News – Circuit Design & Applications

September 18, 2026 Circuit Design & Applications

FPGA architectures add layered defenses against single-event upsets

Cosmic radiation and alpha particles can still flip bits in FPGA configuration memory outside space systems. The article outlines how modern designs combine CRAM readback, scrubbing, ECC, and triple modular redundancy to detect and recover from these upsets.

Semiconductors emerge as a core enabler for autonomous mobile robots

Autonomous mobile robots are reshaping manufacturing, warehousing, and logistics, with semiconductor-based sensing, compute, and communications forming the technical backbone.

Spread-bit PWM Looks Better on Paper Than in Microcontroller Practice

An EDN analysis compares clustered and spread-bit PWM as DAC implementations and shows that the theoretical settling-time advantage of spread-bit modulation can shrink sharply once microcontroller timing, jitter, and output-stage errors are included.

Precision Laser Systems Depend on Clean Power Delivery

From milliwatt diode lasers to high-power material processing systems, the performance of the power supply is a key factor for stability and service life.

Third-Order Active Butterworth Filters Compared in Low-Pass and High-Pass Form

EDN compares several third-order active Butterworth filter topologies, from ideal and Sallen-Key versions to emitter-follower and DC-accurate implementations, and contrasts simulations with lab Bode measurements.

Comparing direct conversion and IF sampling in DSP-enabled radio ADCs

A radio receiver’s ADC choice is no longer only about sampling rate. With embedded DSP blocks that handle decimation, digital downconversion, and IQ correction, the balance between analog filtering, data rate, and FPGA load shifts in measurable ways.

Designing boost converters with ratios beyond the usual 8:1 to 9:1

A single-stage boost converter is often considered practical only up to about 8:1 to 9:1, but the limits depend strongly on topology, switching mode, device parasitics, and controller duty-cycle capability. Texas Instruments shows a 3 V to 42 V GaN reference design reaching a 14:1 ratio at more than 84% efficiency.

Loose coax connections and poor grounding disrupt Comcast broadband service

A long-running Comcast/Xfinity outage problem was traced to aging coax hardware, missing grounding at the service entry, and a splitter setup that pushed upstream DOCSIS 3.1 levels into the high 50 dBmV range.

Pushbutton Interface Steps a Digital Potentiometer on Press

A simple interface idea makes a digital potentiometer advance or decrement as soon as a pushbutton is pressed, not when it is released. The circuit uses RC debounce filtering and a Schmitt-trigger inverter to turn each press into a clean clock edge for the DPOT.

Robust 24-V power-path design relies on coordinated MOSFETs, diodes, TVS devices, and capacitors

A reliable 24-V power path depends on combining switching and protection components to handle overvoltage, reverse polarity, and inrush current without compromising operation.