austriamicrosystems Unveils 8-bit Digital Potentiometer

austriamicrosystems announced that it expanded its digital potentiometer portfolio with the AS1506, an 256- tap SPI-interfaced nonvolatile digital potentiometer available with 10, 50 and 100kΩ resistance.

The AS1506 is suitable for the usage in low power environments, using a maximum of 500nA during standby and extraordinary low 200µA (max) during operation including the CMOS write current. Operating from a single supply from 2.7 to 5.5V the AS1506 offers an end-to end resistance temperature coefficient of 90ppm/°C. The AS1506 is claimed to deliver an excellent integral nonlinearity (INL) of ±0.5LSB (max) as well as outstanding differential nonlinearity (DNL) of ±0.5LSB (max).

The AS1506 digital potentiometer stores the wiper information in the integrated (High Endurance, Performance & Retention) EEPROM with what is claimed to be world leading numbers of write cycles and data retention time.

austriamicrosystems Hi-EPR EEPROM allows 10 million write cycles at 25°C and 1 million write cycles at 85°C which is said to be 50 times more then conventional high grade EEPROM. Additionally, the AS1506 delivers 150 years of data retention at 85°C storing the EEPROM information 15 times longer than standard high grade EEPROM, according to the company.

"The AS1506 offers several advantages over analog potentiometers and competition’s nonvolatile digital potentiometers," said Walter Moshammer, Marketing Director Standard Linear at austriamicrosystems. "Besides the obvious advantages of a digital potentiometer such as being vibration and shock proof, providing better resolution, small form factor, as well as increased overall performance, the AS1506 offers an outstanding EEPROM which is able to hold the stored information for decades, even in the harshest environments, and endure millions of write cycles."

The AS1506 is available in a small 8-pin TDFN 3x3mm packaging.