SNVSCM5 January 2024 LMR43606-Q1
PRODUCTION DATA
The LMR43606-Q1 incorporates both peak and valley inductor current limit to provide protection to the device from overloads and short circuits and limit the maximum output current. Valley current limit prevents inductor current runaway during short circuits on the output, while both peak and valley limits work together to limit the maximum output current of the converter. Cycle-by-cycle current limit is used for overloads, while hiccup mode is used for sustained short circuits. Finally, a zero current detector is used on the low-side power MOSFET to implement diode emulation (DEM) at light loads. The typical value of this current limit is found under the IZC in Section 6.5.
When the device is overloaded, the valley of the inductor current can not reach below IVALMAX (see the Electrical Characteristics table) before the next clock cycle. When this event occurs, the valley current limit control skips that cycle, causing the switching frequency to drop. Further overload causes the switching frequency to continue to drop, and the inductor ripple current to increase. When the peak of the inductor current reaches the high-side current limit, IPEAKMAX (see Section 6.5), the switch duty cycle is reduced and the output voltage falls out of regulation. This action represents the maximum output current from the converter and is given approximately by Equation 2:
If, during current limit, the voltage on the FB input falls below about 0.4V due to a short circuit, the device enters into hiccup mode. In this mode, the device stops switching for tHICCUP (see Section 6.5), or about 94ms and then goes through a normal restart with soft start. If the short-circuit condition remains, the device runs in current limit for about 20ms (typical) and then shuts down again. This cycle repeats as long as the short-circuit-condition persists. This mode of operation helps reduce the temperature rise of the device during a hard short on the output. The output current is greatly reduced during hiccup mode. After the output short is removed and the hiccup delay is passed, the output voltage recovers normally.