DON'T GET BURNED!

Abstract

IC manufacturers use automatic test equipment to keep costs down. Since automatic equipment can test a regulator in less than a second, there is little heating of the device during the test sequence. Manufacturers therefore specify most parameters at constant-junction temperature, while temperature drift is specified separately. A device user, however, should realize that during bench tests and in actual application a regulator will seldom be operated at a constant-junction temperature. And, unfortunately, line and load regulation are temperature-dependent parameters. This article presents a technique for avoiding heating during tests.