New Industry Products

Exar Releases Highest Intensity Supercapacitor LED Flash Driver

December 13, 2009 by Jeff Shepard

Exar Corp. unveiled the XRP6840, which the company says is the industry’s highest intensity LED flash driver with full management of supercapacitor based flash technology. The XRP6840 delivers up to 4.3A flash pulse which is well suited for high resolution mobile phone cameras and standalone digital cameras.

"The XRP6840 is the best-in-class driver for applications that require supercapacitor technology," said Eric Pittana, Director of Marketing, Power Product Line. "It is easy to use, highly programmable and cost effective for high intensity LED flash applications. Exar is at the forefront of this emerging technology offering an innovative solution with virtually no external components."

Increased resolution in camera phones and standalone digital cameras requires a high intensity LED flash current beyond the capabilities of standard lithium-ion batteries. The XRP6840 alleviates such peak current requirements by constantly sourcing a low controlled current from the system’s battery to charge a supercapacitor which in turn provides the power for peak load functions. Charging and discharging parameters of the supercapacitor are completely managed by the XRP6840 and fully programmable via an industry standard I²C interface. The XRP6840 supports high peak current functions in battery operated portable systems while significantly increasing battery life.

The XRP6840 combines and manages in a single device all the functions necessary to implement a supercapacitor based LED flash driver solution. Supporting programmable current in torch and flash modes, the device comes in both two and three channel versions for increased design flexibility and supports up to 600mA of constant charging current. Built around tri-mode charge pump architecture and operating at 2.4MHz, the XRP6840 provides inrush current control and device protection circuitry while a standard I2C interface provides a seamless integration into any system.

The XRP6840 is available now in volume quantities in both two and three channel configurations. Both versions are offered in a RoHS compliant, halogen free 20-pin thin QFN package. Pricing starts at $1.09 for 1K units.