Ballast-on-a-chip: realistic expectation or technical delusion

This paper presents a discussion by leading ballast companies, about the feasibility and suitability of silicon integration for electronic ballasts. The discussion started with the question about which power transistors were the most suitable for a given application or ballast feature. Then the discussion moved on to optimization of passive components, and of the whole ballast as well, integration level for different market and products, electronic requirements based on lamp data. The next topic started with the assertion that lamp data has to be specified more precisely, if the performance of integrated solutions is to show improvements. The discussion then moved on to the crucial point of lamp performance with regard to the crest factor. Finally a review of the electronic ballasts and the conclusion of the panel discussion is shown.