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New products: D24V7Fx 36V, 600mA low-cost step-down voltage regulators

Posted by Jan on 21 August 2025

We just released our D24V7Fx step-down voltage regulator family of basic buck regulators, which generate lower voltages from input voltages as high as 36 V while supporting maximum continuous output currents of 600 mA across all combinations of input and output voltages. Because they are switching regulators, they are much more efficient than linear voltage regulators, especially when the difference between the input and output voltage is large. This family includes six versions with fixed output voltages ranging from 3.3 V to 12 V:

Regulator Output voltage Max continuous
output current
Input voltage range1 Size Special features Price
#5592: D24V7F3 3.3 V 600 mA 4 V – 36 V 0.34″ × 0.54″ Short-circuit protection,
thermal shutdown
$2.75
#5593: D24V7F5 5 V 5.1 V – 36 V
#5594: D24V7F6 6 V 6.1 V – 36 V
#5595: D24V7F7 7.5 V 7.6 V – 36 V
#5596: D24V7F9 9 V 9.2 V – 36 V
#5597: D24V7F12 12 V 12.2 V – 36 V
Note 1: Minimum input voltage is subject to dropout voltage considerations; see the dropout voltage section of product pages for more information.

We manufacture these boards in-house at our Las Vegas facility, so if one of the stock voltages doesn’t fit your needs, we can customize these regulators to output other voltages. If you are interested in customization, please contact us for a quote.

The main distinguishing feature of this regulator is its small size and low cost. At just $2.75 in single-unit quantities, it is our lowest-price regulator yet! We were able to achieve this by having one of our high school summer interns do the board design:

High-school summer intern routing the D24V7Fx regulator PCB, July 2025.

I’m kidding about that making the price lower, of course. Our engineers still went over everything, and unlike some competing products you might encounter, we provide detailed performance data such as the quiescent current characteristics:

Also, each production unit is fully automatically optically inspected and tested. We have been putting a lot of effort into automating our testing and packaging, and that is the real key to being able to offer these low prices. More behind-the-scenes information on the robots making our products coming soon!

Introductory special discount! Use coupon code D24V7FXINTRO to try out these new regulators for just $2.22 each.

New product: A89301-Based Sensorless Brushless Motor Controller, 50V, 11A

Posted by Kevin on 20 August 2025
Tags: new products

Yes, you read that right: brushless! We’re excited to finally announce our A89301-Based Sensorless Brushless Motor Controller, 50V, 11A, our first board designed to control a brushless DC motor.

Pololu has never offered any BLDC motor drivers or controllers until now (we’ve had stepper motor drivers for a long time, but that’s typically not what people mean when they ask for a brushless motor driver), and I think it’s easier to appreciate some of our reasons for this if you look into their principles of operation.

A brushed DC motor can easily be driven with a simple direct current produced from a constant voltage, and its speed can be controlled by varying that voltage proportionally (or by using PWM, which effectively produces a lower average voltage). This is because it has a commutator and some contacts, or “brushes”, that switch the direction of the current in the windings as they rotate inside a fixed magnetic field, and that maintains a steady torque on the motor shaft to keep it spinning. Consequently, the simplest brushed DC motor drivers are not much more than amplifiers that turn low-voltage, low-current control signals into higher power outputs capable of driving a motor.

By contrast, the construction of a brushless DC motor is relatively simple. The coils are located on the fixed part of the motor (stator) and are directly connected to the motor’s terminals, and the magnets are on the rotating part (rotor) instead. Eliminating the brushes and commutator accounts for some of the advantages of brushless motors, including higher efficiency (partly due to less friction) and longer lifetimes (fewer parts to wear out) compared to brushed motors. The trade-off for this reduced mechanical complexity is increased control complexity: something else now has to switch the coil currents appropriately to maintain a steady torque on the rotor, and that is the responsibility of the brushless motor driver.

A pair of disassembled DC motors. Brushed motor (left): end cap with brushes, rotor with coils and commutator, case with fixed magnets. Brushless outrunner motor (right): rotor with magnets and case, stator with coils.

In order to produce torque, a motor’s windings must generate magnetic forces tangential to the axis of rotation. (I saw an analogy that compares this to using a wrench: you can torque a bolt by applying a tangential force to the wrench handle, but pushing or pulling on the wrench parallel to the handle doesn’t do anything useful.) Since a brushless motor’s magnets rotate, the fixed coils’ magnetic fields must also rotate to keep acting on the rotor tangentially, and this means the coils need to be energized in a rotating sequence.

The simplest way to do this is with an open-loop technique that simply drives the brushless motor using a sequence with fixed timing. However, for better reliability and efficiency, it is helpful to know the actual position of the rotor so that the timing of the sequence can be adjusted accordingly. There are two approaches to doing this, each with their own upsides and downsides: sensored control relies on a position sensor in the motor (like an encoder) to directly measure its position, while sensorless control uses the back-EMF (electromotive force) induced on the coils by the motor’s rotation to calculate its position.

I hope this brief overview conveys some of the additional considerations that are involved in making a brushless DC motor control system. This complexity, and the wide range of electronic parts released by various manufacturers to address it, means that it’s been hard for us to decide on a direction to take when it came to trying to design our own brushless driver or controller. Another factor was that we don’t sell any brushless motors (yet), which made it kind of a chicken-and-egg problem: does it make sense for us to develop a brushless driver when we have no brushless motors, and does it make sense for us to source brushless motors to sell when we have nothing to drive them?

Of course, to resolve that dilemma, you have to start with one or the other, and Allegro offering development support for their A89301 brushless DC gate driver IC made it an easy decision for us to move forward with a board for it. Our A89301-Based Sensorless Brushless Motor Controller, 50V, 11A combines the A89301 with external MOSFETs to enable sensorless control of 3-phase BLDC motors at voltages from 5.5 V to 48 V and with phase currents up to 11 A. The A89301 uses a fully-integrated field-oriented control (FOC) algorithm that computes the exact position of the rotor so that the coil currents can be controlled accordingly, optimizing torque and efficiency. It accepts speed inputs via analog voltage, PWM duty cycle, pulse frequency, or I²C signals to simplify the process of getting a brushless motor running without having to write your own complex low-level motor control code. We offer versions with soldered header pins and terminal blocks or without through-hole connectors.

Introductory special discount! Use coupon code A89301INTRO to get either version for $19.95 each.

To make use of all of the A89301 IC’s features and settings, including lock (stall) detection and multiple motor startup options, it needs to be configured through I²C. Our board’s 4-pin I²C connector (Qwiic and STEMMA QT compatible) makes it easy to connect it to one of our USB-to-I²C Adapters and use the Pololu A89301 Configuration Utility software for Windows (based on Allegro’s own evaluation board software) to interface with the A89301.

The Pololu A89301 Configuration Utility software.

An A89301-Based Sensorless Brushless Motor Controller connected to a computer with a Pololu Isolated USB-to-I²C Adapter (IOREF shorted to 2V8).

This is our first brushless motor control solution, and we definitely don’t intend it to be our last. While we have plans for other products, we’re also interested in hearing from you: What are you looking for in a BLDC motor system? What kinds of brushless motors, drivers, and controllers would you like to see us offer?

New products: JST SH-style connector boards

Posted by Ben on 8 July 2025
Tags: new products

We have released a series of breakout boards for our new JST SH-type cables that serve as adapters between these cables and breadboard-compatible 0.1″ through-holes. The new boards are available in pin counts from 2 through 5 and in top-entry and side-entry variations. We also have existing 6-pin versions that we originally released as accessories for our micro metal gearmotor encoders, so the through-holes are labeled on the silkscreen according to the pins they would map to on our encoders, but these can also be used as general-purpose breakout boards for our 6-pin cables. Here’s the full selection:

Top entry Side entry
2-pin
3-pin
4-pin
5-pin
6-pin

New products: 40 new JST SH-style cables

Posted by Ben on 28 May 2025
Tags: new products

You may have noticed several of our newer boards have JST SH-style connectors on them, from 2 pins on these micro metal gearmotor connector boards to 3 pins on these digital distance sensors to 4 pins on these contactless current sensor carriers and several I2C products including our USB-to-I2C adapters. We now have a series of compatible JST SH-style female cables to go with them. We are stocking them in a variety of lengths, pin counts, and termination styles, making 40 new cables in all to choose from!

Pins Terminations Length Item #
1×2 double-sided
(female-female)
10 cm (4″) #5503
16 cm (6.3″) #5504
25 cm (10″) #5505
40 cm (16″) #5506
63 cm (25″) #5507
single-sided
(female-
unterminated)
12 cm (4.5″) #5500
30 cm (12″) #5501
75 cm (30″) #5502
Pins Terminations Length Item #
1×3 double-sided
(female-female)
10 cm (4″) #5513
16 cm (6.3″) #5514
25 cm (10″) #5515
40 cm (16″) #5516
63 cm (25″) #5517
single-sided
(female-
unterminated)
12 cm (4.5″) #5510
30 cm (12″) #5511
75 cm (30″) #5512
Pins Terminations Length Item #
1×4 double-sided
(female-female)
10 cm (4″) #5523
16 cm (6.3″) #5524
25 cm (10″) #5525
40 cm (16″) #5526
63 cm (25″) #5527
single-sided
(female-
unterminated)
12 cm (4.5″) #5520
30 cm (12″) #5521
75 cm (30″) #5522
Pins Terminations Length Item #
1×5 double-sided
(female-female)
10 cm (4″) #5533
16 cm (6.3″) #5534
25 cm (10″) #5535
40 cm (16″) #5536
63 cm (25″) #5537
single-sided
(female-
unterminated)
12 cm (4.5″) #5530
30 cm (12″) #5531
75 cm (30″) #5532
Pins Terminations Length Item #
1×6 double-sided
(female-female)
10 cm (4″) #5543
16 cm (6.3″) #5544
25 cm (10″) #5545
40 cm (16″) #5546
63 cm (25″) #5547
single-sided
(female-
unterminated)
12 cm (4.5″) #5540
30 cm (12″) #5541
75 cm (30″) #5542

The JST SH-style connector has a 1 mm pitch, making it a good choice for small modules, and the wires are 28 AWG. The double-sided cables have twisted wires and female connectors on both ends, while the single-sided versions have a connector on one end and unterminated wires on the other. The single-ended versions can easily be cut to shorter if desired, and remember that you can also cut the double-sided cables in half to get single-sided cables that are 5 cm, 8 cm, and 20 cm long.

The 4-pin versions are compatible with SparkFun’s Qwiic and Adafruit’s STEMMA QT.

We’ve had 6-pin cables for our Micro Metal Gearmotor encoders for years, but with this new line of cables, we’re offering a 6-pin version that matches the standardized color order, with black always corresponding to pin 1 and red always corresponding to pin 2. For reference, here is our selection of those original 6-pin cables, which have the green wire on pin 1:

Pins Terminations Length Item #
1×6 double-sided
(female-female)
10 cm (4″) #4765
16 cm (6.3″) #4766
25 cm (10″) #4767
40 cm (16″) #4768
63 cm (25″) #4769
single-sided
(female-
unterminated)
12 cm (4.5″) #4762
30 cm (12″) #4763
75 cm (30″) #4764

What new products would you like to see with connectors for these cables?

New products: Pololu Isolated Solid State Relay/Switch, SPST

Posted by Kevin on 22 April 2025
Tags: new products

We’re happy to announce our new Isolated Solid State Relay/Switch boards! These modules function as solid state, single-pole, single-throw (SPST) relays or switches that can be controlled by low-current signals between 2.7 V and 40 V. The control signal activates an optically coupled driver that turns on a pair of output MOSFETs, which keeps the outputs electrically isolated from the input side. The MOSFETs are arranged back-to-back to make the outputs symmetric and bidirectional (so the board can be used as a high-side or low-side switch).

These boards make good replacements for mechanical relays in many situations, since their semiconductor-based design allows them to avoid problems like contact wear and arcing that limit the service life of mechanical relays. They are also silent and generally much smaller than a typical mechanical relay with a comparable current rating. Two versions of the solid state relay/switch are available with different voltage and current capabilities:

Three-wire and two-wire (with EN and VIN tied together) control options for the Pololu Isolated Solid State Relay/Switch, SPST.

Introductory special discount! Use coupon code SSRELAYINTRO to get either version for $3.50 each.

More new current sensors!

Posted by Ben on 18 April 2025
Tags: new products

ACS3704x Current Sensor Micro Carrier (top) and Compact Carrier (bottom) basic dimensions with US quarter for size reference.

ACS37030 Current Sensor Compact Carrier (top) and Large Carrier (bottom) size comparison.

We have released even more current sensors! As with our assortment of other active and preferred current sensors, these new boards are based on Allegro current-sensing ICs and have analog outputs with voltage proportional to the AC or DC current passing through the sensor while offering full electrical isolation of the current path from the sensor’s electronics. This isolation allows them to be inserted anywhere in the current path, including on the high side, and because the current path resistance is on the order of 2 mΩ or less, there is minimal effect on the rest of the system. Here’s a quick summary of the new sensor families:

Allegro ACS37041/ACS37042

These low-cost bidirectional current sensors have ranges of -10 A to +10 A or -30 A to +30 A with dedicated versions for 3.3 V and 5 V systems. The sensor itself is a tiny 5-pin SOT-23 package, which allows for an extra-compact, “micro” carrier board that is approximately 1/5th the size of our next smallest current sensor carrier. We also have versions in our standard “compact” form factor, which for these sensors end up being the larger of the two form factors available. These larger versions can accommodate a wider variety of connectors and thicker wires, and they have the same overall dimensions and current-path mounting hole arrangements as our other “compact” current sensor carriers.

The ACS37041 and ACS37042 are almost identical, with the key difference being that the ACS37042 has a higher isolation voltage rating. To support operation at higher voltages, the carrier boards for the ACS37042 versions have routed slots for higher creepage distances along the PCB surface. The pictures above show the ACS37041 carriers on the left and the ACS37042 carriers on the right.

The following table shows all of our ACS37041 and ACS37042 carrier options:

Pololu
Item #
Part Suffix Isolation
Rating 1
Supply Voltage Current
Range
Sensitivity
(mV/A)
Zero Point Size PCB
Details
Min PCB
Creepage 2
Price
ACS3704x Micro Carriers

ACS37041
#5440 (coming June 2025) 010B3 100 VRMS 3.0 V to 3.6 V ±10 A 132 1.65 V 0.3″×0.4″

7.6×10.2
mm
2 layers,
1-oz copper
1.6 mm $4.15
#5441 030B3 ±30 A 44
#5442 010B5 4.5 V to 5.5 V ±10 A 200 2.5 V
#5443 030B5 ±30 A 66.7

ACS37042
#5450 010B3 285 VRMS 3.0 V to 3.6 V ±10 A 132 1.65 V 2.0 mm $4.69
#5451 030B3 ±30 A 44
#5452 (coming June 2025) 010B5 4.5 V to 5.5 V ±10 A 200 2.5 V
#5453 (coming June 2025) 030B5 ±30 A 66.7
ACS3704x Compact Carriers

ACS37041
#5444 (coming June 2025) 010B3 100 VRMS 3.0 V to 3.6 V ±10 A 132 1.65 V 0.7″×0.8″

17.8×20.3
mm
2 layers,
2-oz copper
1.6 mm $4.45
#5445 030B3 ±30 A 44
#5446 010B5 4.5 V to 5.5 V ±10 A 200 2.5 V
#5447 030B5 ±30 A 66.7

ACS37042
#5454 010B3 285 VRMS 3.0 V to 3.6 V ±10 A 132 1.65 V 3.0 mm $4.99
#5455 030B3 ±30 A 44
#5456 (coming June 2025) 010B5 4.5 V to 5.5 V ±10 A 200 2.5 V
#5457 (coming June 2025) 030B5 ±30 A 66.7
Note 1: IC component rating per manufacturer datasheet.
Note 2: Minimum creepage along PCB surface based on layout design only. Other creepage distances, e.g. along the body of the component, may be lower.

Allegro ACS37030

These sensors measure bidirectional currents from -20 A to +20 A or -65 A to +65 A, and they are intended for 3.3 V systems. What makes them really special are their extra-low (40 ns typical) response times and extra-high 5 MHz bandwidth, which are made possible by their combined use of two sensing technologies: a Hall effect sensor captures DC and low-frequency current information and an inductive coil captures high-frequency signals. The following table shows our available options:

Pololu
Item #
Part Suffix Supply Voltage Current
Range
Sensitivity
(mV/A)
Zero Point Size PCB
Details
Price
ACS37030 Compact Carriers
#5230 020B3 3.0 V to 3.6 V ±20 A 66 1.65 V 0.7″×0.8″

17.8×20.3
mm
2 layers,
2-oz copper
$11.95
#5231 (coming July 2025) 040B3 ±40 A 33
#5232 065B3 ±65 A 20.3
ACS37030 Large Carriers
#5235 065B3 3.0 V to 3.6 V ±65 A 20.3 1.65 V 1.4″×1.2″

35.6×30.5
mm
6 layers,
2-oz copper
$14.95
#5236 (coming July 2025) 040B3 ±40 A 33

These sensors are available in our standard compact form factor, which is great for use in space-constrained systems, and the higher-current versions are also available in our standard large form factor, which supports more connection options for higher-current applications. The large carriers offer better thermal dissipation thanks to their 6-layer PCBs and increased surface area, and the holes and slots for the current path connection points accommodate thicker wires along with a variety of high-current connectors (e.g. lugs, solderless ring terminals, and 4-pin terminal blocks). Having these standard form factors available makes it easier to swap among different boards to compare different sensor ICs, and having different form factors available for the same sensor IC also makes it possible to evaluate how things like PCB area and the number of copper layers affects the sensor’s thermal performance

All our current sensors

These new additions bring us up to 96 total active and preferred current sensor carriers! Here’s a handy table comparing them all:


ACS3704x
Current Sensor
Micro Carriers
ACS3704x
Current Sensor
Compact Carriers
ACS711 Current
Sensor Carriers
ACS71240 Current
Sensor Carriers
ACS724 Current
Sensor Carriers
ACS37220
Current Sensor
Compact Carriers
ACS37220
Current Sensor
Large Carriers
ACS37030
Current Sensor
Compact Carriers
ACS37030
Current Sensor
Large Carriers
ACS72981
Current Sensor
Compact Carriers
ACS72981
Current Sensor
Large Carriers
CT432/CT433 TMR
Current Sensor
Compact Carriers
CT432/CT433 TMR
Current Sensor
Large Carriers
Allegro Sensor ACS3704x ACS711KEXT ACS71240 ACS724LLCTR ACS37220 ACS37030 ACS72981xLR CT432/CT433
Sensing technology Hall effect Hall effect Hall effect Hall effect Hall effect Hall effect + inductive coil Hall effect XtremeSense™ TMR
(tunneling magnetoresistance)
Logic voltage range 3.3V versions: 3.0–3.6 V
5V versions: 4.75–5.5 V
3.0–5.5 V 3.3V ver: 3.0–3.6 V
5V ver: 4.5–5.5 V
4.5–5.5 V 3.3V versions: 3.15–3.45 V
5V versions: 4.5–5.5 V
3.0–3.6 V 3.3V versions: 3.0–3.6 V
5V versions: 4.5–5.5 V
3.3V versions: 3.0–3.6 V
5V versions: 4.75–5.5 V
Family current range 10–30 A 15.5–31 A 10–50 A 2.5–50 A 100–200 A 20–65 A 50–200 A 20–70 A
Current range/
sensitivity of individual versions
ACS37041:

3.3V Bidirectional:
±30 A / 44 mV/A

5V Bidirectional:
±10 A / 200 mV/A
±30 A / 66.7 mV/A




ACS37042:

3.3V Bidirectional:
±10 A / 132 mV/A
±30 A / 44 mV/A
ACS37041:

3.3V Bidirectional:
±30 A / 44 mV/A

5V Bidirectional:
±10 A / 200 mV/A
±30 A / 66.7 mV/A




ACS37042:

3.3V Bidirectional:
±10 A / 132 mV/A
±30 A / 44 mV/A
Bidirectional:(1)
±15.5 A / 90 mV/A
±31 A / 45 mV/A
3.3V Bidirectional:
±10 A / 132 mV/A
±30 A / 44 mV/A
±50 A / 26.4 mV/A

5V Bidirectional:
±10 A / 200 mV/A
±30 A / 66 mV/A
±50 A / 40 mV/A

5V Unidirectional:
0–⁠50 A / 80 mv/A
5V Bidirectional:(2)
±2.5 A / 800 mV/A
±5 A / 400 mV/A
±10 A / 200 mV/A
±20 A / 100 mV/A
±30 A / 66 mV/A
±50 A / 40 mV/A

5V Unidirectional:(2)
0–⁠5 A / 800 mv/A
0–⁠10 A / 400 mv/A
0–⁠20 A / 200 mv/A
0–⁠30 A / 133 mV/A
3.3V Bidirectional:
±100 A / 13.2 mV/A
±150 A / 8.8 mV/A

5V Bidirectional:
±100 A / 20 mV/A
±150 A / 13.3 mV/A
±200 A / 10 mV/A
3.3V Bidirectional:
±100 A / 13.2 mV/A
±150 A / 8.8 mV/A

5V Bidirectional:
±100 A / 20 mV/A
±150 A / 13.3 mV/A
±200 A / 10 mV/A
3.3V Bidirectional:
±20 A / 66 mV/A
±65 A / 20.3 mV/A
3.3V Bidirectional:
±65 A / 20.3 mV/A
3.3V Bidirectional:(1)
±50 A / 26.4 mV/A
±100 A / 13.2 mV/A
±150 A / 8.8 mV/A
±200 A / 6.6 mV/A

3.3V Unidirectional:(1)
0–⁠50 A / 52.8 mv/A
0–⁠100 A / 26.4 mv/A
0–⁠150 A / 17.6 mv/A
0–⁠200 A / 13.2 mv/A

5V Bidirectional:(2)
±50 A / 40 mV/A
±100 A / 20 mV/A
±150 A / 13.3 mV/A
±200 A / 10 mV/A

5V Unidirectional:(2)
0–⁠50 A / 80 mv/A
0–⁠100 A / 40 mv/A
0–⁠150 A / 26.7 mv/A
3.3V Bidirectional:(1)
±50 A / 26.4 mV/A
±100 A / 13.2 mV/A
±150 A / 8.8 mV/A
±200 A / 6.6 mV/A

3.3V Unidirectional:(1)
0–⁠50 A / 52.8 mv/A
0–⁠100 A / 26.4 mv/A
0–⁠150 A / 17.6 mv/A
0–⁠200 A / 13.2 mv/A

5V Bidirectional:(2)
±50 A / 40 mV/A
±100 A / 20 mV/A
±150 A / 13.3 mV/A
±200 A / 10 mV/A

5V Unidirectional:(2)
0–⁠50 A / 80 mv/A
0–⁠100 A / 40 mv/A
0–⁠150 A / 26.7 mv/A
3.3V Bidirectional:
±20 A / 50 mV/A
±30 A / 33.3 mV/A
±50 A / 20 mV/A
±70 A / 14.3 mV/A

3.3V Unidirectional:
0–⁠20 A / 100 mv/A
0–⁠30 A / 66.7 mv/A
0–⁠50 A / 40 mv/A
0–⁠65 A / 30.8 mv/A

5V Bidirectional:
±20 A / 100 mV/A
±30 A / 66.7 mV/A
±50 A / 40 mV/A
±65 A / 30.8 mV/A

5V Unidirectional:
0–⁠20 A / 200 mv/A
0–⁠30 A / 133.3 mv/A
0–⁠50 A / 80 mv/A
0–⁠70 A / 57.1 mv/A
3.3V Bidirectional:
±50 A / 20 mV/A
±70 A / 14.3 mV/A

3.3V Unidirectional:
0–⁠50 A / 40 mv/A
0–⁠65 A / 30.8 mv/A

5V Bidirectional:
±50 A / 40 mV/A
±65 A / 30.8 mV/A

5V Unidirectional:
0–⁠50 A / 80 mv/A
0–⁠70 A / 57.1 mv/A
IC current path resistance 1.6 mΩ 0.6 mΩ 0.6 mΩ 0.6 mΩ 0.1 mΩ 0.7 mΩ 0.2 mΩ 1 mΩ
PCB 2 layers,
1-oz copper
2 layers,
2-oz copper
2 layers,
2-oz copper
2 layers,
2-oz copper
2 layers,
2- or 4-oz copper(4)
2 layers,
2-oz copper
6 layers,
2-oz copper
2 layers,
2-oz copper
6 layers,
2-oz copper
6 layers,
2-oz copper
6 layers,
2-oz copper
2 or 4 layers(5),
2-oz copper
6 layers,
2-oz copper
Max bandwidth 150 kHz 100 kHz 120 kHz 120 kHz(3) 150 kHz 5 MHz 250 kHz 1 MHz
Size 0.3″ × 0.4″ 0.7″ × 0.8″ 0.7″ × 0.8″ 0.7″ × 0.8″ 0.7″ × 0.8″ 0.7″ × 0.8″ 1.4″ × 1.2″ 0.7″ × 0.8″ 1.4″ × 1.2″ 0.7″ × 0.8″ 1.4″ × 1.2″ 0.8″ × 1.1″ 1.4″ × 1.2″
Overcurrent
fault output
User-configurable threshold
Common-mode field rejection
Nonratiometric output
1-piece price $4.15 $4.45 $4.85 $5.25 $9.95$11.49 $6.95 $10.95 $11.95 $14.95 $13.95 $16.95 $12.95 $16.95

Note 1: Sensitivity when Vcc = 3.3 V; actual sensitivity is ratiometric (i.e. it is proportional to Vcc).
Note 2: Sensitivity when Vcc = 5 V; actual sensitivity is ratiometric (i.e. it is proportional to Vcc).
Note 3: Bandwidth can be reduced by adding a filter capacitor.
Note 4: 50A version uses 4-oz copper PCB; all other versions use 2-oz copper.
Note 5: 50A and higher versions use a 4-layer PCB; all other versions use a 2-layer PCB.

You can also use the following selection box to see all these options sorted by current range:

Alternatives available with variations in these parameter(s): current range Select variant…

New products: Isolated USB-to-I²C Adapters

Posted by Ben on 8 April 2025
Tags: new products

We’re excited to introduce our new isolated USB-to-I²C adapters! These boards make it easy to control your I²C device from your PC or other USB host, giving your applications access to a world of sensors and actuators or simplifying evaluation and troubleshooting of I²C hardware. Two versions are available, one that requires VCC to be supplied separately to the I²C side and one that can deliver 5V or 3.3V power to your I²C bus from your USB port while still maintaining electrical isolation.

Pololu Isolated USB-to-I²C Adapter pinout and LEDs.

Pololu Isolated USB-to-I²C Adapter with Isolated Power pinout and LEDs.

Both adapters offer full galvanic isolation to protect your PC from your experimental circuits and to avoid subtle common-ground problems.

Schematic diagram of the Pololu Isolated USB-to-I²C Adapter with Isolated Power.

The firmware is open source, so you can customize them, and the galvanic isolation building blocks used in these adapters are available separately in smaller modules if you want to implement your own isolated systems.

Finding common ground is for suckers!

Posted by Ben on 31 March 2025
Tags: new products

We usually think of ground as a common point in our circuits, and many problems arise from not having a good (or any) ground connection. But there’s also the flip side of unexpected ground connections leading to malfunction or even destruction of our electronics systems. Keeping grounds separated can be an important part of improving functionality and reliability when connecting many parts or boards together, which is why we have continued our push into simplifying electrical isolation with the release of four new I²C isolator boards:

These modules enable bidirectional I²C communication between devices while maintaining complete galvanic isolation between the two sides. This prevents the unexpected flow of current between the two sides, and it can also prevent destructive voltages on one side from propagating into the other (note that in this scenario one side will still be destroyed, but at least the damage will be contained to the isolated portion). The modules are based on Texas Instruments’ ISO1640B, which supports bidirectional data transfer up to 1.7 MHz. The clock line (SCL) is also bidirectional, which allows for clock stretching.

Two board versions are available, one with isolated power and one without. The version with isolated power can deliver regulated, isolated power at 3.3 V or 5 V to the target thanks to the incorporation of the MPS MIE1W0505BGLVH (which you might recognize from the standalone power module we released a few months ago), while the simpler version without isolated power requires the two sides to be powered separately.

Schematic diagram of the Pololu I²C Isolator with Isolated Power.

Each version is optionally available with JST SH-style 4-pin connectors that are compatible with Qwiic and Stemma QT.

Introductory special discounts! Use coupon code I2CISOINTRO to get the versions without isolated power for $3.49 and use coupon code P5392P5393INTRO to get the versions with isolated power for $6.49.

New higher-power reverse voltage protector and ideal diode

Posted by Ben on 4 February 2025
Tags: new products

We are excited to announce the release of two new higher-power reverse voltage protectors that can handle up to around 25 A continuous while protecting your 4V–60V circuit from accidental destruction from reverse voltage:

  • Reverse protection only – This version protects against reverse voltage while still allowing reverse current, making it suitable for applications such as battery-powered motor control where delivering energy back into the battery is desirable.
  • Reverse protection with reverse current blocking – This version acts as an ideal diode, preventing current from flowing from output to input.

These boards feature larger 5×6mm MOSFETs with lower on-resistances and more than double the current carrying ability of the versions we released a few months ago, which makes the overall module larger (but still compact!):

Pololu Reverse Voltage Protectors are available in 20A/25A (left) and 10A/12A (right) versions.

With these new releases, we now have six total reverse protector options (with or without reverse current blocking in three different power levels):

Reverse protection Max
current
MOSFET on
resistance
Size Price Pololu
Item #
Reverse voltage only 10 A < 10 mΩ 0.3″×0.5″ $3.29 #5380
12 A < 5 mΩ $4.39 #5381
25 A < 1.5 mΩ 0.435″×0.7″ $7.95 #5387
Reverse voltage and current
(ideal diode)
10 A < 10 mΩ 0.3″×0.5″ $3.79 #5382
12 A < 5 mΩ $4.95 #5383
25 A < 1.5 mΩ 0.435″×0.7″ $8.49 #5389

Introductory special discount! Use coupon code RVP25INTRO to get these new reverse voltage protectors for just $2.95!

New product: Isolated DC-DC Power Module, MIE1W0505BGLVH, 5V/3.3V, 200mA

Posted by Ben on 23 January 2025
Tags: new products

I am happy to introduce our first isolated power module, which we expect to kick off a new category of electrical isolation products (note that the many current sensors we carry also feature isolation from the sense side to the control side, but that isolation is part of their more dedicated current-sensing functionality). Many of our products are modules like motor controllers and regulator boards, and connecting several of them together in real-world settings can lead to unexpected problems from connecting all the grounds together. For example, your computer’s USB port can be a convenient source of 5 V, but the negative or ground side of that 5 V will likely be connected to the ground pin of the computer’s power cable and therefore to the ground side of everything else you have plugged into the wall. This can lead to unexpected problems as you build up your system, usually without thinking about your house being part of your circuit.

There are more and more solutions for effectively moving power and signals without having an electrical connection, so we will be working on adding those into our more integrated products, and we will be adding to our isolation module portfolio to support our customers with the building blocks to make safer and more reliable systems themselves.

The module we are introducing today can provide galvanically isolated and regulated 5 V or 3.3 V power at up to 200 mA. It’s based on the MIE1W0505BGLVH from MPS, and it’s amazing how much is integrated into a chip like that, including a transformer to get the power from one side to the other without an electrical connection. Only a few passives are needed to support the IC, allowing our board to be small (0.3″ × 0.6″) and low-cost. It’s easy to use, too, with all the necessary information provided on the product page. The datasheet is available if you want more information, but you can use this module without knowing the details in there. (This is unlike what we call “carrier boards”, which require you to familiarize yourself with the chip.)

Introductory special discount! Use coupon code 5384INTRO to get this new power module for just $2.75!

New Products

JST SH-Style Cable, 2-Pin, Female-Female, 25cm
JST SH-Style Cable, 4-Pin, Female-Female, 10cm
A89301-Based Sensorless Brushless Motor Controller, 50V, 11A
Pololu I²C Isolator, ISO1640
A5984 Stepper Motor Driver Carrier, Fixed 1.5A@5V / 1A@3.3V, Blue Edition (Soldered Header Pins)
5V, 100mA Step-Down Voltage Regulator D45V1E1F5
JST SH-Style Cable, 4-Pin, Single-Ended Female, 30cm
ACS37042KLHBLT-010B3 Current Sensor Micro Carrier -10A to +10A, 3.3V
JST PH-Style Cable with Female Pins for 0.1" Housings, 5-Pin, 30cm
Breakout for JST SH-Style Connector, 3-Pin Male Side-Entry (2-Pack)
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