The two most significant losses contributing to the 
N-FET’s power dissipation are I2R losses and switching 
losses. Select a transistor with low r
DS(ON)
and low
C
RSS
to minimize these losses. 
Determine the maximum required gate-drive current 
from the Q
g
specification in the N-FET data sheet.
The MAX773’s maximum allowed switching frequency 
during normal operation is 300kHz; but at start-up the 
maximum frequency can be 500kHz, so the maximum 
current required to charge the N-FET’s gate is 
f(max) x Q
g
(typ). Use the typical Qgnumber from the 
transistor data sheet. For example, the Si9410DY has a 
Qg(typ) of 17nC (at VGS= 5V), therefore the current 
required to charge the gate is: 
I
GATE 
(max)
= (500kHz) (17nC) = 8.5mA.
The bypass capacitor on V+ (C2) must instantaneously 
furnish the gate charge without excessive droop (e.g., 
less than 200mV):
Q
g
∆V+ = ——
C2
Continuing with the example, ∆V+ = 17nC/0.1µF = 170mV. 
Use I
GATE
when calculating the appropriate shunt
resistor. See the 
Shunt Regulator Operation
section. 
Figure 2a’s application circuit uses an MTD3055EL 
logic-level N-FET with a guaranteed threshold voltage 
(VTH) of 2V. Figure 2b’s application circuit uses an 
8-pin Si9410DY surface-mount N-FET that has 50mΩ 
on resistance with 4.5V VGS, and a guaranteed VTHof 
less than 3V. 
NPN Transistors
The MAX773 can drive NPN transistors, but be 
extremely careful when determining the base-current 
requirements. Too little base current can cause excessive power dissipation in the transistor; too much base 
current can cause the base to oversaturate, so the transistor remains on continually. Both conditions can damage the transistor.
When using the MAX773 with an NPN transistor, connect EXTL to the transistor’s base, and connect R
BASE
between EXTH and the base (Figure 8c). 
To determine the required peak inductor current,
I
C(PEAK
), observe the 
Typical Operating Characteristics
efficiency graphs and the theoretical output current 
capability vs. input voltage graphs to determine a 
sense resistor that will allow the desired output current. 
Divide the 170mV worst-case (smallest) voltage across 
the current-sense amplifier VCS(max) by the senseresistor value. To determine IB, set the peak inductor 
current (I
LIM)
equal to the peak transistor collector cur-
rent I
C(PEAK)
. Calculate IBas follows:
IB= I
LIM
/ß 
Use the worst-case (lowest) value for ß given in the 
transistor’s electrical specification, where the collector 
current used for the test is approximately equal to I
LIM
. 
It may be necessary to use even higher base currents 
(e.g., IB= I
LIM
/10), although excessive IBmay impair
operation by extending the transistor’s turn-off time. 
R
BASE
is determined by:
(
V
EXTH
- VBE- V
CS
(min))
R
BASE
= ————————————–
I
B
Where V
EXTH
is the voltage at V+ (in bootstrapped
mode V
EXTH
is the output voltage), VBEis the 0.7V 
transistor base-emitter voltage, VCS(min) is the voltage 
drop across the current-sense resistor, and IBis the 
minimum base current that forces the transistor into 
saturation. This equation reduces to (V+ - 700mV 170mV) / IB. 
For maximum efficiency, make R
BASE
as large as possible, but small enough to ensure the transistor is 
always driven near saturation. Highest efficiency is 
obtained with a fast-switching NPN transistor 
(fT≥ 150MHz) with a low collector-emitter saturation 
voltage and a high current gain. A good transistor to 
use is the Zetex ZTX694B.
Diode Selection
The MAX770–MAX773’s high switching frequency 
demands a high-speed rectifier. Schottky diodes such 
as the 1N5817–1N5822 are recommended. Make sure 
that the Schottky diode’s average current rating 
exceeds the peak current limit set by R
SENSE
, and that
its breakdown voltage exceeds V
OUT
. For high-temperature applications, Schottky diodes may be inadequate 
due to their high leakage currents; high-speed silicon 
diodes may be used instead. At heavy loads and high 
temperatures, the benefits of a Schottky diode’s low forward voltage may outweigh the disadvantages of its 
high leakage current.
Capacitor Selection
Output Filter Capacitor
The primary criterion for selecting the output filter 
capacitor (C2) is low effective series resistance (ESR). 
The product of the peak inductor current and the output 
filter capacitor’s ESR determines the amplitude of the 
ripple seen on the output voltage. An OS-CON 300µF,
6.3V output filter capacitor has approximately 50mΩ of 
ESR and typically provides 180mV ripple when 
stepping up from 3V to 5V at 1A (Figure 2a). 
MAX770–MAX773
5V/12V/15V or Adjustable, High-Efficiency, 
Low IQ, Step-Up DC-DC Controllers
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