8-Channel Bi-Directional Logic Level Converter

8-Channel Bi-Directional Logic Level Converter info

Since Arduino and Arduino like systems are 5V devices, and most modern sensors, displays, flash cards and modes are 3.3V-only, many makers find that they need to perform level shifting/conversion to protect the 3.3V device from 5V.

Although one can use resistors to make a divider, for high speed transfers, the resistors can add a lot of slew and cause havoc that is tough to debug. For that reason, we like using 4050/74LVX245 series and similar logic to perform proper level shifting. Only problem is that they are only good in one direction which can be a problem for some specialty bi-diectional interfaces and also makes wiring a little hairy.

That's where this lovely chip, the TXB0108 bi-directional level converter comes in! This chip perform bidirectional level shifting from pretty much any voltage to any voltage and will auto-detect the direction. Only thing that doesn't work well with this chip is I2C because it uses strong pullups which confuse auto-direction sensor.

Since 8-Channel Bi-Directional Logic Level Converter is a special bi-directional level shifter it does not have strong output pins that can drive LEDs or long cables.

8-Channel Bi-Directional Logic Level Converter - General Specifications

• Adafruit 8-channel level shifter
• High conversion range on the low side and the high side
• Bidirectional operation
• Detects direction automatically

Documents

TXB0108 Datasheet

References

Adafruit Web Site: https://www.adafruit.com/product/395