The device supports a standard SPI serial interface capable of operating with input data clock frequencies up to 50MHz. The DAC9881 requires an external reference voltage to set the output range of the DAC channel. A programmable power-on reset circuit is also incorporated into the device to ensure that the DAC output powers up at zero-scale or midscale, and remains there until a valid write command. Additionally, the device has the capability to function in either unipolar straight binary or 2s complement mode. The DAC9881 provides a power-down feature, accessed over the PDN pin, that reduces the current consumption to 25A at 5V. Power consumption is 6mW at 5V, reducing to 125W in power-down mode.