High-Speed USB Protection Device Squeezes Into Shrinking Portables

Sep 19, 2011 10:54 AM, MD&D News Staff

In addition to claiming position as the first such device to integrate protection against electrostatic discharge (ESD), over-temperature, over-voltage, and under-voltage calamities, the 2- by 2-mm TPD4S014 from Texas Instruments may be the industry’s smallest USB protection device for all four USB channels. For temperature protection, a switch turns off the power rail if junction temperature exceeds 150°C. Should the supply drop below 2.8 V or above 6.15 V, a load switch opens, preventing under- or over-voltage. Other features include high-level ESD protection with an immunity of +8-kV contact discharge and +15-kV air-gap discharge per IEC61000-4-2 system-level ESD immunity testing and compatibility with full- and high-speed USB. Available in a 10-pin, 4-mm2 DSQ SON package, the TPD4S014 costs $0.55 each/1000. A datasheet is available at www.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/tpd4s014.pdf.