NATIONAL SEMICONDUCTOR ANNOUNCES SWITCHED CAPACITOR INVERTER WITH INDUSTRY'S LOWEST OPERATING CURRENT IN A SOT23-5 PACKAGE

May 24, 1999 - National Semiconductor Corporation? (NYSE:NSM) today expanded its family of switched capacitor voltage converters with the introduction of an inverter rated at 25 mA output current and an industry-low typical operating current of just 40 microamps. The LM828 inverts a positive voltage (+1.8V to +5.5V) to the corresponding negative voltage (-1.8V to -5.5V). Thanks to its small size and high conversion efficiency of 97 percent, National's new IC is ideal for generating the negative bias for passive LCD displays in cellular phones, pager displays, PDAs, palmtop computers, multimeters and other handheld equipment. The SOT23-5 package is the smallest available for this DC-to-DC conversion function.

"With the introduction of the LM828, National is expanding its switched capacitor product line and also strengthening its position as a quality volume supplier for the portable communications market," said Venkatesh Shan, National's power management marketing director. "The LM828 is pin compatible with competitors' products, but offers lower quiescent current than any other equivalent product on the market, providing better performance and efficiency."

The LM828 converts a range of supply voltages at a typical efficiency of greater than 97 percent. Using just two low-cost capacitors, it can provide up to 25 mA of output current. Voltage droop is limited to 0.50V because of a low output impedance of just 20 ohms. Since the part requires no external inductor, EMI issues related to inductor-based converters are eliminated.

Price and Availability
Available now in production quantities, the LM828M5 (SOT23-5 package) is priced at $.65 each in 1000-piece quantities.

For more information on the LM828, visit National's website at http://www.national.com/pf/LM/LM828.html.

National Semiconductor provides system-on-a-chip solutions for the information age. Combining real-world analog and state-of the-art digital technology, the company's chips lead many sectors of the personal computer, communications, and consumer markets. With headquarters in Santa Clara, California, National has annual sales of more than $2 billion and 11,000 employees worldwide. Additional company and product information is available on the World Wide Web at www.national.com.