One of our engineers came by and showed off one of his latest finds, the Mini-360 DC-DC buck converter. He needed a small and efficient voltage-reduction circuit for a remote application, and this unit tests out quite well. Inexpensive enough to be worth having a few in the toolbox for emergency voltage regulation!

Specifications:

• MPS MP2307DN buck regulator IC
• 4.75 – 23VDC input voltage
• 1.0 – 17VDC selectable output voltage
• 3A surge current, 1.8A continuous rated current
• Maximum conversion efficiency of 95% (5Vin, 3.3Vout ~200mA output)
• 340kHz switching frequency
• 30mV no-load output ripple
• 0.5% load regulation
• 2.5% voltage regulation
• -40 to +85°C operational temperature range
• Built-in 160°C thermal shutdown
• 17x11x3.8mm (0.67×0.43×0.15″)