选择正确的电压转换器不仅仅是为了达到峰值效率

　　选择正确的电压转换器不仅仅是为了达到峰值效率。

　　开关直流/直流电压变换器很受欢迎，因为它们提供了有效的功率转换，可以超过90%。这是一个优势，当输入功率是溢价，当很难得到热量（工程师共同设计的紧凑型便携式产品的挑战）。

　　关键的功率器件厂商提供的规格表出现几乎相同的产品，一个工程师只挑选开关变换器具有最高的从候选名单，符合他们产品的一般要求的峰值效率很诱人。然而，这将是一个错误，因为显然相同的转换器可以提供显着不同的性能。

　　本文认为功率损耗和相关热升高的主要影响是效率上的几个百分点的差别。文章接着讨论了如何根据负载模式，一个峰值效率较低，但平坦的效率曲线的转换器，很可能是一个特定的应用程序的更好的选择。

　　Beware of the power loss

　　Efficient voltage convertersare topical in electronics design circles because of the pressure on designers to minimize power consumption. Forthe designer of a battery-powered device， the challenge is obvious：maximizing battery life while providing good functionality. Less obvious， but still a major concern， is the requirement for designers of mains-powered equipment to meet various national and international regulations that mandate minimum supply efficiency.

　　The good news is that， due to increasingly clever design and the high performance of the switching and magnetic components of modern converters （see the TechZone article “The Inductor’s Role in Completing a Power Module-Based Solution”）， it is not difficult to locate a converter that offers a peak efficiency of 85 to 95 percent. That is a considerable improvement over thelinearregulators of yesteryear that could only deliver perhaps 60 percent of the input power to their output terminals （although contemporary low-dropout （LDO） products perform much better – see the TechZone article “Understanding theAdvantages and Disadvantages of Linear Regulators”）。