New Industry Products

Linear Technology Intros LTC4065L Li-Ion Battery Charger

November 22, 2005 by Jeff Shepard

Linear Technology Corp. (LTC, Milpitas, CA) introduced the LTC4065L, a fully integrated standalone linear battery charger that charges single coin cell lithium-ion (Li-Ion) batteries up to 250 mA without overheating the device or surrounding components. This full-featured IC offers a 4.2 V, ±0.5 percent accurate float voltage, 5 percent charge current accuracy, timer termination, and C/10 detection, and is housed in a miniature 2 mm x 2 mm DFN package. A complete solution requires only two discrete components (input capacitor and a charge current program resistor) and fits into a 2.5 mm x 2.7 mm x 0.75 mm form factor. Its small size and ability to regulate low charge currents make it well suited for applications in small capacity, rechargeable lithium, battery-powered portable devices such as MP3 players, wireless headsets, and Bluetooth-enabled devices.

The LTC4065L requires no external MOSFET, sense resistor, or blocking diode. A patented thermal regulation scheme prevents the junction temperature of the IC from exceeding 115 °C by reducing charge current during high-power or high-ambient temperature operation. Other features of the LTC4065L include a charge current monitor output for charge termination, recharge, trickle charging, and charge status indication. Charge current is adjustable with a standard off-the-shelf resistor. The device is designed to work with supplies up to 5.5 V, including those within USB specifications, and from 5 V wall adapters. During shutdown, the supply current is only 20 uA and battery drain current is less than 1 uA, extending battery run time.

The LTC4065L is rated for operation from -40 °C to +85 °C. Pricing starts at $1.10 each in 1,000-piece quantities.