D.C. to D.C. converters and D.C. to A.C. Converters belong to the category of Switched Mode Power Supplies (SMPS). The various types of voltage regulators, used in Linear Power Supplies (LPS), fall in the category of dissipative regulator, as they have a voltage control element usually transistor or zener diode which dissipates power equal to the voltage difference between an unregulated input voltage and a fixed supply voltage multiplied by the current flowing through it.  The switching regulator acts as a continuously variable power converter and hence its efficiency is negligibly affected by the voltage difference. Hence the switching regulator is also known as ‘non-dissipative regulator’. In a SMPS, the active device that provides regulation is always operated in cut-off or in saturation mode.