Single/Dual/Quad, Ultra-High-Speed, +3V/+5V,
Beyond-the-Rails Comparators
voltage to move quickly past the other, thus taking the
_______________Detailed Description
input out of the region where oscillation occurs. Standard
The MAX961–MAX964/MAX997/MAX999 single-supply
comparators require hysteresis to be added with external
comparators feature internal hysteresis, ultra-high-
resistors. The fixed internal hysteresis eliminates these
speed operation, and low power consumption. Their
resistors.
outputs are guaranteed to pull within 0.52V of either rail
The MAX961/MAX963 include internal latches that allow
storage of comparison results. LE has a high input
impedance. If LE is low, the latch is transparent (i.e.,
the comparator operates as though the latch is not pre-
sent). The comparator’s output state is stored when LE
is pulled high. All timing constraints must be met when
using the latch function (Figure 2).
without external pullup or pulldown circuitry. Beyond-
the-Rails input voltage range and low-voltage, single-
supply operation make these devices ideal for portable
equipment. These comparators all interface directly to
CMOS logic.
Timing
Most high-speed comparators oscillate in the linear
region because of noise or undesirable parasitic feed-
back. This can occur when the voltage on one input is
close to or equal to the voltage on the other input.
These devices have a small amount of internal hystere-
sis to counter parasitic effects and noise.
Input Stage Circuitry
The MAX961–MAX964/MAX997/MAX999 include inter-
nal protection circuitry that prevents damage to the pre-
cision input stage from large differential input voltages.
This protection circuitry consists of two groups of three
front-to-back diodes between IN+ and IN-, as well as
two 200Ω resistors (Figure 3). The diodes limit the dif-
ferential voltage applied to the comparator’s internal
The added hysteresis of the MAX961–MAX964/MAX997/
MAX999 creates two trip points: one for the rising input
voltage and one for the falling input voltage (Figure 1).
The difference between the trip points is the hysteresis.
When the comparator’s input voltages are equal, the
hysteresis effectively causes one comparator input
circuitry to no more than 3V , where V is the diode’s
F
F
forward-voltage drop (about 0.7V at +25°C).
V
TRIP+
V
IN+
V
V
+ V
2
HYST
TRIP-
TRIP+
TRIP-
V
V
=
OS
= 0V
IN-
V
V
OH
V
V
Q
Q
OL
OH
V
OL
Figure 1. Input and Output Waveforms, Noninverting Input Varied
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