Field programmable analog arrays (FPAA), thanks to their flexibility and reconfigurability, give the designers quite new possibilities in analog circuit design. The number of both academic projects on FPAA and applications of commercially available programmable devices is still growing. This paper explores the properties and parameters of two most popular FPAA circuits: the AnadigmVortex AN221E04 and AnadigmApex AN231E04 from the Anadigm company. The research conducted by the authors led to the discovery of some undocumented features of these devices. Several applications for audio processing were built and tested. The results show that these circuits can be used in medium-demanding audio applications. Thanks to dynamic reconfigurability, they also allow to build an universal analog audio signal processor. These circuits can also act as a versatile platform for rapid prototyping and educational purposes.
This paper presents a concept and the results of an investigation of a DC–DC boost converter with high voltage gain and a reduced number of switches. The novel concept assumes that the converter operates in a topology composed of series connection switched- capacitor-based multiplier (SCVM) sections. Furthermore, the structure of the sections has significant impact on parameters of the converter which is discussed in this paper. The paper demonstrates the basic benefit such a multisection SCVM idea in the converter, which is the significant reduction in the number of switches and diodes for high voltage gain in comparison to an SCVM converter. Aside from the number of switches and diodes, such parameters as efficiency and volume of passive components in the multisection converter are analyzed in this paper. In figures, the analysis is demonstrated using the example of 100 kW thyristor-based converters. All the characteristics of the converter are compared between various configurations of switching cells in the particular sections, thus the paper can be useful for a design approach for a high voltage gain multicell converter.