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TJ
TA
P
D
max x R
θ
JC
R
θ
CS
R
θ
SA
(2)
TJ
TA
P
D
max x R
θ
JA
(3)
R
θ
JA
T
J
–T
A
P
D
max
(4)
TO-220 Power Dissipation
The TO-220 package provides an effective means of managing power dissipation in through-hole applications.
The TO-220 package dimensions are provided in the
Mechanical Data
section at the end of the data sheet. A
heatsink can be used with the TO-220 package to effectively lower the junction-to-ambient thermal resistance.
P
D
max
(3.3 – 2.5) V x 3 A
2.4 W
(5)
R
θ
JAmax
From Figure 22, R
Θ
JA
vs Heatsink Thermal Resistance, a heatsink with R
Θ
SA
= 22
°
C/W is required to dissipate
2.4 W. The model operating environment used in the computer model to construct Figure 22 consisted of a
standard JEDEC High-K board (2S2P) with a 1 oz. internal copper plane and ground plane. Since the package
pins were soldered to the board, 450 mm
2
of the board was modeled as a heatsink. Figure 23 shows the side
view of the operating environment used in the computer model.
(125 – 55)
°
C 2.4 W
29
°
C W
(6)
TPS75801, TPS75815
TPS75818, TPS75825
TPS75833
SLVS330D–JUNE 2001–REVISED MARCH 2004
THERMAL INFORMATION (continued)
Equation 2 summarizes the computation:
The R
Θ
JC
is specific to each regulator as determined by its package, lead frame, and die size provided in the
regulator's data sheet. The R
Θ
SA
is a function of the type and size of heatsink. For example,
black body radiator
type heatsinks, like the one attached to the TO-220 package in Figure 21(a), can have R
Θ
CS
values ranging from
5
°
C/W for very large heatsinks to 50
°
C/W for very small heatsinks. The R
Θ
CS
is a function of how the package is
attached to the heatsink. For example, if a thermal compound is used to attach a heatsink to a TO-220 package,
R
Θ
CS
of 1
°
C/W is reasonable.
Even if no external
black body radiator
type heatsink is attached to the package, the board on which the
regulator is mounted will provide some heatsinking through the pin solder connections. Some packages, like the
TO-263 and TI's TSSOP PowerPAD packages, use a copper plane underneath the package or the circuit
board's ground plane for additional heatsinking to improve their thermal performance. Computer aided thermal
modeling can be used to compute very accurate approximations of an integrated circuit's thermal performance in
different operating environments (e.g., different types of circuit boards, different types and sizes of heatsinks,
different air flows, etc.). Using these models, the three thermal resistances can be combined into one thermal
resistance between junction and ambient (R
Θ
JA
). This R
Θ
JA
is valid only for the specific operating environment
used in the computer model.
Equation 2 simplifies into Equation 3:
Rearranging Equation 3 gives Equation 4:
Using Equation 3 and the computer model generated curves shown in Figure 22 and Figure 25, a designer can
quickly compute the required heatsink thermal resistance/board area for a given ambient temperature, power
dissipation, and operating environment.
To illustrate, the TPS75825 in a TO-220 package was chosen. For this example, the average input voltage is 3.3
V, the average output voltage is 2.5 V, the average output current is 3 A, the ambient temperature 55
°
C, the air
flow is 150 LFM, and the operating environment is the same as documented below. Neglecting the quiescent
current, the maximum average power is:
Substituting T
J
max for T
J
into Equation 4 gives Equation 6:
13