Bill Schweber, Freelance Journalist Profile

Articles

Gate drivers — the critical link in power-device performance: part 3

1 week ago | eeworldonline.com | Bill Schweber

This section will discuss some of the many subtleties of the gate driver and its power source. Gate-driver dc-dc converters have other unique issues. Among them are:1) Regulation: the load on the dc-dc converter is close to zero when the device is not switching. However, most conventional converters require a minimum load at all times; otherwise, their output voltage can increase dramatically, potentially reaching the gate breakdown level.
Consider the Classic Magneto for Battery-Free Power

1 week ago | eetimes.com | Bill Schweber

//php echo do_shortcode('[responsivevoice_button voice="US English Male" buttontext="Listen to Post"]') ?> Who or what is a magneto? A “magneto” is not just the powerful mutant who has the ability to generate and control magnetic fields, and first appeared in the debut issue of The X-Men in 1963. Instead, the engineering magneto is a basic electromechanical way to convert motion—usually rotary—into electrical power.
Busbars are simple in principle, complicated in practice: part 2

1 week ago | connectortips.com | Bill Schweber

These substantial conductors serve a vital role and must meet many conflicting constraints. This part explores additional bus-bar considerations. Part 1 can be found here. While some busbars are single conductors and carry only one power rail, there’s an increasing trend towards using laminated busbars, seen in Figure 1. These multilayer units carry two, three, or more independent power rails in parallel.
Gate drivers — the critical link in power-device performance: part 2

1 week ago | eeworldonline.com | Bill Schweber

Thus far, we have examined the general issue of power devices and their characteristics. This part goes into the details of the power-device gate driver. To drive current into the gate, the positive rail’s voltage should be high enough to ensure full saturation/enhancement of the power switch, but without exceeding the absolute maximum voltage for its gate.
Gate drivers — the critical link in power-device performance: part 1

1 week ago | eeworldonline.com | Bill Schweber

Effective MOSFET/IGBT-device switching depends on the gate driver and its power supply. From power supplies and motor drives to charging stations and myriad other applications, switching power semiconductors such as silicon (Si), silicon carbide (SiC), and gallium nitride (GaN) MOSFETs, as well as insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs), are the key to efficient power-system designs. However, to achieve maximum performance from the power device, an appropriate gate driver is needed.
New Tactile Switches Support Their Design-in Resurgence

1 week ago | electronicdesign.com | Bill Schweber

Why designers are rethinking their extreme reliance on touchscreens for the user interface. The features that are especially desired in tactile switches, in addition to basic contact closure/opening. New switch families provide needed tactile-switch attributes. Touchscreens are everywhere, although the term "touchscreen" is a somewhat misleading misnomer as they are actually "look first, then touch" screens.
Unique vacuum tube benefits from additive manufacturing

2 weeks ago | planetanalog.com | Bill Schweber

Talking about vacuum tubes in 2025 might seem like talking about the role of buggy whips in today’s transportation world; but that’s not the case. There’s no denying that these devices—called vacuum electron devices (VEDs) by their adherents—are ancient history with no mindshare for most design engineers. Yet vacuum tubes still have their role, primarily in RF and microwave/millimeter-wave applications.
Gate drivers — the critical link in power-device performance: part 3 - Power Electronic Tips

2 weeks ago | powerelectronictips.com | Bill Schweber

This section will discuss some of the many subtleties of the gate driver and its power source. Gate-driver dc-dc converters have other unique issues. Among them are:1) Regulation: the load on the dc-dc converter is close to zero when the device is not switching. However, most conventional converters require a minimum load at all times; otherwise, their output voltage can increase dramatically, potentially reaching the gate breakdown level.
Bus bars are simple in principle, complicated in practice: part 1

2 weeks ago | connectortips.com | Bill Schweber

Bus bars appear to be simple and low glamour in comparison to many other active and even passive components, and in some ways, they are. However, they are also sophisticated structures that require an understanding of voltage drop due to conductor resistance, materials science, thermal issues, mechanical joining, insulation, coating chemistry, and electrical safety and integrity tests.
"Fluid" Electrodes Enable Truly Flexible Batteries

2 weeks ago | electronicdesign.com | Bill Schweber

What you'll learn: The relative rigidity of batteries can be a problematic constraint when designing and packaging a product. This is especially the case for IoT-related applications such as wearables and IoT nodes, where the available space is limited and has an unusual shape or volume. While advances have been made toward flexible or somewhat conformable batteries, their rigid electrodes still present packaging limitations.