switching power supply

A power supply (sometimes known as a power supply unit or PSU) is a device or system that supplies electrical or other types of energy to an output load or group of loads. The term is most commonly applied to electrical energy supplies.

General description

The complete range of power supplies is very broad, and could be considered to include all forms of energy conversion from one form into another. ACS Industrial Services. Conventionally though, the term is usually confined to electrical or mechanical energy supplies. Constraints that commonly affect power supplies are the amount of power they can supply, how long they can supply it for without needing some kind of refueling or recharging, how stable their output voltage or current is under varying load conditions, and whether they provide continuous power or pulses.

The voltage regulation of power supplies is done by incorporating circuitry to tightly control the output voltage and/or current of the power supply to a specific value. The specific value is closely maintained despite variations in the load presented to the power supply's output, or any reasonable voltage variation at the power supply's input.