The AD5663 requires an external reference voltage to set the output range of the DAC. The part incorporates a power-on reset circuit that ensures the DAC output powers up to 0 V or midscale (AD5663-1) and remains there until a valid write takes place. The part contains a power-down feature that reduces the current consumption of the device to 480 nA at 5 V and provides software-selectable output loads while in power-down mode.

The low power consumption of this part in normal operation makes it ideally suited to portable, battery-operated equipment. The power consumption is 1.25 mW at 5 V, going down to 2.4 μW in power-down mode.

The on-chip precision output amplifier of the AD5663 allows rail-to-rail output swing to be achieved.

The AD5663 uses a versatile, 3-wire serial interface that operates at clock rates up to 50 MHz and is compatible with standard SPI®, QSPI™, MICROWIRE™, and DSP interface standards.