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Essentials of DC Power Supplies & Loads

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October 10, 2023 - Vista, California - Axiom Test Equipment, an electronic test equipment rental and sales company has published a new blog post that covers how important DC power supplies and loads are to control energy on the workbench and often serve as starting points for new product development. DC loads and power supplies work together to define the behavior of a device under test (DUT) in response to applied energy, not just in performance but in reliability and compatibility with other electronic devices.

Power supplies are haunted by two forms of noise: normal-mode output noise and common-mode output noise. Normal-mode noise is generated by a power supply’s internal circuitry while common-mode noise is earth-referenced noise originating from the power line or source. On the other hand, DC loads help evaluate power conversion devices and systems, including power supplies and rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles (EVs).

The simplest starting point when searching for a DC power supply is the amount of energy it supplies. When looking for DC loads, remember that they work in different operating modes, such as constant current (CI), constant voltage (CV), constant power (CP), and constant resistance (CR) modes.

Learn more about the most important equipment you will need when starting a new project by reading the full blog post on Axiom’s website: https://www.axiomtest.com/blog/Essentials-of-DC-Power-Supplies-and-Loads/.

Chroma 63206A-600-420 High Power DC Electronic Load, 600 V, 420 A, 6 kW

Essentials of DC Power Supplies & Loads 

Power consumption and conservation are vital functions for many systems and testing these functions help determine the efficiency and productivity of an electronic design. Power measurements rely on two workhorse units: DC power supplies and loads. They are vital for controlling energy on the workbench and often serve as starting points for new product development. DC loads and power supplies work together to define the behavior of a device under test (DUT) in response to applied energy, not just in performance but in reliability and compatibility with other electronic devices.

The simplest starting point when searching for a DC power supply is the amount of energy it supplies: does it provide enough power to energize a DUT of interest? That amount of power is available in terms of the power supply’s voltage and current ranges, how well they are regulated or controlled, how accurately a DC power supply reports the power it is taking from an AC source and providing to a DC load, the amounts of variations and noise in the DC power, and how efficiently it is converting power from AC form to DC form. DC power supplies are available as linear or switched-mode devices, each with benefits. Switched-mode supplies feature high efficiency, small size, and low cost compared to linear power supplies, but linear supplies typically provide higher output accuracy and resolution with less noise than switched-mode power supplies.

Power supplies are haunted by two forms of noise: normal-mode output noise and common-mode output noise. Normal-mode noise is generated by a power supply’s internal circuitry while common-mode noise is earth-referenced noise originating from the power line or source. Linear power supplies have lower normal-mode noise levels than switched mode power supplies, but switched-mode power supplies are capable of lower power-conversion efficiency than linear power supplies. Switched-mode power supplies can generate higher output levels than linear power supplies for the same size enclosure. When testing DUTs sensitive to normal-mode noise, linear power supplies provide a more sensible choice.

Setting Voltages

Power supplies can supply low and high voltages, although usually in different units. For example, the Tektronix PWS2185 linear power supply is not characterized in terms of output power but is rated for output voltages of 0 to 18 VDC and output current of 0 to 5 A when fed with a 110- or 220-VAC source at 47 to 63 Hz. The voltage can be set with 10-mV resolution and the current with 10-mA resolution. The amount of line regulation is within 0.1% + 5 mV of the voltage setting and 0.1% + 2 mA of the current setting while the accuracy of the voltage and current settings are within 0.02% + 5 mV and 0.10% + 2 mA, respectively. Peak-to-peak noise and voltage variations or ripple are controlled to better than 3 mV.

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Whatever type of testing your project requires, rent or buy quality test equipment from Axiom Test Equipment. For over 15 years Axiom Test Equipment has rented, sold, repaired and accepted trade-in of test equipment to support your test & measurement needs. If you would like help selecting any type of test equipment for your next project, contact Axiom Test Equipment's sales department at sales@axiomtest.com, call 760-806-6600, or browse Axiom Test Equipment's inventory online at www.axiomtest.com.

About Axiom Test Equipment

Get Exactly What You Need. Rent - Buy - Repair - Trade-In

Established in 2005, Axiom Test Equipment strives to continually improve itself and offer the best value for its customers. We offer our customers several practical, efficient and cost effective solutions for their business or projects' test equipment needs. Whether you need to rent & buy test equipment, repair test equipment, sell or trade equipment, we are committed to providing superior customer service and high quality electronic test equipment.

At Axiom Test Equipment we provide several services. We rent electronic test and measurement equipment. We also sell test equipment. If you have a piece of malfunctioning or broken test equipment we also have an in-house repair lab. For anyone seeking a way to offload their surplus or obsolete equipment, we offer a trade-in program or we can buy the equipment from you.

We stock a comprehensive inventory of equipment and can use our extensive network to find you those hard to get items. We believe in getting equipment to you quickly and at a competitive price.

Contacts

Fabian Garcia
Marketing Coordinator
Axiom Test Equipment
2610 Commerce Way 
Vista, CA  92081
Phone: (760) 806-6600

Web: www.axiomtest.com

E-Mail: fgarcia@axiomtest.com

Posted October 12, 2023