IC switching voltage regulators are integrated circuits (ICs) that store energy in an inductor, transformer, or capacitor and then use this storage device to transfer energy from the input to the output in discrete packets over a low-resistance switch. Feedback circuitry regulates the energy transfer to maintain a constant voltage within the load limits of the circuit. There are several types of IC switching voltage regulators. Buck or step-down converters convert a higher DC input voltage to a lower DC output voltage of the same polarity. Boost or step-up converters convert a lower DC input voltage to a higher DC output voltage of the same polarity. Buck-boost converters can be used for either step-up or step-down conversions, and to reverse or invert voltage polarity. IC switching voltage regulators are more efficient than IC linear voltage regulators, but produce greater amounts of noise. The output voltage can be fixed, or adjusted to a value within a specified range.