PD32 – 32 Channel Piezo Driver

The PD32 is a high-bandwidth, low-noise amplifier for driving up to 32 piezoelectric actuators. The voltage range is configurable from +45V to +/-130V and includes asymmetric voltage ranges such as 0V to +130V. The PD32 works seamlessly with common multi-channel DAC cards and is easy to use with LabView and Simulink. The compact size and 19-inch rack compatibility provides a comprehensive off-the-shelf solution for driving tens, hundreds, or thousands of piezoelectric actuators.

The PD32 is designed for demanding applications such as Adaptive Optics, Acoustic Beam Forming, Materials Testing, Astronomy, Ultrasonics, and Vibration Control. With an output current of 150mA per channel, a large array of piezoelectric actuators can be driven simultaneously at high frequencies. Positive and negative high-voltage bias outputs are also included for compatibility with piezoelectric bender actuators.

Each channel is individually protected against short circuit and thermal overload. Status indicators on the front panel provide individual monitoring of all channels. A digital status signal and external shutdown command is also accessible from the input connector to allow remote monitoring and control. The input and output connectors are industry standard 37 Pin D-Sub connectors which are straight-forward to assemble. Adaptors are available for industry standard 32 Channel DAC cards.

PD32 - 32 Channel Piezo Driver - Specifications and User Manual

PD32 Multi-channel Piezo Driver
  • $USD3957 + Shipping
  • Power Bandwidth Calculator (Grounded Load)
  • Power Bandwidth Calculator (Floating Load)
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Compatible Actuators

Compatible Actuators
Stack Actuators 60V, 100V, 120V, 150V
Plates and Tubes up to +/-130V
Two Wire Benders up to +/-130V
Three Wire Benders up to 130V, or +/-65V

Specifications

Grounded Load Floating Load
Output Voltage +45 V to +130 V +/-90 V or +/-130 V
Peak Current 150 mA per channel 75 mA per channel
RMS Current 106 mA per channel 53 mA per channel
Power Bandwidth 50 kHz (120 Vp-p) 50 kHz (240 Vp-p)
Signal Bandwidth 120 kHz 120 kHz
Slew Rate 19 V/us 38 V/us
Gain 15 V/V 20 V/V
Input Impedance 53 kOhm 6.25 kOhm
Input Offset +/- 5 mV +/- 5 mV
Load Unlimited Unlimited
Output Noise 200 uV RMS (1uF) 300 uV RMS (1uF)
Protection Short circuit and thermal
Inputs 32 Analog inputs, shutdown command
Outputs 32 HV Analog outputs, overload monitor
Connectors Industry standard DB-37 (input) and DD-78 (output)
Power 85-260 Vac, 50/60 Hz, IEC C14 connector, 200W Max
Mechanical Specifications
Environment 0 – 40 C (32-104 F), Non-condensing humidity
Dimensions 212 x 304.8 x 88 mm (8.35 x 12 x 3.46 in)
Weight 2 kg (4.4 lb)

Output Voltage Range

The output voltage range is configurable between +50V and +/-130V and the load can be either grounded or floating. For peak-to-peak voltages less than 135V, the grounded load configuration is recommended since this provides greater current. The floating load configuration is required for the +/-95V and +/-130V ranges. The desired configuration should be specified at the time of ordering.

Grounded Load Configurations

In the grounded load configurations, the actuator connections are illustrated below. The negative output is internally grounded.

PD32 grounded load configuration

Grounded Load Configuration

The desired output voltage range can be selected from the following table.

Min Voltage Max Voltage Order Code
0 +130 PD32-V0,130
0 +120 PD32-V0,120
0 +95 PD32-V0,95
0 +70 PD32-V0,70
0 +45 PD32-V0,45
-15 +115 PD32-V15,115
-20 +95 PD32-V20,95
-45 +45 PD32-V45,45
-65 +65 PD32-V65,65

Grounded Load Voltage Ranges

Three wire bender actuators can be driven using the following connection diagram. The HV+ and HV- bias voltages are the minimum and maximum voltages listed in the table above and are accessible on the output connector.

PD32 Bender

Floating Load Configurations

The floating load configuration is useful for achieving higher peak-to-peak voltage swings. The connection diagram is illustrated below. Do not connect either of these signals to ground, for example, to the ground terminal of an oscilloscope probe.

PD32 Floating

Floating Load Configuration

The desired output voltage range can be selected from the following table.

Min Voltage Max Voltage Order Code
-130 +130 PD32-V130,130
-95 +95 PD32-V95,95

Floating Load Voltage Ranges

Input Connection Diagram

The front panel input connector is a DB37 Female Connector (Amphenol L77SDC37SA4CH4F). This connector is also recommended for use on customer PCBs connecting to the PD32 via a male-male DB-37 cable (included). The input connection diagram is illustrated below.

Signals Connector Pin Notes
Analog Inputs 1 to 32 1 – 32 +/-10V max
Ground 33, 34
Not Connected 35
Digital disable command 36 3.3V or 5V logic
Overload indicator 37 5V logic

Input Connector Signals

PD32 input

Input Connector Pinout

Output Connection Diagram

The front panel output connector is an industry standard DD78 Female Connector (Harting 09565527613). This connector is also recommended for use on customer PCBs connecting to the PD32 via a male-male DD-78 cable (included). The connection diagram is illustrated below.

Signals Connector Pin Notes
Outputs 1 to 16 (positive) 1 – 16
Ground 17, 20
HV+ 18, 19 For driving benders
Outputs 1 to 16 (negative) 21 – 36
Ground 37
HV- 38, 39 For driving benders
Outputs 17 to 32 (positive) 40 – 55
Ground 56, 59
HV+ 57, 58 For driving benders
Outputs 17 to 32 (negative) 60 – 75
Ground 76
HV- 77, 78 For driving benders
PD32 output

Output Connector Pinout

Output Current

The peak output current is 150 mA per channel in the grounded load configuration or 75 mA per channel in the floating load configuration. The maximum RMS current is 106 mA in the grounded configuration and 53 mA in the floating load configuration.

The maximum output current from all channels is 3 Amps RMS.

Power Bandwidth

Power Bandwidth Calculator (Grounded Load)

Power Bandwidth Calculator (Floating Load)

The nominal slew-rate of the PD32 is 19 V/us. Therefore, the maximum frequency sine-wave is

$$ f_{max}= \frac{19 \times 10^6}{\pi~V_{L(p-p)}} $$ That is, the power bandwidth for a 120 Vp-p sine-wave is 50 kHz. In the floating load configuration, the slew-rate is doubled to 38 V/us, therefore, the power bandwidth for a 240 Vp-p sine-wave is 50 kHz.

With a capacitive load, the power bandwidth is limited by the output current. The maximum frequency sine wave is

$$ f_{pwr} = \frac{I_{pk}}{\pi V_{L(p-p)}~C_L} $$ where \(I_{pk}\) is the peak current limit, \(V_{L(p-p)}\) is the peak-to-peak output voltage, and \(C_L\) is the effective load capacitance. The power bandwidth versus load capacitance is listed below.

Load Peak to Peak Voltage (Grounded)
Cap 50 100V 130V
10 nF 95 kHz 47 kHz 34 kHz
30 nF 31 kHz 15 kHz 11 kHz
100 nF 9.5 kHz 4.7 kHz 3.4 kHz
300 nF 3.1 kHz 1.5 kHz 1.1 kHz
1 uF 950 Hz 470 Hz 340 Hz
3 uF 310 Hz 150 Hz 114 Hz
10 uF 96 Hz 48 Hz 34 Hz
30 uF 32 Hz 16 Hz 11 Hz

Power Bandwidth versus
Load Capacitance (Grounded Load)

Load Peak to Peak Voltage (Floating)
Cap 100 200V 260V
10 nF 23 kHz 11 kHz 8.5 kHz
30 nF 7.9 kHz 3.9 kHz 2.8 kHz
100 nF 2.3 kHz 1.1 kHz 850 Hz
300 nF 790 Hz 390 Hz 284 Hz
1 uF 230 Hz 119 Hz 85 Hz
3 uF 80 Hz 40 Hz 28 Hz
10 uF 24 Hz 12 Hz 9 Hz
30 uF 8 Hz 4 Hz 3 Hz

Power Bandwidth versus
Load Capacitance (Floating Load)

In the following figures, the maximum frequency periodic signal is plotted against the peak-to-peak voltage.

PD32 maximum frequency versus load capacitance

Maximum Frequency versus Load Capacitance
(Grounded Load)

PD32 maximum frequency versus load capacitance

Maximum Frequency versus Load Capacitance
(Floating Load)

Small Signal Bandwidth

The small-signal bandwidth and frequency response is described in the following table and figure.

PD32 small signal frequency response

Small signal frequency response

Load Cap. Bandwidth
No Load 120 kHz
10 nF 90 kHz
30 nF 40 kHz
100 nF 11 kHz
300 nF 3.8 kHz
1 uF 1.0 kHz
3 uF 320 Hz
10 uF 62 Hz
30 uF 24 Hz

Small signal bandwidth versus
load capacitance (-3dB)

Overload Protection / Shutdown

Each channel is protected against short-circuit and thermal overload. If the thermal overload on any channel engages, the front panel indicator for that channel will illuminate. In addition, an overload on any channel will cause the overload signal (pin 37) on the input connector to go high (+5V).

The amplifier can also be disabled by applying a logic high (3.3V to 5V) to the disable pin (pin 36).

Enclosure / Rack Mounting

The PD32 has a side air intake and rear exhaust. These vents should not be obstructed. If sufficient air-flow is not available, the amplifier will enter a thermal overload state as discussed above.

A single PD32 amplifier can be mounted in 19-inch rack using the single rack kit which includes a spacer, fasteners, and mounting handles (Order code: SingleRackKit-2U). This can be ordered with the amplifier, or separately and retrofitted to any PD32 amplifier. Simple assembly is required.

Two PD32 amplifiers can be rack mounted in a side-by-side arrangement using the double rack kit which includes alternate side panels, fasteners, and mounting handles (DoubleRackKit-2U). This should be ordered with a set of two amplifiers; however, a retrofitting kit for existing amplifiers is available on request. Some assembly is required.

Input Test Connector and Cable

An adaptor PCB is supplied which connects all input channels to a single BNC connector. A 2.5ft DB37 (Male-Male) input cable is also supplied.

Breakout Board and Cable (PD32-Breakout)

A screw-terminal breakout board is included which connects to the amplifier via a Female DD78 connector (TE 5748483-5) and HD78 Male-Male cable (2.5 ft). If required, the board can be mounted onto a base structure using the installed M3 hex spacers.

PD32 Breakout 1500w

Output breakout board

Signal Adaptors

The signal adaptors allow a direct connection to common multi-channel DAC cards. Standard adaptors are listed below; however, custom adaptors can also be created.

Manufacturer DAC Card Signal Adaptor Notes Buy Online
National Instruments PCIe-6738 and PXIe-6738 PD-6738 Requires NI SHC68-68-A2 Cable Buy Online
National Instruments PCIe-6739 and PXIe-6739 PD-6738 Requires NI SHC68-68-A2 Cable Buy Online
National Instruments PCI-6723 and PXI-6723 PD-6723 Requires NI SH68-C68-S Cable Contact for Quote

Standard Signal Adaptors

The adaptors are contained in a compact enclosure that is mounted inline with the PD32 input cable and DAC card output cable.

Standard Delivery Contents

  • PD32 Amplifier with chosen configuration, e.g. PD32-V0,130
  • Input Test PCB
  • Output screw-terminal breakout board (PD32-Breakout)
  • Input cable – DB37 Male-Male, 2.5ft (CS-DSDMDB37MM-002.5)
  • Output cable – HD78 Male-Male, 2.5ft (CS-DSDHD78MM0-002.5)
  • IEC C13 Power cable with suitable connector for shipping destination

Safety

This device produces hazardous potentials and should be used by suitably qualified personnel. Do not operate the device when there are exposed conductors.

Warranty

The PD32 is guaranteed against manufacturer defects for a period of 12 months.

Previous Versions