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HIL platform automates tests to validate hardware behavior

EDN Network - 59 хв 50 секунд тому

A new hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing framework claims to make automated, hardware-validated testing accessible to every team by offering engineering resources previously available only at large enterprises. This new testing framework—called BootLoop Test—unifies bench, continuous integration (CI), and end-of-line validation on a single platform.

Though HIL testing is one of the most valuable practices in the hardware world, it’s mostly adopted without any rigorous testing infrastructure. That’s because building a hardened HIL framework requires dedicated test engineers, months of custom development, and specialized skills that most firmware teams don’t have.

Consequently, many companies either forgo testing entirely or rely on ad hoc scripts and manual validation processes. That, in turn, slows development cycles, misses errors, and causes fragile release processes.

BootLoop, a startup that provides an AI platform for firmware and embedded development, addresses this problem by offering a complete HIL platform that spans the entire embedded product lifecycle. As a result, a hardware company can go from zero testing infrastructure to a fully automated pipeline in days.

“Most hardware companies know they need more rigorous firmware testing,” said Noah Pacik-Nelson, CEO of BootLoop. “They just don’t have the time or the tools. We built BootLoop Test, so they don’t have to choose between shipping quickly and shipping robust code.”

The HIL test platform helps teams to create a fully automated pipeline in days. Source: BootLoop

BootLoop’s agent ingests PCB design files and component datasheets to automatically generate tests that validate real hardware behavior down to the register level. The agent connects to serial monitors, debuggers, and test equipment to iterate until the code runs clean. So, test teams can go from zero testing infrastructure to a full CI pipeline on real hardware in hours by using a single command install.

BootLoop—a Y Combinator company founded by SpaceX and MIT Media Lab engineers—covers the entire embedded development lifecycle, including development, testing, and debugging. The company was founded in 2025 and is based in San Francisco.

Related Content

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Наставниця Ганна Шевлякова: "Вмотивовані учні надихають рухатися вперед"

Новини - 2 години 1 хв тому
Наставниця Ганна Шевлякова: "Вмотивовані учні надихають рухатися вперед"
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Інформація КП пн, 06/01/2026 - 18:00
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З тезою, що освіта має відповідати запитам суспільства, погоджуються всі учасники освітнього процесу. Щоби підготувати компетентного фахівця, виш зацікавлений залучати на навчання здібних вмотивованих абітурієнтів. І тут для ЗВО широке поле діяльності – від створення неповторного іміджу закладу до індивідуальної роботи зі старшокласниками.

QPT opens customer demos of MicroDyno test platform

Semiconductor today - 2 години 18 хв тому
Independent power electronics company Quantum Power Transformation (QPT) Ltd of Cambridge, UK — which was founded in 2019 and develops gallium nitride (GaN)-based electric motor controls — has opened customer demonstrations of its MicroDyno test platform, now updated with full field oriented control (FOC) and real-time dynamic cogging correction. The platform is available for in-person demos at QPT’s new R&D facility in Edinburgh, with remote-access demos available for international customers unable to travel...

BluGlass executes $1m option shortfall agreement, plus potential extra $500,000

Semiconductor today - 2 години 25 хв тому
BluGlass Ltd of Silverwater, Australia — which develops and manufactures gallium nitride (GaN) visible laser diodes based on its proprietary low-temperature, low-hydrogen remote-plasma chemical vapor deposition (RPCVD) technology — has secured a firm commitment of $1m, with the potential to be raised to $1.5m in total, following the execution of a shortall agreement in relation to options with an exercise price of $0.26 which expired on 31 May...

Some kind of triple photodiode I found inside a CD/DVD reader

Reddit:Electronics - 2 години 58 хв тому
Some kind of triple photodiode I found inside a CD/DVD reader

Macro shot taken using Fujifilm XH2 and Laowa 65mm F2.8.

submitted by /u/Nightrach
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🎥 Круглий стіл «Механізм безпеки», присвячений механізованому розмінуванню в Україні

Новини - 4 години 43 хв тому
🎥 Круглий стіл «Механізм безпеки», присвячений механізованому розмінуванню в Україні
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kpi пн, 06/01/2026 - 15:18
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У КПІ ім. Ігоря Сікорського відбувся круглий стіл «Механізм безпеки», присвячений механізованому розмінуванню в Україні. До дискусії долучилися представники Міністерства оборони, Міністерства економіки, міжнародних донорів, українських виробників та операторів протимінної діяльності.

TP-Link’s Tapo P105: A Kasa EP10 clone, or evolutionarily derived?

EDN Network - 5 годин 1 хв тому

Two devices. Same manufacturer. Similar cosmetics. (Near-)identical dimensions. Different branding. What about the insides?

After taking a month’s break from the TP-Link smart plug family teardown cadence, I’m back for more. This time, we’ll be looking inside the Tapo P105, one member of a four-pack, to be exact.

Back in early December, I’d noted that it was a “seeming Tapo equivalent to the Kasa EP10”, which I’d subsequently dissected for early March publication, and indeed there are many similarities between them:

  • The Kasa EP10 has published dimensions of 2.36 x 1.50 x 1.21 in (60 x 38 x 33 mm), while those of the Tapo P105 are near-identical (in imperial units, that is, identical in metric): 2.4 × 1.5 × 1.3 in (60 × 38 × 33 mm)
  • They both support switching load currents of up to 15 A
  • And they both support Amazon (Alexa), Google (Assistant and Gemini) and Samsung (SmartThings) smart device protocols, in addition to company-proprietary schemes.
A smart plug by any other name…

The last bit of that last bullet, however, is indicative of a minor-at-least deviation between them. The earlier device was the Kasa EP10; this one’s the Tapo P105. Once again requoting my early December piece, appropriately titled “Tapo or Kasa: Which TP-Link ecosystem best suits ya?”:

“Kasa” was TP-Link’s original smart home device brand, predominantly marketed and sold in North America. The company, for reasons that remain unclear to me and others, subsequently, in parallel, rolled out another product line branded as “Tapo” across the rest of the world. Even today, if you visit the “smart plugs” product page on TP-Link’s website, you’ll see a mix of Kasa- and Tapo-branded products. The same goes for wall switches, light bulbs, cameras, and other TP-Link smart home devices. And historically, you needed to have both mobile apps installed to fully control a mixed-brand setup in your home.

Fortunately, TP-Link has made some notable improvements of late, from which I’m reading between the lines and deducing that a full transition to Tapo is the ultimate intended outcome. As I tested and confirmed for myself just a couple of days ago, it’s now possible to manage both legacy Kasa and newer Tapo devices using the same Tapo app; they also leverage a common TP-Link user account…They all remain visible to Alexa, too, and there’s a separate Tapo skill that can also be set up…along with, as with Kasa, support for other services.

A perusal of the outside cosmetics also reveals some differences. The Kasa EP10’s status LED is integrated within the left-side-located multi-function on/off, pairing and reset switch:

whereas the Tapo P105’s status LED is in the top-left corner of the front panel, with the left-side switch now non-illuminated:

…would switch as sweet?

The illumination locational variance between the two devices presumably results in at least some internal-layout deviance between them, but what about the building-block components themselves? Reiterating what I’ve asked before in similar teardown comparison projects, how different (if at all) are these two product generations from a hardware standpoint, versus TP-Link relying solely on software-only differentiation schemes? Let’s find out.

I’ll start with a conceptual internal view to whet your appetite:

As mentioned previously, today’s patient was sourced from a four-pack that I’d acquired during a 2025 Thanksgiving-week Amazon Warehouse-now-Renewed promotion for $18.06 ($25.80 minus 30%). I’ll start with some outer box shots, as usual accompanied by a 0.75″ (19.1 mm) diameter U.S. penny for size comparison purposes.

The “US/1.26” bit in the upper right corner of the product label in the following photo, based on my past experiences with TP-Link gear, is suggestive of hardware v1.26 inside the box. I’ve mentioned before both the company’s tendency for hardware-iteration profusion and the inter-version compatibility problems that can result from it. That said, the Tapo P105 product page on TP-Link’s website lists only hardware versions v1 and v1.2 (but not v1.26) for both the one- and four-pack bundle variants. Dive into the product support page, on the other hand, and four to-date hardware versions are listed there (none of them v1.2, ironically):

  • v1
  • v1.26 (mine)
  • v1.60, and
  • v1.80

So…🤷‍♂️

Onward…

Time to dive inside…

The first things I found were a piece of protective foam, a slip of quick-start literature (PDF), and a small sheet of clear plastic.

What I subsequently realized was that the latter was normally folded in thirds and wrapped around two of the smart plugs. Its sibling was still in place, thereby tipping me off that (at least) one of the two lower devices in the box was removed (and presumably tried out) pre-return by the original purchaser.

Let there (not) be blood

I went with the one in the lower left corner as my dissection victim. Front:

Left side (and upside-down, I subsequently realized):

Back (note the screw head; hold that thought):

Right side (once again upside-down, too):

Top:

And last but not least, the most informative of the lot, the bottom (the penny’s temporarily taped in place from underneath, in case you were wondering):

There’s that US/1.26 notation again, along with the always useful FCC ID (2AXJ4P105):

Remember that screw head I noted earlier? Buh-bye:

I’ve taken apart a few of these devices’ cases by now, so I’ve figured out how to do so without maiming myself like I did the first time (and yes, I realize I’ve just jinxed myself by writing this):

Mission accomplished.

SoC swap motivation: Processing necessity or product availability?

And now for the perspectives you all care about:

The switch, as noted before, is still on the left side:

but whereas with the Kasa EP10, it had been mounted to the same mini-PCB that contained the system SoC:

it’s now standalone, with the mini-PCB lodged in one corner, as already suggested by the earlier-shown conceptual teardown image and presumably to improve wireless connectivity:

The SoC itself is also evolved, from the Realtek RTL87210 to the same dual-core RTL8720 (PDF) found in the Kasa EP25, whose teardown was published in late March.

Note once again the presence of an antenna connector on the module, not used in this particular system implementation.

A relay merry-go-round

Once again on the right side is the blue-colored relay:

this time a Churod A16-V-105DA2F (PDF):

Top and bottom side perspectives follow, for your “edumacation” purposes:

And alas, as with its TP-Link-developed predecessors, I was unable to share with you any perspectives of the PCB backside, although as you might be able to tell from the glimpses in the following shots, there’s not much there to share anyway.

As usual, the FCC certification documentation provides additional visual insights.

And that’s “all” I’ve got for you today! Next up in the TP-Link smart plug dissection series, again as I initially alluded to back in December, I plan to tear down the Tapo P125, which builds on the Tapo P105 foundation with Apple HomeKit (now Apple Home) “smart” support. It’s akin to the earlier Kasa EP10-to-EP25 transition, albeit absent added energy monitoring features this time. Until then, and as always, I welcome your thoughts in the comments!

Brian Dipert is the associate editor, as well as a contributing editor, at EDN.

Related Content

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Essential Performance Meets Real-time Control in Microchip’s dsPIC33CK

ELE Times - 5 годин 52 хв тому
Microchip’s dsPIC33CK Value Line DSCs offer a streamlined design for cost-sensitive applications and consistent pricing regardless of order size.

Designers of real-time control applications need to balance performance and peripheral integration while keeping system cost and complexity low. To address these challenges, Microchip Technology Inc. introduces the dsPIC33CK Value Line family of Digital Signal Controllers (DSCs) to provide essential real-time control at a competitive price point. By combining up to 100 MHz deterministic processing, high-resolution pulse-width modulation (PWM), and a 12-bit analog-to-digital converter (ADC), Value Line DSCs support motor Field Oriented Control (FOC), touch, and precision sensing applications without the added cost of unnecessary features.

Value Line device dsPIC33CK integrates a balance of peripherals that enable designers to consolidate multiple system functions onto a single device, helping reduce external component count, printed circuit board footprint, and overall Bill-Of-Materials (BoM) cost. With scalable program flash memory options ranging from 32 KB to 256 KB, and compatibility across the broader dsPIC33CK family, Value Line DSCs support scalability while offering migration paths for future needs.

“Not every real-time control design needs a high-end solution; many just need dependable performance at the right cost,” said Joe Thomsen, corporate vice president of Microchip’s digital signal controller business unit.

The dsPIC33CK Value Line delivers the essentials designers rely on most while eliminating complexity and helping provide a straightforward path to building capable, reliable systems without paying for features they don’t need. Offering consistent pricing at any volume makes it easier for customers to plan, scale, and control long-term costs. The dsPIC33CK Value Line family offers consistent and competitive pricing across various purchase volumes, helping simplify device selection during early-stage evaluation and production planning. Automotive-grade reliability, including AEC-Q100 Grade 1 qualification and built-in security features for implementing secure boot and secure firmware updates, helps enable use in industrial, automotive, consumer, and medical applications where dependable real-time operation is required.

Value Line DSCs provide up to 2 ns PWM resolution across eight channels, a 12-bit ADC supporting up to 2 MSPS, on-chip analog comparators with a 12-bit digital-to-analog converter (DAC), and a comprehensive set of communications peripherals including CAN FD, Local Interconnect Network (LIN), Single Edge Nibble Transmission (SENT), Universal Asynchronous Receiver-Transmitter (UART), Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI), and I²C. Together with Microchip’s established dsPIC33CK DSC ecosystem, these capabilities help designers implement precise, reliable real-time control functions within a single device, simplifying system design while supporting use in demanding applications that require long-term dependability and cost efficiency. Visit the website to learn more about Microchip’s full portfolio of digital signal controllers.

Development Tools

To accelerate evaluation and development, Microchip offers a low-cost dsPIC33CK Value Line Curiosity Nano evaluation kit featuring an onboard debugger, eliminating the need for an external programming or debugging tool. The evaluation platform can be used with Microchip’s Curiosity Nano base for Click Boards and the Curiosity Nano touch adapter board for touch-based applications. A Motor Control Dual Inline Module (DIM) is also available to support rapid prototyping of motor control designs. Value Line DSCs are compatible with the MPLAB development ecosystem, including the MPLAB XC-DSC Pro Compiler.

About Microchip Technology

Microchip Technology Inc. is a broadline supplier of semiconductors, and the headquarters is in Chandler, Arizona. It is known for innovative design, easier through total system solutions that address critical challenges at the intersection of emerging technologies and durable end markets. Its easy-to-use development tools and comprehensive product portfolio support customers throughout the design process, from concept to completion. TMicrochip offers outstanding technical support and delivers solutions across the industrial, automotive, consumer, aerospace and defense, communications, and computing markets. For more information, visit the Microchip website at www.microchip.com.

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Infineon’s SECORA Connect X and SECORA Wallet Bring Secure Contactless Payment to Smart Wearables

ELE Times - 7 годин 3 хв тому

Infeneon’s SECORA brings contactless payment to a smart watch and smart ring, which offers fast, convenient, and secure payment technology. With up to 4 billion devices with NFC connectivity by the year 2030, and up to 700 million wearables. The demand for contactless payment is growing rapidly. Infineon Technologies AG introduces SECORA Connect X, a ready-to-integrate solution that enables customers to transform smart wearables into fully functional payment devices. A combination of Infineon’s new SECORA Wallet with SECORA Token Requestor linked to Mastercard (MDES) and Visa (VTS), enabling the digitization of cards and the creation of a custom-brand wallet app. This new SECORA one-stop shop for wearable payment accelerates time-to-market through seamless integration and certification, while offering flexible design, card tokenization, and secured payment functionality for any active wearable.

“SECORA one-stop-shop turns wearables into payment devices certified by Visa and Mastercard with worldwide acceptance at all contactless POS terminals, without the need for a phone or digital wallet,” says Tolgahan Yildiz, Head of the Trusted Mobile Connectivity and Transactions Product Line at Infineon. “Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) can now launch their own branded payment services across a wide range of smart wearables, leveraging our powerful and secure products.”

Comprehensive Solutions for Secure Payment in Smart Wearables

SECORA Connect X is a highly efficient and secure payment solution for active smart wearables, including smart rings, sports watches, and fitness trackers. The solution features a Secure Element that enables contactless payment with Mastercard, Visa, and many other NFC applications, with payment credentials securely stored on the chip, not in the cloud. As the smallest NFC payment card emulation device on the market, SECORA Connect X provides extremely low power consumption for longer battery life and lower costs thanks to fewer external electronic components. Its compact design fits into any wearable design, regardless of size, shape, or material. Java Card and GlobalPlatform standards support seamless integration through comprehensive development tools, while pre-certified applets and 1 MB of memory allow developers to create custom NFC- and Bluetooth-enabled applications.

In addition, SECORA Wallet and SECORA Token Requestor enable any Secure Element-based smart wearable to support EMVCo payment functionality via card digitization. As a Token Requestor, Infineon can connect directly with payment services such as Mastercard or Visa to request and manage payment tokens, removing Primary Account Numbers (PANs) from the payment chain for added security.

The payment tokenization process stores credit and debit cards directly on the Secure Element, adding an extra layer of security without relying on the cloud. The tokenize wearable is accepted globally at all contactless-enabled POS terminals, without the need for a phone or third-party wallet services. The integrated white-label software development kit (SDK) allows full branding flexibility and frictionless integration into existing OEM apps. SECORA Wallet supports both iOS and Android devices, enabling wide accessibility for end users.

Complementary Solution for IoT

SECORA Connect X and SECORA Connect E are efficient in connecting IoT devices such as AR/VR headsets, laptops/tablets, gaming consoles, and PC accessories. Infineon delivers a full-service offering, from end-to-end design to deployment, and contributes its expertise to a wide range of technical and payment industry bodies, including EMVCo, FiRa, GlobalPlatform, ISO, Java Card Forum, NFC Forum, and Calypso Network Association. As a result, OEMs adopting SECORA solutions benefit from industry-leading security, compliance, and innovation.

Availability

The market launch is planned for Money2020 in Amsterdam from June 2–4, 2026. Demonstrations will take place at the Infineon booth (booth 1C183, entrance F), and Infineon’s experts will be available to provide further information. More information is available at https://www.infineon.com/applications/security-solutions/payment-solutions/one-stop-shop-wearable-payments.

 

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Nichia NVSU233B 365nm UV LED under macro magnification

Reddit:Electronics - 7 годин 49 хв тому
Nichia NVSU233B 365nm UV LED under macro magnification

Captured using Fujifilm XH2 and Laowa 65mm F2.8.

UV module taken from a Convoy S21A light

submitted by /u/Nightrach
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The pulse of power: Mastering the PWM relay

EDN Network - 9 годин 2 хв тому

Imagine a component that combines the heavy-duty muscle of a power relay with the surgical precision of a digital signal. That is the essence of a pulse width modulation (PWM) relay. While traditional switches are often strictly binary, the integration of pulse width modulation allows engineers to go beyond simple “on-off” control, enabling significant power savings and reduced heat signatures.

The “PWM relay” myth

While high-speed switching is often associated with the solid-state relay (SSR), the real magic happens when applying these pulses to a standard electromechanical relay (EMR). By modulating the “hold current” of an EMR coil, you can prevent overheating and drastically extend the life of your hardware. Whether you are managing automotive solenoids or optimizing industrial control panels, understanding the synergy between PWM and EMR is the key to transforming a basic mechanical switch into a sophisticated, energy-efficient power management tool.

However, if you head to an electronics distributor, looking for a “PWM relay,” you will likely hit a dead end. You cannot easily buy a dedicated PWM-enabled or PWM-driven EMR off the shelf because PWM is not a physical feature of the relay itself; it’s a control strategy applied by the external circuit.

To achieve this, you typically need a devoted relay driver or a microcontroller to manage the signal. By sending a high-frequency pulse to a standard, inexpensive EMR, you effectively turn a “dumb” mechanical switch into a “smart” energy-saver. While an SSR is natively capable of high-speed switching for load modulation, using PWM with a traditional EMR is specifically about optimizing the coil’s efficiency, allowing you to reap the benefits of mechanical isolation without the drawback of a roasting-hot solenoid.

The “holding current” tweak

Nowadays electromechanical relays are widely used across automation systems because they enable a low-power signal to control a high-power circuit. Yet, the conventional method of relay operation is relatively energy-intensive, often producing excess heat and demanding a sizeable power supply. In practice, energizing a relay requires more power than simply holding it in the active state.

This opens the door to efficiency gains: by applying pulse width modulation to the coil’s holding current, we can reduce the duty cycle and thereby lower the average current. The result is decreased power consumption, less heat generation, and improved thermal management—particularly valuable in applications that employ banks of relays.

As a quick design example, begin by switching the relay driver MOSFET fully on to apply voltage to the coil for at least 100 ms. During this initial energizing phase, set the duty cycle to 100% to ensure the MOSFET is fully on, and the relay pulls in reliably.

Once the relay is engaged, transition to PWM control with a reduced duty cycle—say 50%—to sustain the relay state while cutting power consumption. This approach maintains functionality while significantly lowering average current draw, reducing heat, and improving overall efficiency.

Figure 1 Basic schematic illustrates PWM control for lowering relay coil holding voltage. Source: Author

As an aside, while current is the physical mechanism at play, “holding voltage” is a very common industry term because engineers often think in terms of the voltage applied to the circuit.

Practical switching: EMRs and PWM

On the workbench, additional considerations arise when using PWM to drive EMRs.

In conventional relay designs, the nominal coil voltage must be continuously applied to keep the relay energized, which reduces overall energy efficiency. By contrast, PWM-driven relays can operate with reduced effective coil voltage, significantly lowering power consumption, an advantage in energy-conscious applications.

PWM drivers regulate the effective voltage by adjusting the duty cycle of a DC signal at a fixed frequency. A quick note: Duty cycle is usually given as a percentage, while duty ratio is the same concept expressed as a fraction. Relay coils, being inductive, respond to duty-cycle transitions with current fluctuations. The resulting ripple depends on coil inductance, suppression circuitry, PWM frequency, voltage level, and duty cycle.

Best practice is to begin with a 100% duty cycle until the relay pulls in and stabilizes. The required time varies with relay type and excess voltage but typically falls between 100–500 milliseconds. Afterward, the duty cycle can be reduced to maintain holding current.

Higher PWM frequencies reduce ripple, allowing lower effective coil voltages while keeping other parameters constant. Frequencies in the 20–100 kHz range are generally recommended. Since effective coil voltage equals the product of supply voltage and duty cycle, tight regulation is essential. Even small supply variations demand rapid duty-cycle adjustment—within a few milliseconds—to prevent the effective voltage from dropping below the relay’s minimum requirement.

For reliable performance, coil current must always exceed the holding current plus a margin for shock and vibration. If current falls below this threshold, the armature may release, causing repeated pull-in cycles. Such instability can lead to humming noise, unintended contact opening under load, or even contact welding.

Notably, an increasing range of EMRs now support PWM-regulated holding currents to improve thermal management and efficiency. By modulating the duty cycle once the armature is seated, these relays minimize steady-state power dissipation. The Omron G2RL-1A-E-PW1 exemplifies this trend, featuring a coil architecture optimized for PWM and reduced-voltage holding.

Figure 2 The G2RL-1A-E-PW1 relay utilizes PWM control to minimize coil power consumption and heat. Source: Omron

What is more, dedicated PWM current controllers like DRV110 and DRV120 are specifically engineered to optimize relay and solenoid operation through precise waveform regulation. These ICs rapidly ramp the current to a peak level to ensure the plunger or contactor fully seats.

Once actuation is confirmed, they transition to a significantly lower hold current, which maintains the magnetic field while drastically reducing power dissipation. By managing this peak-to-hold transition automatically, these controllers prevent thermal overhead and extend the operating life of the inductive load.

Figure 3 A prewired DRV120 module empowers makers and experimenters to slash relay power consumption by automatically transitioning from pull-in to hold current. Source: tindie

Clever pulses never stop

Where does this leave us? Whether through basic RC mechanisms, dedicated integrated solutions, or the efficiency gains of PWM applied to electromechanical relays, engineers have a wide range of proven strategies to reduce relay energy consumption.

This is more significant nowadays in the era of EVs and e-mobility, where every watt saved translates into extended range and smarter system design. Yet beyond the established lies the experiment, where unproven methods await bold exploration.

Energy efficiency is not just about saving power; it’s about sparking possibilities, and the next breakthrough may come from your own trial and error. If you have worked with PWM-driven electromechanical relays or discovered alternative approaches, share your insights in the comments and help expand the collective knowledge base for engineers everywhere.

T. K. Hareendran is a self-taught electronics enthusiast with a strong passion for innovative circuit design and hands-on technology. He develops both experimental and practical electronic projects, documenting and sharing his work to support fellow tinkerers and learners. Beyond the workbench, he dedicates time to technical writing and hardware evaluations to contribute meaningfully to the maker community.

Related Content

The post The pulse of power: Mastering the PWM relay appeared first on EDN.

Qorvo drops Cascaded Switches with New Wideband 5G High-Isolation Family

ELE Times - 10 годин 34 хв тому

Qorvo, a leading global provider of connectivity and power solutions, today announces a new family of RF switches that simplifies multi-band radio architectures. Spanning 50 MHz to 10 GHz, the family reduces component count, improves signal integrity, and enables more efficient RF system design across 5G infrastructure, industrial, drone, and test applications.

As 5G radios expand to support wider bandwidths and more frequency bands, including emerging spectrum such as FR3, designers face increasing challenges maintaining isolation and signal integrity without adding size, loss, and complexity. Many current designs rely on cascaded switch architectures or multiple narrowband devices, increasing insertion loss, degrading linearity and signal integrity, and adding board space and design effort.

“Designers no longer have to rely on cascaded switch architectures to achieve high isolation. We’re delivering that performance in a single device across a very wide bandwidth,” said Debbie Gibson, general manager of Qorvo’s infrastructure business. This approach reduces insertion loss, maintains signal linearity, and simplifies design, improving receiver performance in applications such as digital pre-distortion (DPD) feedback.

Qorvo’s new QPC6144 is a SP4T wideband switch that delivers greater than 65 dB isolation in a single device. Complementing this capability, the QPC6122 (SP2T) and QPC6188 (SP4T) provide wideband absorptive switching across 50 MHz to 10 GHz, enabling a single platform approach to RF routing. These devices reduce component count and simplify design while maintaining low insertion loss and strong linearity across wide bandwidths for calibration paths, general signal routing, and multi-band operation.

The new family of devices forms a dual switching platform that supports both high-isolation and general-purpose routing. By consolidating switching functions into fewer components, engineers can reduce BOM complexity, simplify layouts, and accelerate development across multiple applications.

Product Key Role Solves Typical Use
QPC6144 High-isolation switching Eliminates cascaded switches with >65 dB isolation in a single device DPD feedback, calibration paths, high-isolation paths in 5G radios, and advanced drone communications
QPC6122 Compact wideband switching Reduces component count while maintaining low insertion loss and signal linearity across wide bandwidths Calibration paths, space-constrained RF routing in compact RF modules, and drones
QPC6188 Flexible wideband routing Simplifies multi-path RF routing while maintaining low loss and signal linearity across multiple bands Switching networks in infrastructure, industrial, drone, and test system applications

Samples are available through Qorvo. Visit the Qorvo IMS hub for more information.

About Qorvo

Qorvo supplies innovative semiconductor solutions that make a better world possible.  It combines product and technology leadership, systems level expertise, and global manufacturing scale to quickly solve customers’ most complex technical challenges.  Qorvo serves diverse high-growth segments of large global markets, including automotive, consumer, defense & aerospace, industrial & enterprise, and infrastructure. and mobile.  Visit www.qorvo.com to learn how a diverse and innovative team.

The post Qorvo drops Cascaded Switches with New Wideband 5G High-Isolation Family appeared first on ELE Times.

Latest issue of Semiconductor Today now available

Semiconductor today - Ндл, 05/31/2026 - 22:43
For coverage of all the key business and technology developments in compound semiconductors and advanced silicon materials and devices over the last month...

I just added rgb to my ram:3

Reddit:Electronics - Ндл, 05/31/2026 - 14:46
3

I added RGB backlighting to my RAM stick to get +20 fps.

submitted by /u/mmSTEA
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heart shaped LED

Reddit:Electronics - Ндл, 05/31/2026 - 03:00
heart shaped LED

This is a heart-shaped LED keychain I made.

submitted by /u/Federal_Door_9998
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Janky self-oscillating switching LED driver

Reddit:Electronics - Сбт, 05/30/2026 - 20:48
Janky self-oscillating switching LED driver

My attempt at making a really minimal switching LED driver (as lean as possible without "abusing" components), for a flashlight or something.

I had a lot of fun optimizing it without abusing strange nonlinear effects in components - I would guess the minimum parts you'd need are a choke, (obviously) an LED, sense resistor, flyback diode and 2 transistors (minimum required to create hysteresis).

If you were going to use it with 12 volts of Vdd, the component values would be about 470 uH, 10 ohm shunt, 1k pull up resistor, 10k pot, and a feedback resistor in the tens of kohm, this should yield an LED current of a couple hundred milliamps.

Let me know if you can remove any more components, or if you find it useful somewhere!

submitted by /u/DmitryE
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PCB etching CNC

Reddit:Electronics - Сбт, 05/30/2026 - 20:40
PCB etching CNC

This is a laser I’ve made for milled blank double sided boards with mounting holes for alignment. Previously it’s worked for single sided pcb & now I’ve ben working on making a easy system for double sided & still working on a different homing system for easier flipping of the board. The etching fluid I use hydrogen peroxide with hcl. Main board ESP32, gcode sender I use is laser GRBL , where I just insert a screenshot of my traces and resize based on the dimensions of the blank. It’s generally very easy the most challenging part is still aligning, each board takes about 1hr from blank to etched with no drilling & 80% of time is on waiting.

Project files:
https://grabcad.com/library/pcb-laser-v2-1

I’d appreciate a like if anyone uses GrabCAD, it helps my career :) , any feedback or ideas here are also very appreciated!
Still working on V3 with its own firmware for aligning and faster motion, I will likely be done with that in a few months if anyone is interested! I’ll make a update. If anyone decides to make this machine buy a cover for fumes and light protection!

submitted by /u/Mediocre-Advisor-728
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Weekly discussion, complaint, and rant thread

Reddit:Electronics - Сбт, 05/30/2026 - 18:00

Open to anything, including discussions, complaints, and rants.

Sub rules do not apply, so don't bother reporting incivility, off-topic, or spam.

Reddit-wide rules do apply.

To see the newest posts, sort the comments by "new" (instead of "best" or "top").

submitted by /u/AutoModerator
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