LDO regulator low dropout regulator
LDO regulator means low dropout regulator. An LDO voltage regulator is just a DC linear voltage regulator which can be operated with a very small input-output voltage differential. This input output voltage differential is called dropout voltage. In simple words dropout voltage is the voltage dropped by the regulator circuitry alone for its working. For example, an LM2941 LDO voltage regulator has a dropout voltage of only around 0.5V, which means that in order to get 5 volts at the output you need to input only 5.5 volts where an ordinary 7805 linear voltage regulator has a dropout voltage of around 2V. This means that, in order to get 5V at the output of 7805 you need to input at least 7V. LDO regulator working. Schematic of a LDO regulator The image shown above is the schematic of a typical LDO voltage regulator. The working principle of LDO regulator is just like that of an ordinary linear voltage regulator. The essential components of an LDO voltage regulator are a reference volta...