The CAT5132 is Catalyst Semiconductor’s first digital programmable potentiometer to be designed for applications requiring up to 15V on the potentiometer terminals.
Catalyst Semiconductor has expanded its DPP family of digital programmable potentiometers with the introduction of its first high-voltage DPP. The CAT5132 is Catalyst Semiconductor’s first DPP to be designed for applications requiring up to 15V on the potentiometer terminals. Specifically targeted at calibration functions in high voltage environments, the CAT5132 has a separate input for an analogue supply which provides the high voltage bias for the potentiometer terminals.

The potentiometer is controlled via a two-wire, I2C compatible bus interface, which allows for adjusting the digital potentiometer’s 128 (7bit) wiper positions with or without saving the current position in an EEPROM.

This general purpose linear digital potentiometer is available in three standard resistance values: 10, 50 and 100kohm.

The CAT5132 is targeted toward many applications that require a potentiometer to operate with terminal voltages of up to 15V.

One of the more unique applications of these higher voltage DPPs will be adjusting the Vcom values used to improve performance of LCD displays.

Other applications include LED brightness control, LCD contrast adjustments, volume control, gain adjustment and mechanical trim potentiometer replacement.

‘The introduction of these high voltage potentiometers will significantly expand the number of applications that can be addressed using digital potentiometers while simplifying the design requirements of applications that need to adjust signals up to 15V’, said Jerry Miller, Product Marketing Manager.

‘Additionally, by using a separate high voltage analogue input from the system power supply for biasing purposes (as opposed to an internal charge pump to generate the bias voltage), the CAT5132 maintains the low noise characteristics which are always an important design concern’, he concluded.

The CAT5132 is available in a 10-lead MSOP package; price in 1000 piece quantities is $0.88.

The device is available in an environmentally friendly ‘green’ package that is halogen- and lead-free with full RoHS compliance.

Green packages are available with Sn lead finish and NiPdAu lead finish