BUCKster step down converters

What can I do with a BUCKster step down converter?

You typically want to use buck converters when your power source has a voltage that is significantly higher than the required operation voltage of your device. For example, when running an Arduino off of a 12V car battery.

Buck converters become particularly interesting when you care about efficiency in applications that can draw a significant amount of current, as they don’t rely on wasting the excess energy (in form of heat) as linear regulators do. This means that reducing the voltage from let’s say 15V to 5V at 100mA load does induce conversion losses of a few hundredths of a watt instead of roughly 1W. This in turn means that there’s no or less cooling required. In lower current applications linear regulators can still be a better choice however.

With its ~550mA typical supply ability (no matter which version) the BUCKster gives you plenty of room for extending your projects!

You need a boost converter? Have a look at our µBoost, the BOOSTer series or our SEPICster converters (those are especially awesome because they can do both step up and step down conversion seamlessly).

Note on LC spikes

Please note that voltage spikes can occur when disconnecting a module from longer power supply wires (such as typically used in laboratory environments). These voltage spikes can easily exceed the maximum acceptable input voltage modules even at modest supply voltages around 12-15V.

To mitigate this issue we recommend you:

• use short wiring when possible
• reduce the supply voltage or switch off the power supply before physically disconnecting the module
• add an additional input capacitance of at least 33uF close to the module

Features

• Small: 16.0×10.7×4.9mm
• Fixed output voltages: 3.3/5/9/12V
• Typical current capability:
  • ≥ 400mA for the 3.3V and 5V variants
  • ≥ 300mA for the 9V and 12V variants
• High efficiency (typ. ≥ 70%, up to 92%)
• Wide supply voltage range: V_OUT + 1V to 24V
• Good line and load regulation
• Low ripple output
• Shutdown pin
• Built-in current limiting and thermal protection

One more thing:

Our power supply modules are simply awesome because we design them carefully, with you in mind. We provide excellent datasheets so you don’t have to guess if it fits your application and generally don’t give “best case” specification figures. Instead we show rather conservative values of what is safely handled. Which means that if you were to push the boundaries, there should be a fair amount of headroom.

This product is engineered and manufactured in Engen, Germany!