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0.6V to 6V/12V Boost Converter Circuit Diagram

Last Updated on by 51 Comments

In this post I have explained how to make a 0.6V to 6V or 12V boost converter circuit using a single chip MC74VHC1G14, which uses under 1V to operate.

Table of Contents

About the IC MC74VHC1G14

Normally, we all know that a silicon transistor would find it difficult functioning below 0.7V, unlike germanium counterparts which are capable of doing it with ease, however nowadays we don't often hear about these devices which have become quite obsolete with time.

The circuit discussed here uses an inexpensive Schmitt trigger NOT gate MC74VHC1G14 from the 74XX TTL  family which are designed to work with voltages well below 0.6V, to be precise even with as low as 0.45V. The device we employ is manufactured by Motorola.

The presented 0.6V to 6V boost converter circuit can be even modified to achieve upto 12V from a 0.6V source.

Referring to the figure below, we see a rather straightforward set up consisting of an oscillator stage using a single NOT gate inverter module as discussed above.

You can also try a Joule Thief Circuit for getting similar results.

Another design explains a 1.5 V to 3.6 V boost converter circuit

Circuit Operation

This NOT gate is very special since it's able to oscillate even at voltage as low as 0.5V which makes it very suitable for the present 0.6V to 6V or 12V boost converter application.

The oscillation frequency here is determined by R1 and C1 which is calculated to be around 100kHz.

The above frequency is fed to the base of an NPN transistor for the required amplification.

C2 makes sure the two IC and the BJT stages are kept isolated from direct contact in order to avoid the low input voltage from dropping below 0.5V

R2 and thee schottky diodes D1 keeps the BJT sufficiently biased for helping an optimal oscillatory response for the transistor.

D2 is another schottky diode which is introduced to keep the charge from C3 disconnected during the switch OFF periods of Q1 otherwise the stored charge inside C3 could get discharged or shorted via Q1.

The IC 7806 at the output is to maintain a fixed 6V irrespective of the boost level created by L1 and the associated converter stages.

L1 must be wound strictly over a ferrite core. The dimension and data of the coil is a matter of some trial and error or it may be procured as a ready made unit for the same.

Circuit Diagram

0.6V to 6V/12V Boost Converter Circuit Diagram

Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Hello good afternoon. Thanks for your answer, I like this circuit but I can’t get the Hello good afternoon ic. Thanks for your reply, I like this circuit.. but I can’t get the ic MC74VHC1G14. The question is .. Can I use another IC? Thank you very much

    Reply

    • You can use a single gate from the IC 4093 as shown below:

      comment image" alt="using a single gate from IC 4093" />

      However all these ICs require minimum 2 V to operate, so I am not sure how they can be applied to work with 0.6V??

      The article above was referred from another website!

      Reply

  3. Hello good afternoon I am a follower of your website since its inception. I need a circuit to convert 3.7vdc / 4vdc to 9vdc to use in the voltmeter with 18650 batteries. A simple and small circuit Thank you very much

    Reply

    • Thank you Carlos, for being a dedicated follower of this blog.
      You can use the basic joule thief circuit for your purpose.
      You can adjust the transistor side turns of the coil, or the secondary side until the required level of output voltage is achieved

      Reply

  4. Swagatam, Nice web page !
    I was looking at using a voltage regulator that would buck and boost, I found the following circuit on Wiki and it looks like the zener could be replaced with any value that you wanted to output voltage to be ?
    Also uses a lot of very simple components. I want to conserve as much of the battery as possible.
    Maybe even a voltage divider that would allow you to adjust a pot to any output value say 1 – 7volts.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joule_thief#/media/File:Regulated_Joule_Thief_generalization_and_cleaning.svg

    Thank You.

    Reply

    • Thanks Eli,

      yes that’s a simple Joule thief circuit with a feedback link for controlling the output voltage to a specific limit as determined by the zener value.The zener could be replaced with a potential; divider for getting an adjustable output level.

      Reply

      • Swagatam, Thank you for the prompt reply.
        I want to know some more about the component selection.

        1. What do those the two dots on the transformer stand for ? And is this a torrid coil ?
        2. I see a lot of designers using all types of transistors, and then others build the entire circuits from 2N2222(s). Do the characteristics of those other transistors that specific ?, or are developers using whats laying around on the workbench ?
        3. Is the LDO really needed ?, Looks like a power waster to me ? (why not just an LC filter?)

        Thanks

        Reply

        • Hi Eli, those dots indicate the start an finish orientation of the winding turns. You can ignore and wind the turns anyway round, if it doesn’t work in the circuit, just swap (interchange) the ends of any one of the winding.

          Only the collector current and the collector voltage specs is what really matters for the BJT, which must be higher than the required load V and I specs, est are not critical unless the applications is something very special with special requirements.

          The LDO IC may be necessary if the load involves TTL ICs or any parameter with strict 5 V requirement, otherwise it can be ignored

          Reply

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