Nexperia introduces a new generation of low-voltage analog switches

     Nexperia, a global specialist in high-capacity production of basic semiconductor devices, announced the launch of a new family of 4 - and 8-channel analog switches dedicated to monitoring and protecting 1.8V electronic systems. The family of multiplexers includes AEC-Q100 certified models for automotive applications, as well as standard versions for a wider range of consumer and industrial applications, such as sensor monitoring and diagnostics, enterprise computing, and home appliances.

     When using analog switches, designers often need to use additional level converters because the voltage of the control circuit does not match the supply voltage of the analog switch. In contrast, the control pins in the NMUX1308 and NMUX1309 switches can be independent of their supply voltage range, which means that there is no additional use of components for level switching operations, saving board space and reducing costs.

     When Nexperia designed this series of analog switches, it added some additional features to improve the safety of the entire system. With fail-safe logic, the control pin is able to set the bias before the system is powered on and maintain the preset bias even after the system is powered off. This eliminates the need for a power sequence start between the analog switch and the system microcontroller unit (MCU). With the power off protection function, the analog pin can preset the bias before the system is powered on and maintain the preset bias state after the system is powered off. This design eliminates the constraints associated with power sequence startup of the analog switch and its lower power rails supporting analog signal and ADC circuits. The NMUX130X does both, preventing power from being reverted to the power rail through the pins of the analog switch.

     The NMUX1308 and NMUX1309 analog switching devices have integrated flow control circuits that limit the output voltage offset on the active channel to less than 5 mV when an overvoltage event occurs on the disabled signal channel. This eliminates the need to add additional external diodes and resistor networks, saving board space and reducing costs.

     The NMUX1308 and NMUX1309 analog switches, including 8-channel and dual 4-channel devices, are available in standard (-40 ° C to +85 ° C) and vehicle-rated (-40 ° C to +125 ° C) versions and are available in leadless and leadless packages, including leadless packages that support AOI (Automatic Optical Inspection) for automotive applications.