SWITCH MODE POWER SUPPLY TUTORIAL

BLOCK DIAGRAM and BASIC THEORY OF OPERATION

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A typical power supply serves the following main functions:
Changing the form of electric power. For example, electricity from the grid is
transmitted in the form of AC, while electronic circuits need low-level DC;
Regulation. The nominal mains voltage varies worldwide from 100 to 240VAC
and is usually poorly regulated, while the circuits normally require well
stabilized fixed voltages;

Safety isolation. In most applications the outputs have to be isolated from the
input.

Practically every piece of electronic equipment needs some form of power

conversion. Power supply unit (PSU), technically speaking, is a device that
transfers electric energy from a source to a load and in the process changes its
characteristics to meet specific requirements. Of course, this term is not the most
adequate. A PSU does not really supply power, it only converts it. Its typical
application is to convert a utility's AC into required regulated DC rail(s). Depending
on the mode of operation of the semiconductors, the converters can be linear or
switching.
SMPS
stands for switch mode PSU. In such a device, power handling electronic
components are continuously switching "on" and "off" with high frequency in order
to provide the transfer of electric energy via energy storage components (inductors
and capacitors). By varying duty cycle, frequency or a relative phase of these
transitions an average value of output voltage or current is controlled. The
operating frequency range of commercial SMPS units varies typically from 50 kHz to
several MHz (see more on frequency selection).
Below is a conceptual circuit diagram of a typical off-line SMPS. This tutorial will
introduce you to its basic operation.

DESIGN BASICS

AC power first passes through fuses and a line filter. Then it is rectified by a fullwave bridge rectifier. The rectified voltage is next applied to the power factor
correction (PFC) pre-regulator followed by the downstream DC-DC converter(s).
Note that except for some industries, such as PCs and CompactPCI, PSU output
connectors and pinouts in general are not standardized and are left up to the
manufacturers.
F1 and F2 shown on the left of the circuit diagram are fuses. Everybody knows
about them, but many people are under impression that a fuse blow immediately
once applied current exceeds its rating.

If that was true, no PSU would function because of momentary "in-rush" currents. In
reality, a fuse is designed to physically open the circuit when the current being
drawn through it exceeds its rating for a certain period of time. This clearing time
depends on the degree of overload and is a function of I2t. Due to this delay, fuses
will not always protect electronic components from a catastrophic failure caused by
some fault conditions. Their main purpose is to protect the upstream line from
overloading and overheating, avoid tripping of an external circuit breaker, and
prevent a fire that may be triggered by components that failed into a short circuit.
The low-pass EMI filter is designed to reduce to an acceptable level high frequency
currents getting back into the AC line. This is necessary to prevent interference on
the other devices connected to the same electrical wiring. There is a number of
standards (such as EN55022 for Information Technology equipment) that govern the
maximum level of EMI.
The filter is followed by the rectifier that converts bipolar AC waveforms to unipolar
pulsating ones. It has four diodes in a bridge arrangement to provide the same
polarity of the output for both polarities of the input.

PFC regulator
. The rectified input voltage is fed into the next stage, whose prime purpose is to
increase power factor (PF). By definition, PF is the ratio between watts and voltamps. In the process, the PFC pre-regulator usually boosts the voltage to 370-400
VDC. There are also designs where "boost" DC-link follows the peak of input AC
voltage instead of being fixed, or where a buck converter is used instead of a boost.
There are two main types of power factor correction circuits- active and passive.
Below is a block-diagram of an active PFC stage. Here is how it works. A controller
monitors both the voltage across sense resistor and Vboost. While regulating
Vboost, it controls at the same time the shape of the input current, so that it is in
phase with mains AC and repeats its waveform. Without this, the current would be
delivered to the SMPS in short high level pulses, which have a high harmonic
content. The harmonics do not supply any real energy to the load, but cause
additional heating in the wiring and distribution equipment. They also reduce the
maximum wattage that can be taken from a standard wall outlet, since circuit
breakers are rated by electric current rather than by watts. There are various
regulations that limit the input harmonic content, such as EN61000-3-2 (for
equipment connected to public low-voltage distribution systems) or DO-160 (for
airborne equipment). To meet these requirements you can use a PF correction
technique: a device with a high PF draws a nearly sinusoidal current from the source
(at a sinusoidal input). This automatically results in low harmonic content. Currently
there are no mandatory international standards that specifically regulate the PF of
an electronic equipment, but there are various national and industry standards as
well as voluntary incentive programs. For example, 80 PLUS and Energy Star
programs require computers to demonstrate PF>0.9 at rated load. You can read
about active power factor correction in this PFC guide.
The above standards also specify minimum efficiency of certain classes of electronic
devices. The efficiency of a PSU by definition is the ratio between the values of
output and input wattage: Efficiency=Pout/Pin. Note that because Pin=VA*PF and
since any real active circuit has PF<1, you can't just multiply input volts and ampsto measure Pin you need a true wattmeter.

The downstream DC-DC

converter runs off the PFC output, generates a set of DC busses required for the
load, and normally also provides input-to-output isolation. There are a number of
topologies utilized in DC-DC converters. The above block diagram depicts an
isolating forward converter. Most low-voltage non-isolated converters use buck
regulators (single or interleaved multi-phase). There is likewise a large variety of
PWM ICs suitable for each of these topologies. The selection of the right power
topology depends on specific requirements for the product (including cost and time
factors).
Finally, the housekeeping supply provides "bias" for all control circuitry. It may also
provide a separate stand-by voltage (SBV) which remains active when the PS unit is
shut down for any reason. In today's computer power supply a 5VDC SBV is a
standard feature.
If you want to learn practical PSU design, you may start with Unitrode seminar
books, where you can find a comprehensive collection of power supply tutorials,
practical schematic diagrams, and guides.