The boost converter
The same four parts rearranged so the output climbs above the input: an inductor that kicks, a diode that catches the kick, and Vout = Vin / (1 - duty).
Open it in the simulatorAll paths
Power electronics
Advanced: switches, inductors and heat: buck and boost converters from loose parts, PWM, MOSFET drivers, H bridges, efficiency, and a regulated supply you set from its formula.
0 of 7 done
What you will build
2 projects, built step by step
7 lessons in 4 chapters, about 4 hours on a simulated breadboard. Free, in your browser, every step checked by the simulator.
H bridges and current limits
Four switches around a motor: forward, reverse, brake and coast on a DRV8871, why two switches on one side must never close together, and how the chip's current limit is set.
Open it in the simulatorThe map
Chapter by chapter
Each lesson opens when the one before it is done, and each chapter ends in a project.
Chapter 1
Converters
Step voltage down and up with a switch, an inductor, a diode and a capacitor.
- Open227 XP
The buck converter
A buck converter from loose parts: a MOSFET switching 12 V twenty thousand times a second, an inductor, a diode and a capacitor, and why its output is the duty cycle times the input.
0 of 5 steps
- ProjectLocked454 XP
The boost converter
The same four parts rearranged so the output climbs above the input: an inductor that kicks, a diode that catches the kick, and Vout = Vin / (1 - duty).
0 of 5 steps
Chapter 2
Switching
PWM, gate drive, and four switches around a motor.
- Locked265 XP
PWM and duty cycle
A lamp dimmed by switching it fully on and fully off a thousand times a second: duty, frequency, the average a meter reads, and how analogWrite does the same thing.
0 of 6 steps
- Locked227 XP
MOSFET drivers
Two MOSFET boards on one pin: why the IRF520 module is only partly on from 5 V and off from 3.3 V, what a logic-level gate is, and what a gate driver is for.
0 of 5 steps
- ProjectLocked530 XP
H bridges and current limits
Four switches around a motor: forward, reverse, brake and coast on a DRV8871, why two switches on one side must never close together, and how the chip's current limit is set.
0 of 6 steps
Chapter 3
Heat
Where the lost watts go, and linear against switching.
- Locked242 XP
Heat and efficiency
The same 5 V made two ways from 12 V: a 7805 that burns the difference as heat and an LM2596 that switches, measured with two ammeters, and the heatsink math that decides which you need.
0 of 6 steps
Chapter 4
Boss project
A regulated supply, set to the volt and signed off.
- Locked265 XP
Boss: a regulated supply
Set an LM317 adjustable supply to exact voltages from its formula, find its dropout, prove it regulates when the input changes, and work out its heat.
0 of 6 steps
Syllabus
Every lesson in the course
All 7 lessons, in order, each with what it covers. Any of them opens in the editor right away.
Converters
- The buck converterA buck converter from loose parts: a MOSFET switching 12 V twenty thousand times a second, an inductor, a diode and a capacitor, and why its output is the duty cycle times the input.
- The boost converterThe same four parts rearranged so the output climbs above the input: an inductor that kicks, a diode that catches the kick, and Vout = Vin / (1 - duty).
Switching
- PWM and duty cycleA lamp dimmed by switching it fully on and fully off a thousand times a second: duty, frequency, the average a meter reads, and how analogWrite does the same thing.
- MOSFET driversTwo MOSFET boards on one pin: why the IRF520 module is only partly on from 5 V and off from 3.3 V, what a logic-level gate is, and what a gate driver is for.
- H bridges and current limitsFour switches around a motor: forward, reverse, brake and coast on a DRV8871, why two switches on one side must never close together, and how the chip's current limit is set.
Heat
- Heat and efficiencyThe same 5 V made two ways from 12 V: a 7805 that burns the difference as heat and an LM2596 that switches, measured with two ammeters, and the heatsink math that decides which you need.
Boss project
- Boss: a regulated supplySet an LM317 adjustable supply to exact voltages from its formula, find its dropout, prove it regulates when the input changes, and work out its heat.
Keep going
The next course on your track
Power electronics is part of the electrical track, a ladder of courses from zero to expert.
Circuit design capstone
Expert: take one product from a written requirement to a tested board: blocks, a schematic worked out on paper, part choice, simulating the corners, PCB layout, a test plan, and a revision that fixes what the tests found.
Open the next courseElectrical track
Current and voltage you can see, then transistors, op-amps, filters, power and PCBs. Every circuit runs in a real circuit simulator in your browser.
See every course on the trackKits
Build it on your bench too
Every lesson runs in the simulator with nothing to buy. When you want the real thing, these kits have the parts.
Find your kit
Pick the starter kit you own and run every lesson in its manual with the same parts on the same pins.
See every kitQuestions
About Power electronics
Is Power electronics free?
Yes. All 7 lessons of Power electronics are free and run in your browser, with nothing to install and no parts to buy before you start.
Do I need any parts?
No. Every circuit is built on a simulated breadboard, and the simulator checks each step as you go. When you want to build it for real, the same parts and wiring work on a real bench.
How long does Power electronics take?
About 4 hours: 7 lessons in 4 chapters, each one a few short steps. Your progress is kept, so you can stop after any lesson and pick up where you left off.
What will I build?
Each chapter ends in a project that puts it together: The boost converter and H bridges and current limits.
Where do I start?
With "The buck converter", and each lesson builds on the one before it. New to circuits? Electronics basics is the course that starts from zero.