Power supplies that deliver the output voltage as Alternating Current (AC), be it in low- or high-power systems, are called AC power supplies. Examples include frequency and voltage converters and programmable and uninterruptible sources.

AC Power Supplies: Types

The two basic types of these supplies are switching and linear.

1. Switching: Switching creates an alternating current voltage using Pulse Width Modulation (PWM), which is filtered at the output into clean sine wave. They are smaller in size, light weight and cost-effective, and can be used for applications including circuit development, avionics development and testing, operational conformance testing and motor testing and production test of products of 50, 60 and 400 Hz.

2. Linear: Linear produces very accurate sine waves with the least distortion. Although heavier and costlier, they offer higher bandwidth, which is a must for specific testing. While standard linear supplies range from 45 to 2,500 Hz, their higher limit is 10,000 Hz.

AC Power Supplies: Benefits of AC over DC

Alternating current offers a few benefits over Direct Current (DC):

1. Alternating current produces more power than DC, and is generated from large turbines. Direct current, however, is obtained from solar panels and batteries, and requires large areas of land dedicated to solar panels or huge batteries for getting vast amounts of energy. Alternating current, on the other hand, does not demand these impractical and expensive requisites.

2. Alternating current produces higher voltages, which can be transmitted over long distances conveniently. The current generated at stations can be transmitted to substations where it is boosted and further transmitted to distances. Since these are cheaper and easier to transmit, homes and businesses get their electricity in this form.

3. Production facilities can use AC motors to move their conveyors and equipment, as these yield greater horsepower than DC motors. Also, they are simpler in operations and their voltage can be stepped up or down, as per different motor requirements.

4. Alternating current can be easily converted to DC using transformers; however, the vice versa can be costly and difficult.

5. While alternating current can be stepped up or down using transformers, the DC load must match that of the device it operates. Although a resistor can step down DC, it will lead to voltage waste.

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