Toshiba America Electronic Components (TAEC) published four new 16-channel driver ICs for LED-backlit applications ranging from notebook PCs to large TVs. The TC62D722 targeted high-end displays in TVs and offered a 16-bit pulse-width-modulation (PWM) mode that reduced display flicker in features specific to the application. And the new TC62D776 targeted applications in idle-mode power consumption such as battery powered devices. The IC integrates a standby mode that reduced idle-mode power consumption by a factor of a 1000 relative to drivers that lacked a standby-mode function. The new TC62D748A/49A was targeted at cost-optimized applications requiring minimal external circuitry to configure the LED driver.

Intersil’s new ISL9767x LED driver family could extend battery life in notebook, netbook, and tablet computers, which droved up to six 40mA strings of LEDs and delivered 0.7% current matching between strings. The design reduces flickering, shimmering, and banding backlight. The key to efficient low-level dimming was an adaptive boost control circuit, which kept dimming linearity even when the LEDs were off for most of the PWM duty cycle. The drivers could dim LEDs to 0.007% of full brightness.

Linear Technology’s new LTM8042 family could withstand 40V input transients in backlight applications and rugged environments. The LTM8042 and LTM80420-1 µModule drivers could power strings of 8 white LEDs or 9 red LEDs. PWM-based dimming offered a 3000:1 ratio. The drivers could operate in buck, boost, or buck-boost modes and offer 0.5% line regulation along with the aforementioned transient protection. The LTM8042 sources 1A of current while the LTM8042-1 sources 350 mA.