7.4.2 Overload Recovery

Overload recovery is defined as the time required for the operational amplifier output to recover from the saturated state to the linear state. The output devices of the operational amplifier enter the saturation region when the output voltage exceeds the rated operating voltage, either resulting from the high input voltage or the high gain. After the device enters the saturation region, the charge carriers in the output devices need time to return back to the normal state. After the charge carriers return back to the equilibrium state, the device begins to slew at the normal slew rate. Thus, the propagation delay in case of an overload condition is the sum of the overload recovery time and the slew time. The overload recovery time for the OPAx170-Q1 is approximately 2 µs.