Agilent Technologies E3646A, User Manual, Page: 152 / 211

Chapter 7 Tutorial
Overview of this Power Supply Operation
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In terms of performance, a linear regulated supply has a very precise regulating
properties and responds quickly to variations of the line and load. Hence, its line and
load regulation and transient recovery time are superior to supplies using other
regulation techniques. The power supply also exhibits low ripple and noise, is tolerant
of ambient temperature changes, and with its circuit simplicity, has a high reliability.
This power supply contains a linear regulated power supply. It is controlled by a
control circuit that provides voltages to program the outputs. The power supply sends
back to the control circuits a voltage representing the output at the terminals. The
control circuits receive information from the front panel and send information to the
display. Similarly the control circuits ‘’talk’’ to the remote interface for input and
output with the GPIB and RS-232 interfaces. The remote interface is at earth ground
and optically isolated from the control circuit and the power supply.
Figure 7-2. Block Diagram of the Power Supply Showing the Optical Isolation
GPIB
RS-232
OPTICAL
ISOLATION
POWER
SUPPLY
OUTPUT
CONTROL
DISPLAY
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