The A 3211 and A3212 integrated circuits are ultra-sensitive, pole in de pen dent
Hall-effect switches with latched digital output. These sensors are es pe cial ly
suited for operation in battery-operated, hand-held equip ment such as cellular
and cordless tele phones, pagers, and palmtop com put ers. A 2.5 volt to 3.5 volt
operation and a unique clocking scheme reduce the average op er at ing power
requirements to less than 15 μW with a 2.75 volt supply.
Unlike other Hall-effect switches, either a north or south pole of suf fi cient
strength will turn the output on in the A3212, and in the absence of a magnetic
field, the output is off. The A3211 provides an inverted output. The polarity independence and minimal power requirements allow these devices to easily replace
reed switches for superior reliability and ease of manufacturing, while eliminating the requirement for signal conditioning.
Approximate actual size
ABSOLUTE MAXIMUM RATINGS
Supply Voltage, V
Magnetic Flux Density, B .......... Unlimited
Output Off Voltage, V
Output Current, I
Junction Temperature, T
Operating Temperature, TA
Range 'E-' .................... -40°C to +85°C
Range 'L-' .................. -40°C to +150°C
Storage Temperature Range,
T
.............................. -65°C to +170°C
S
.............................. 5 V
DD
...................... 5 V
OUT
........................... 1 mA
OUT
................ +170°C
J
Improved stability is made possible through chopper stabilization (dynamic offset cancellation), which reduces the residual offset voltage normally caused by
device overmolding, temperature de pen den cies, and thermal stress.
This device includes on a single silicon chip a Hall-voltage generator, small-signal amplifier, chopper sta bi li za tion, a latch, and a MOSFET output. Ad vanced
BiCMOS processing is used to take advantage of low-voltage and low-power
requirements, component matching, very low input-offset errors, and small component geometries.
Four package styles provide magnetically op ti mized solutions for most ap pli -
ca tions. Miniature low-profile surface-mount package types EH and EL
(0.75 and 0.50 mm nominal height) are leadless, LH is a leaded low-profile
SMD, and UA is a three-lead SIP for through-hole mount ing. Packages are available in lead (Pb) free versions (suffix, –T) with 100% matte tin plated leadframe.
EL package for limited release, engineering samples available.
FEATURES
■ Micropower Operation
■ Operation with North or
■ 2.5 V to 3.5 V Battery Operation
■ Chopper Stabilized
Superior Temperature Stability
Extremely Low Switch-Point Drift
Insensitive to Physical Stress
■ High ESD Protection
■ Sol id-State Reliability
■ Small Size
■ Easily Manufacturable with Magnet Pole Independence
A3211ELHLT–TYesTape and Reel (3000)3-Pin Surface Mount
A3212EEHLT–Tape and Reel (3000)
A3212EEHLT–TYesTape and Reel (3000)
A3212EELLT–TYesTape and Reel (3000)
A3212ELHLT–Tape and Reel (3000)
A3212ELHLT–TYesTape and Reel (3000)
A3212EUA–Bulk Pack (500)
A3212EUA–TYesBulk Pack (500)
A3212LLHLT
A3212LLHLT–TYesTape and Reel (3000)
A3212LUA
A3212LUA–TYesBulk Pack (500)
1
Contact Allegro for additional packaging and handling options.
2
These variants are in production but have been determined to be NOT FOR NEW DESIGN. This classification indicates that sale of this device is cur-
rently restricted to existing customer applications. The device should not be purchased for new design applications because obsolescence in the near
future is probable. Samples are no longer available. Status date change October 31, 2005.
Low Average Power. Internal timing circuitry activates the
sensor for 45 μs and deactivates it for the remainder of the period (45 ms). A short "awake" time allows for stabilization prior
to the sensor sam pling and data latching on the falling edge of
the timing pulse. The output during the "sleep" time is latched in
the last sampled state. The supply current is not affected by the
output state.
PERIOD
IDD(EN)
"AWAKE"
"SLEEP"
SAMPLE &
OUTPUT LATCHED
IDD(DIS)
0
Dwg. WH-017-2
Chopper-Stabilized Technique. The Hall element can be
considered as a resistor array similar to a Wheatstone bridge. A
large portion of the offset is a result of the mismatching of these
resistors. These devices use a proprietary dynamic offset cancellation technique, with an internal high-frequency clock to reduce
the residual offset voltage of the Hall element that is normally
caused by device overmolding, temperature de pen den cies, and
thermal stress. The chopper-stabilizing technique cancels the
mismatching of the resistor circuit by changing the direction of
the current flowing through the Hall plate using CMOS switches
and Hall voltage measurement taps, while maintaing the Hallvoltage signal that is induced by the external magnetic flux. The
signal is then captured by a sample-and-hold circuit and further
processed using low-offset bipolar circuitry. This technique
produces devices that have an extremely stable quiescent Hall
output voltage, are immune to thermal stress, and have precise
recoverability after temperature cycling. A relatively high sampling frequency is used for faster signal processing capability
can be processed.
More detailed descriptions of the circuit operation can be found
in: Technical Paper STP 97-10, Monolithic Magnetic Hall Sensor Using Dynamic Quadrature Offset Cancellation and Technical
Paper STP 99-1, Chopper-Stabilized Amplifiers With A Track-and-Hold Signal Demodulator.
Operation. The output of the A3212 switches low (turns on)
when a magnetic field perpendicular to the Hall sensor exceeds
the operate point B
output is capable of sinking up to 1 mA and the output voltage
is V
OUT(ON)
release point B
. When the magnetic field is reduced below the
RPS
switches high (turns off). The dif fer ence in the magnetic operate
and release points is the hysteresis (B
built-in hysteresis allows clean switching of the output even
in the presence of external mechanical vibration and electrical
noise. The A3211 functions in the same manner, except the output voltage is reversed from the A3212, as shown in the figures
to the right.
(or is less than B
OPS
(or increased above B
hys
). After turn-on, the
OPN
), the device output
RPN
) of the device. This
A321 1 and A3212
MICROPOWER,
ULTRA-SENSITIVE
HALL-EFFECT SWITCH
As used here, negative flux densities are defined as less than
zero (algebraic convention), i.e., -50 G is less than +10 G.
allows for operation with either a north pole or south pole magnet orientation, enhancing the manufacturability of the device.
The state-of-the-art technology provides the same output polarity
for either pole face.
It is strongly recommended that an external bypass ca pac i tor
be con nect ed (in close proximity to the Hall sensor) between the
supply and ground of the device to reduce both external noise
and noise generated by the chopper-sta bi li za tion tech nique. This
is especially true due to the relatively high im ped ance of battery
supplies.
The sim plest form of magnet that will op er ate these devices
is a bar magnet with either pole near the branded surface of the
device. Many oth er meth ods of operation are possible. Ex ten sive applications information for Hall-effect sensors is available
in:
• Hall-Effect IC Applications Guide, Application Note 27701;
• Hall-Effect Devices: Soldering, Gluing, Potting, En cap su -lat ing, and Lead Forming, Application Note 27703.1;
• Soldering of Through-Hole Hall-Sensor Dervices, Application
Note 27703; and
• Soldering of Surface-Mount Hall-Sensor Devices, Application
The products described herein are man u fac tured under one or
more of the following U.S. pat ents: 5,045,920; 5,264,783; 5,442,283;
5,389,889; 5,581,179; 5,517,112; 5,619,137; 5,621,319; 5,650,719;
5,686,894; 5,694,038; 5,729,130; 5,917,320; and other patents pending.
Allegro MicroSystems, Inc. reserves the right to make, from time to
time, such de par tures from the detail spec i fi ca tions as may be required
to permit improvements in the per for mance, reliability, or manufacturability of its products. Before placing an order, the user is cautioned to
verify that the information being relied upon is current.
Allegro products are not authorized for use as critical components
in life-support ap pli anc es, devices, or systems without express written
approval.
The information included herein is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, Allegro MicroSystems, Inc. assumes no re spon si bil i ty
for its use; nor for any infringements of pat ents or other rights of third
parties that may result from its use.