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 DAC9881 has the capability to function in either unipolar straight binary or twos complement mode. The DAC9881 provides low-power operation. To further save energy, power-down mode can be achieved by accessing the PDN pin, thereby reducing the current consumption to 25A at 5V. Power consumption is 4mW at 5V, reducing to 125W in power-down mode.