PWM controller having adaptive off-time modulation for power saving

1. Field of Invention An adaptive off-time modulator of a PWM controller is provided for power saving in the light-load and no-load conditions. The maximum on-time is kept as a constant and a bias current of the oscillator in the PWM controller is moderated to achieve the off-time modulation. Reduction of the bias current increases the off-time of the switching period. The bias current is a function of the supply voltage and the feedback voltage, which is derived from a voltage feedback loop. A threshold voltage defines the level of the light load. A limit voltage defines the low level of the supply voltage. A bias current synthesizer generates the bias current. Once the feedback voltage is decreased lower than the threshold voltage, the bias current is reduced linearly and the off-time of the switching period is increased gradually. When the supply voltage is lower than the limit voltage, the bias current increases and determines a maximum off-time of the switching period. The maximum on-time and off-time of the switching period determines the PWM frequency. As the limit voltage varies in every switching cycle, the frequency spectrum of PWM signal spreads in light-load and no-load conditions; and therefore, the acoustic noise is suppressed. The feedback voltage and the supply voltage determine the switching period of the PWM signal. The maximum on-time is kept constant and the switching period is increased by increasing the off-time, such that the magnetic components, such as inductors and transformers, are prevented from being saturated.