Remember the following when you use 2. Connect each sense terminal to tions could cause a much lower voltage remote sense: the proper polarity load contact. at your load than you want. High current –Use two-wire twisted shielded cable situations, for example, will invariably 3. If necessary, set the power supply for your sense leads. lead to significant voltage drops even to remote sense mode or 4-wire mode. with short load leads. Consider the –Connect the sense lead cable’s shield resistances of different gauges of to ground on only one end of the cable. copper wire in the following table: Wire gauge Resistance Figure 2: +S (AWG) (mΩ / ft) The effects of 6 feet + --- 22 16.1 of 14 AWG leads with +OUT Power 0.015 Ω + 20 10.2 sense connected to supply lead resistance the output terminals. programmed 5.0 V 10 A Load 4.7 V for 5 V --- 18 6.39 A 0.3 V drop develops --- --OUT + 16 4.02 over the leads (0.15 V per lead). 0.015 Ω 14 2.53 --S lead resistance 12 1.59 +OUT and --OUT 10 0.999 Table 1: Resistance in mΩ per foot +S for different wire gauges +OUT + --- Figure 3: Power 0.015 Ω Using remote sense supply lead resistance + 5.3 V to compensate for load programmed 10 A Load 5.0 V for 5 V --- lead voltage drop --- --OUT + 0.015 Ω lead resistance --S +OUT and --OUT 4 DC Power Supply Fundamentals Use Your Power Supply 3 to Measure DUT Current You can obtain an accurate DUT current In addition to these concerns, installing Power supply measurement specifica- measurement with an ammeter, a a current shunt requires you to break tions account for the errors that affect current shunt, or the built-in readback your circuit in order to connect the shunt an external shunt. Therefore, your power on your power supply. Ultimately, you in series. A current shunt installed in a supply readback may already be accurate should select one method over another rack-mount system may even require enough for most current measurement after considering the advantages and complex connections involving relays applications, particularly for currents disadvantages of each. More often than and switches. between 10% and 100% of the rated not, the current readback on your power output current of the supply. supply can provide you with the accuracy Built-in current readback you need for a measurement. Choose built-in current readback when You can avoid the difficulties involved you will benefit from these attributes: Ammeter with connecting current shunts by using a power supply’s built-in readback. –Reduction in connection A common way to measure DUT current Current readback on a power supply uses equipment – no need for relays, is to use a bench DMM set in ammeter an internal shunt, selected to comple- switching, and wiring mode. While an ammeter has the benefit ment the output rating of the supply. You –Simplicity of use of a specified accuracy, you must break do not need to disconnect the DUT or the circuit to insert the ammeter. A DMM connect a DMM. –Power supply provides readings also has a limit on the maximum current directly in amps Consider the level of measurement accu- you can measure, typically several amps. –Circuit disconnect not required racy you can expect with a high-quality External current shunt/DMM power supply (Table 2). –Specified accuracy – accuracy values already account for shunt errors You can also make current measurements Power supply –Synchronized measurements – with shunts.