SLUAAP2 March 2023 LMG2610 , UCC28782
Typically, low-power applications employ a flyback converter for simplicity and cost. Such designs use a flyback transformer with inherent leakage inductance that can cause uncontrolled voltage spikes on the primary FET (Q1). In the ACF, excess energy from the leakage inductance of the transformer,Llk, is stored in the clamp capacitor,Cclamp, through the high-side FET, Q2. This leakage energy is then released to the output, together with the magnetizing inductance energy, through a resonant process. The key benefit here is that the leakage energy can be released to the output instead of being dissipated through a passive clamp. The Cclamp capacitor acts as an active clamp, hence the name active-clamp flyback.