Chopper method

A method that controls the input voltage using the on/off operation of a semiconductor switch to generate the output. While controlling the direction of current with a diode, energy is stored in an inductor during the switch-on period and released to the output during the off period. The method is named due to the control by chopping the voltage and current using a semiconductor switch. There are three types: boost converter, buck converter, and buck-boost converter. An example use of a buck converter is extracting a low DC 5V from a DC 12V battery. An example use of a boost converter is in boost converters for hybrid and electric vehicles. The buck-boost converter can generate a voltage of opposite polarity to the input voltage, and is used, for example, to generate negative voltage for memory ICs.