56
ZKZ 64717 07-08 ISSN: 1863-5598 Electronics in Motion and Conversion July 2008

Electronics in Motion and Conversion July 2008 - Bodo's … · Electronics in Motion and Conversion July 2008. ... SEPIC Converter Application ... I will report on my progress. Regards

  • Upload
    ngodieu

  • View
    213

  • Download
    0

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

ZKZ 64717

07-08ISSN: 1863-5598

Electronics in Motion and Conversion July 2008

� P

Galvanic separation

Analog Applications JournalDESIGN BRIEF

By Jürgen Schneider

Introduction

With their wide input voltage range, the TPS40210

and TPS40211 PWM controllers are targeted for

isolated and non-isolated power converters used

in industrial, automotive, and battery-powered

applications. The full freedom in selecting the

power stage and its compensation—as well as the

advanced features, such as programmable soft

start, adjustable/synchronizable oscillator frequen-

cy and internal slope compensation—supports the

use of the devices in many applications. The basic

converter architecture can provide different power

levels by simply changing the power stage. While

the TPS40210 is designed for general-purpose

applications, the TPS40211 is tailored for driving

high-brightness LEDs.

Boost Converter Application

The devices and their basic configuration are

described in detail in Reference 1.

SEPIC Converter Application

The SEPIC-converter shown in Figure 1 allows the

input voltage to be smaller, larger, or equal to the

targeted output voltage. The topology requires two

New Current-Mode PWM Controllers Support Boost,

Flyback, SEPIC and LED-Driver Applications

The Devices in a Nutshell

(programmable and synchronizable)

driver

single inductors or one coupled inductor, L1, and a

capacitor C9, which is responsible for the energy

transfer. The filter formed by L2 and C11 is optional.

p-p in

increased switching loss at this high frequency, a

-

frequency, converter efficiency was measured as

Flyback Converter ApplicationFigure 2 shows the TPS40210 controller configured

isolated supply. Key components include the trans-

-

sation (C19, C20 and R16), the output-voltage divider

)

regulation between the two secondary windings of

T1. When the negative output does not have a load,

R12 and D4 provide a basic load.

High-Brightness LED-Driver ApplicationDC/DC regulators are usually designed to provide a

constant-voltage output; however, LED applications

used to sense the LED current. The losses in R1 are

minimized with the TPS40211 because of its low

-

put overvoltage in the event of an LED-string open

circuit. The brightness can be programmed by alter-

ing R1, current injection into the FB pin, or by PWM

dimming. See Reference 1 for more information.

Reference

Related Device

Step-Down Converter

* Snubber for reduction of voltage stress and improved EMI

** Clamps negative output in case of heavily unmatched loads

*** Soft start and overshoot control

C O N T E N T S

Viewpoint The Next Big Thing is Blue Efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9

Product of the MonthMulti-Output Programmable Power Manager Combines

Advanced Power Delivery with Digital Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11

Guest EditorialHundred Dollar a BarrelBy Claus Petersen, Danfoss Silicon Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

MarketElectronics Industry Digest

By Aubrey Dunford, Europartners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Market DigitalPower is a Mainstrem Power Technology

By Douglas Bess, Editor, PowerPulse.NET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-17

Cover Story 6500V SPT+ HiPak Modules. Higher power and SOA performance

By A. Kopta, M. Rahimo, U. Schlapbach, A. Baschnagel, ABB Semiconductor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-21

IGBT600V Trench IGBTs Optimized for 20 kHz Operation

By Carl Blake and Wibawa Chou, International Rectifier . . . . . . . . . . 22-23

MOSFET Renewable Energy Application Efficency

By Dean Henderson, Segment Marketing Manager/Computing, Infineon Technologies North AmericaAnd Christian Wald,Senior Specialist, Regional Marketing Management, Infineon Technologies AG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-25

Digital Power A Panoramic View of Applications and Challenges

By Steve Mappus, Systems Engineer,Fairchild Semiconductor, High Power Solutions, Bedford, NH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-28

Digital Power Digital Power, Hope or Hype?

By Dr.– Ing. Artur Seibt, Vienna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30-31

Power SupplyFlexible, Accurate & Efficient Power Solutions for

LED Backlighting Applications

By Steve Oliver, VP. V•I Chip Inc. (a Vicor company) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32-35

CapacitorsSuper Capacitor Reference Design

By Thomas Delurio, Applications Manager, Advanced Analogic Technologies, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36-40

PCIM ImpressionsBlue Efficiency at the Next Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

PCIM New Product Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40-44

New Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45-48

Whatever you invent, imagine or develop, LEM’s transducers are at the heart of your power electronics applications from the very start.

LEM’s products, R&D, and people provide knowledge intensive solutions to keep up with your changing industry, allowing your visions to come to life.

www.lem.com

Already part of your vision.

LEM.

TThhee GGaalllleerryy

2 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Cure for the Uncommon Power SourceBarrel jacks are a simple and effective way of connecting portable electronics to an external power supply. But what happens when theuser plugs into a supply operating at the wrong voltage? Or whatabout when the supply is dirty and full of nasty voltage surges, as isoften the case when power is supplied from an automobile power jack?Raychem Circuit Protection PolyZen™ devices can help protect your DCpower ports by clamping excess voltages and smoothing inductivevoltage surges. The PolyZen device's unique polymer-protected precision Zener design can help cure these all-too-common powerproblems.

To learn more, visit www.circuitprotection.com/polyzen.

www.circuitprotection.comTyco Electronics Raychem GmbH Finsinger Feld 1 85521 Ottobrunn GermanyTel: +49 89 6089 386 Fax: +49 89 6089 394

© 2008 Tyco Electronics Corporation • www.tycoelectronics.com Raychem, PolyZen, TE Logo and Tyco Electronics are trademarks

Features• Overvoltage transient

suppression• Stable Vz vs fault current• Time delayed, overvoltage trip• Time delayed, reverse bias trip• Power handling on the order of

100 watts• Integrated device construction• RoHS compliant

Benefits• Stable Zener diode helps shield

downstream electronics from overvoltage and reverse bias

• Analog nature of trip eventsminimizes upstream inductivespikes

• Minimal heat sinking • Single component placement• Helps reduce warranty returns

& replacement costs

Applications• Cell Phones • Printers• PDAs • Scanners• MP3 Players • Hard Drives• DVD Players • Desk Phones• USB Hubs • PBX Phones• Media Players • Digital Cameras• Wireless Base Stations

No doubt about it - the industry is bringing

more specifics to Blue Efficiency. At PCIM

Europe, my podium discussion gave a repre-

sentative view from the electronic perspec-

tive. Key messages from the participants are

summarised and published in this edition. It

is always a pleasure to give an impulse for

new trends in the industry and I am happy to

see others following in my footsteps.

As expected, I planned something special for

the audience at the end of the open discus-

sion. Everyone enjoyed pulling the rope and

recognizing the winner. Three winners

received Marklin model train Starter Sets,

ten got Lego Locomotives, and eighty-seven

enjoyed pickles in a can - and every winner

got a bonus CD with all issues of Bodo’s

Power.

Inspiring children is important, as is develop-

ing their skills for an engineering profession.

We who are working in engineering must

give a high visibility to our jobs, and make it

attractive for young people to become engi-

neers. Creative toys and the skill to handle

them in construction are the forerunners for

solving problems in future generations.

Look for those who can get beyond the Nin-

tendo screens and just fighting a joystick for

satisfaction. The little engineers will be able

to assemble their train set and build scenery

from their imagination. What is needed is

continuous attention and support in all the

aspects of growing up. As long as I can

interest a few kids with such engineering

challenges, I will give away constructive

toys. As a child, a Marklin set from my older

brother was the seed that inspired me to

become an engineer. What worked for me

should still work for children today.

Creativity needs freedom and support - It

takes a while to see the results. A train set

can be a project to develop skills in long-

term activities and planning. Much of what is

needed to become an engineer is basic in

life – and to lifelong learning.

For all of you who missed traveling to

Nuremberg to see the innovations at PCIM,

the magazine has a summary of what was

showcased.

Now we are ready to take a break and relax.

It is summer and the beach is perfect these

days. For me it is easy, I just walk down the

hill and jump into the Baltic Sea.

Nevertheless, I will keep up with worki - my

magazine will reach you at the beginning of

each month, twelve times a year, and you

will be up to date. If you have subscribed,

you will be refreshed with twenty-four e-

news-letters during the year. And my publi-

cation is in the process of teaming up with

local publishers to carry news and articles

and content translated into local languages

to serve additional people with leading edge

information in their region.

My Green Power Tip for this month is:

Have your bikes ready for a weekend excur-

sion – your trip will achieve zero emissions!

I must push myself have to look into it as

well – but first I must visit my workshop and

fix all the little things to get the bike running.

I will report on my progress.

Regards

July 2008

The Next Big Thingis Blue Efficiency

Events

EPE – PEMC 2008

Poznan – Poland September 1-3

http://epe-pemc2008.put.poznan.pl

Husum WindEnergy 2008 Germany

September 9-13

http://www.husumwindenergy.com

Digital Power Forum 2008

San Francisco September 15-17

http://digitalpower.darnell.com

SEMICON Europe

Stuttgart Germany October 7-9

www.semiconeuropa.org

H2expo 2008

Hamburg, Germany October 22-23

http://h2expo.com

electronica 2008

Munich November 11-14

http://www.global-electronics.net

SPS/IPC/DRIVES 2008

Nuremberg November 25-27

http://www.mesago.de

V I E W P O I N T

4 www.bodospower.com

A MediaKatzbek 17a

D-24235 Laboe, Germany

Phone: +49 4343 42 17 90

Fax: +49 4343 42 17 89

[email protected]

www.bodospower.com

Publishing EditorBodo Arlt, [email protected]

Creative Direction & ProductionRepro Studio Peschke

[email protected]

Free Subscription to qualified readers

Bodo´s Power magazine

is available for the following

subscription charges:

Annual charge (12 issues) is 150 €

world wide

Single issue is 18 €

[email protected]

circulation

printrun

20000

Printing by:

Central-Druck Trost GmbH & Co

Heusenstamm, Germany

A Media and Bodos Power magazine

assume and hereby disclaim any

liability to any person for any loss or

damage by errors or omissions in the

material contained herein regardless of

whether such errors result from

negligence accident or any other cause

whatsoever.

Intersil – Switching Regulators for precise power delivery.©2007 Intersil Americas Inc. All rights reserved. The following are trademarks or services marks owned by Intersil Corporation or one of its subsidiaries, and may be registered in the USA and/or other countries: Intersil (and design) and i (and design).

High Performance Analog

Intersil Battery Authentication

We’re On It.

Intersil’s ISL9206 FlexiHash+TM

Engine delivers high-security battery authentication at a

low cost.

Intersil’s ISL9206 is an easy-to-use, robust,

and inexpensive battery authentication solution

for 1-cell Li-Ion/Li-Polymer or 3-cell NiMH

series battery packs.

Oscillator1-Wire Comm

Interface

16x8 OTPROM

FlexiHash+Engine

POR/2.5VRegulator

ControlRegister

32-bit pseudo-randomchallenge word

from host

8-bit authentication

code

32-bit HashFunction

64-bit Secret

32-bit HashFunction

FlexiHash+Engine

Patent pending FlexiHash+ engine

consists of four separate

programmable CRC calculators. Two

sets of 32-bit secret codes are used

for authentication code generation.

XSD single-wire host bus interface

communicates with all 8250-

compatible UARTs or a single GPIO

pin. Supports CRC on read data and

transfer bit-rate up to 23Kbps.

16 bytes of one-time programmable

ROM memory for storage of pack

information and ID, device

authentication secrets, device default

settings, and factory-programmed

trim parameters.

Go to www.intersil.com for samples, datasheets and support

ISL9206 Key Features:Challenge/response-based authentication scheme using 32-bit challenge code and 8-bit authentication code.

FlexiHash+ engine uses two sets of 32-bit secrets for authentication code generation.

16x8 one-time programmable ROM memory.

Additional programmable memory for storage.

N E W S

6 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Royal Philips Electron-

ics and its subsidiary,

Philips Healthcare,

recognized NEC LCD

Technologies, Ltd. for

its performance and

quality in 2007 with

two Philips “Partners for Growth” Global

Supplier Awards. These awards are a key

part of Philips’ strategic supplier relationship

management program, which brings together

Philips executives and representatives from

top suppliers to create a powerful network of

business partners to generate customer

value through shared goals, mutual

strengths and competencies. NEC LCD

Technologies supplies modules for patient

monitoring equipment to Royal Philips Elec-

tronics and Philips Healthcare.

Rob Green, president of NEC Electronics

Europe, said of receiving the award from

Philips on behalf of NEC LCD Technologies,

“NEC is proud to receive this prestigious

award. This award proves the success of our

strategy to develop and manufacture high-

quality liquid crystal display modules.

The awards were given to representatives

from NEC LCD Technologies’ sales and mar-

keting organizations in Europe and the

Americas.

www.eu.necel.com

Awards for Quality and Performance

Indium Corporation’s Indium8.9 Pb-Free No-

Clean Solder Paste was honored twice in

two weeks with leading electronics assembly

awards. Indium8.9 earned the VISION Award

at the APEX convention in Las Vegas, NV,

and just one week later, garnered the China

VISION award at NEPCON China in Shang-

hai, China. Sponsored by SMT Magazine,

and SMT China Magazine, the VISION

Awards honor the products and technologies

that have shaped the PCB manufacturing

industry over the past year.

Indium8.9 is a third-generation solder paste

that delivers more performance than any Pb-

free solder paste on the market, bringing

together the reliability of a Sn/Pb paste with

RoHS compliance.

Indium8.9 exhibits outstanding print-transfer

properties, especially with CSP, 0201, and

01005 components, with consistent print vol-

umes through apertures below the industry

recommended minimum area ratio of 0.66. A

robust reflow process window can accom-

modate high peak temperatures and long

soak profiles.

www.indium.com/big

Indium Corporation Wins Vision Awards

COMPEL 08 11th IEEE Workshop on Control

and Modeling for Power Electronics

(18-20 August 2008 ETH Zurich CH)

ESREF 19th European Symposium

"Reliability of Electron Devices, Failure

Physics and Analysis" including ECPE

Reliability Tutorial Session

(29 Sept - 2 Oct. 2008 Maastricht NL)

Automotive Power Electronics

(EC Projects) – Seminar

(7 – 8 October 2008, Stuttgart, D)

Advanced Cooling Techniques (1st day)

Power PCBs and Busbars (2nd day)

Workshop

(20 – 21 November 2008, Delft, NL)

Power Semiconductor

Devices & Technologies – Tutorial

(4 – 5 December 2008, Nuremberg, D)

www.ecpe.org

ECPE Seminars & Tutorial Programmes

7th International Conference and Trade Fair

on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies, 22

and 23 October 2008. Fossil fuels are run-

ning out. That is becoming more and more

evident with the current explosion in oil

prices and worldwide hunger for energy.

Action to mitigate climate change is just one

of the factors that is driving the efforts to

develop and secure alternatives, with hydro-

gen and fuel cells playing a key role. Along-

side the primary energy sources available in

the future, storage and conversion will

become increasingly important. The H2Expo

is a prominent forum for market-ready prod-

ucts and for concepts with future potential.

This 7th International Conference and Trade

Fair on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technolo-

gies at the CCH Congress Center Hamburg

on 22 and 23 October is a meeting place for

the expert community, for discussion of the

current state of developments. It will feature

presentations by scientists from Germany

and abroad, and reports from the industry on

innovative projects, showcasing their latest

products.

At the heart of this event is the scientific

conference, with a symposium on 22 Octo-

ber and three concurrent workshops on the

following day. Some 50 high-calibre speak-

ers from 11 countries are expected to partici-

pate. The main highlights this year are tech-

nical innovations in the individual fuel cell

types and their most promising applications,

in hydrogen production from renewable

energy sources, and in storage and infra-

structure.

The complete conference programme, indi-

cating the subjects and speakers at sympo-

sium and the workshops, is available at the

website:

www.h2expo.de

H2Expo 2008

The EnOcean Alliance and Texas Instruments announced that TI has

become a full member and participating company in the recently

established EnOcean Alliance. The Alliance was founded last month

to establish a global standard for sustainable buildings based upon

EnOcean´s revolutionary energy-harvesting wireless technology.

TI is a key semiconductor supplier to the EnOcean Alliance eco-sys-

tem, which includes innovators and industry leaders such as Masco,

Honeywell, Siemens, Osram Sylvania, Distech Controls, Omnio and

Thermokon. The EnOcean self-powered wireless technology has the

largest installation base in wireless building automation, with more

than 70 shipping customers, 300 available products and tens of thou-

sands of EnOcean-enabled buildings. Building professionals highly

value the interoperability across manufacturers and application pro-

files inherent to the EnOcean standard.

www.ti.com

www.enocean-alliance.org

TI Commits to EnOcean Standard for Energy-Harvesting

The 2SD315AI is a 2-channel driver forIGBTs up to 1700V (optionally up to3300V). Its gate current capability of±15A is optimized for IGBTs from 200Ato 1200A.

The 2SD315AI has been established on the market as an industrial standardfor the last four years. The driver has been tried and tested within hundreds of thousands of industrial and traction applications. The calculated MTBF to MIL Hdbk 217F is 10 million hours at 40°C. According to field data, the actualreliability is even higher. The operating temperature is -40°C...+85°C.

The driver is equipped with the award-winning CONCEPT SCALE driver chipset, consisting of the gate driverASIC IGD001 and the logic-to-driverinterface ASIC LDI001.

Driver stage for a gate current upto ±15A per channel, stabilized bylarge ceramic capacitors

Specially designed transformers forcreepage distances of 21mm between inputs and outputs orbetween the two channels. Insulat-ing materials to UL V-0. Partial dis-charge test according IEC270.

Isolated DC/DC power supply with3W per channel

Chipset Features

• Short-circuit protection• Supply undervoltage lockout• Direct or half-bridge mode• Dead-time generation• High dv/dt immunity up to 100kV/us• Transformer interface• Isolated status feedback• 5V...15V logic signals• Schmitt-trigger inputs• Switching frequency DC to >100kHz• Duty cycle 0...100%• Delay time typ. 325ns

CT-Concept Technology Ltd. is the technologyleader in the domain of intelligent driver com-ponents for MOS-gated power semiconductordevices and can look back on more than 15years of experience.

Key product families include plug-and-playdrivers and universal driver cores for medium-and high-voltage IGBTs, application-specificdriver boards and integrated driver circuits(ASICs).

By providing leading-edge solutions and expertprofessional services. CONCEPT is an essentialpartner to companies that design systems forpower conversion and motion. From custom-specific integrated circuit expertise to thedesign of megawatt-converters, CONCEPT pro-vides solutions to the toughest challenges con-fronting engineers who are pushing power tothe limits.

As an ideas factory, we set new standards withrespect to gate driving powers up to 15W perchannel, short transit times of less than 100ns,plug-and-play functionality and unmatched field-proven reliability.In recent years we have developed a series ofcustomized products which are unbeatable interms of today´s technological feasibility.

Our success is based on years of experience, ouroutstanding know-how as well as the will andmotivation of our employees to attain optimumlevels of performance and quality. For genuineinnovations, CONCEPT has won numerous tech-nology competitions and awards, e.g. the “SwissTechnology Award” for exceptional achievementsin the sector of research and technology, and the special prize from ABB Switzerland for thebest project in power electronics. This under-scores the company´s leadership in the sector ofpower electronics.

More information: www.IGBT-Driver.com/go/2SD315AI

CT-Concept Technologie AGRenferstrasse 152504 Biel-BienneSwitzerland

Tel +41-32-344 47 47Fax +41-32-344 47 40

[email protected]

Let experts drive yourpower devices

The Best-Selling 2-Channel IGBT Driver Core

N E W S

8 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Fairchild Semiconductor and Zilker Labs

have entered into an agreement to manufac-

ture and sell digital power products, includ-

ing point-of-load power devices, targeted at

the server, networking, graphics and high-

end desktop applications.

“We’re pleased to be able to expand our

industry-leading power management product

offering, particularly in the digital power area.

This partnership allows Fairchild to manufac-

ture and sell digital power products and

enhances our working knowledge of the digi-

tal power market and application space,

while promoting and driving its adoption.

Developing close relationships with our cus-

tomers, and understanding their challenges,

will allow us to develop and provide next

generation leading edge digital power prod-

ucts and solutions for a variety of applica-

tions in the power management market,”

said Bob Conrad, executive vice president of

Fairchild’s Mobile, Computing, Consumer

and Communications Product Group. “Zilker

Labs has developed an excellent reputation,

and we’re looking forward to working closely

with them.”

“Zilker Labs’ innovative Digital-DC™ technol-

ogy enables efficient, flexible, easy-to-use

digital power solutions for today’s embedded

communications and computing systems,”

said Bob Bridge, CEO of Zilker Labs. “We’re

excited about the partnership with Fairchild,

and we look forward to expanding both our

customer base and our product offering. The

partnership between Fairchild Semiconduc-

tor and Zilker Labs will allow increased prod-

uct support and supply continuity for OEMs

and power supply manufacturers using digi-

tal power control products.”

Zilker Labs’ Digital-DC ICs are highly-inte-

grated, high-performance digital power solu-

tions designed to be universal building

blocks that can be easily combined and

adapted to address a wide variety of com-

plex power system requirements.

www.zilkerlabs.com

www.fairchildsemi.com

Partnership to Provide Point-of-Load Digital Power Products

According to the World Fab Forecast report,

recently released by SEMI, spending on

worldwide fabs equipping is expected to

show declines of about 17 percent in 2008,

as more companies are forced

to postpone fab projects due to global eco-

nomic uncertainties. In 2009, however, the

group expects to see a rebound with double-

digit growth of over 12 percent.

Regions reflecting this trend most dramati-

cally include Southeast Asia and Taiwan,

who will likely experience declines of 40 per-

cent and 33 percent respectively this year,

but are expected to recover in 2009 with sig-

nificant positive growth of over 50 percent

and 80 percent respectively.

In the Americas, fab equipment spending is

expected to decline over the next two years,

while China and the Europe/Mideast are

expected to see growth both years. Spend-

ing in Japan and South Korea is projected to

remain slow, but should improve from nega-

tive double digits in 2008, to negative single

digits in 2009.

The biggest three spenders in 2008 for

equipping fabs are Samsung, Flash Alliance

and Intel. Though most companies are

investing in non-US fab opportunities, Sam-

sung is making significant investment into its

300mm megafabs in Austin, Texas, and Intel

continues to invest in its Arizona and New

Mexico fabs. In 2009, Rexchip, TSMC, UMC,

Promos and Hynix are expected to join Sam-

sung, Flash Alliance and Intel as key

spenders on fab equipping.

The SEMI World Fab Forecast provides high

level summaries and graphs; in-depth analy-

ses of capital expenditure, capacity, technol-

ogy and products, down to the detail of each

fab; and forecasts for the next 18 months.

These tools are invaluable for understanding

how 2009 will look, and learning more about

capex for construction projects, fab equip-

ping, technology level, and products.

www.semi.org/fabs

Strong Rebound in 2009 Says SEMI World Fab Forecast

Reinforcing its leadership in power manage-

ment and energy-efficient products, National

Semiconductor launched an initiative to help

customers create more energy-efficient sys-

tems that use less power, generate less

heat, have a smaller form factor and/or

longer battery life.

The trend towards energy conservation con-

tinues to grow worldwide. As market forces

drive higher user experience expectations

and the adoption of video streaming and

sharing, mobile broadband, and unlimited

storage capacity, the resources required to

power this trend are finite. Therefore,

enabling electronic systems to be more

energy efficient becomes imperative and is

especially important as the cost of energy

continues to rise.

At the system level, National helps cus-

tomers solve energy efficiency problems with

integrated circuits (ICs) from its PowerWise®

family of components as well as architecting

unique system solutions which it embeds in

silicon or licenses as intellectual property.

There are currently approximately 300 ICs in

National’s PowerWise family including ener-

gy-efficient power management, operational

amplifier, interface and data conversion

products.

www.national.com/powerwise

Solve System-Energy Challenges

Responding to the increasing momentum in

the electronics industry toward embedded

instrumentation, ASSET® InterTech, Inc.

announced it is positioning the company, its

products and its technologies to provide

open tools for embedded instrumentation in

design validation, test and debug applica-

tions.

Many of the established validation and test

technologies are inadequate or ineffective for

high-speed chips, I/O buses and systems.

Moreover, new chip geometries at 45

nanometers (nm) or smaller, as well as chip-

level packaging technologies like system-in-

package (SiP) are making validation, test

and debug very difficult, if not impossible

with traditional technologies. Building on its

long-established leadership in non-intrusive

boundary-scan structural test based on the

IEEE 1149.1 JTAG standard, ASSET has

significantly enhanced its ScanWorks® plat-

form over the last several years with embed-

ded instrumentation capabilities. According

to Glenn Woppman, president and CEO of

ASSET, the company will continue to lead in

JTAG structural test while developing inno-

vative and open embedded instrumentation

solutions.

www.asset-intertech.com

ASSET Aligns with Embedded Instrumentation

9www.bodospower.com July 2008

N E W S

International Development in the Offshore

Sector – a key subject at HUSUM WindEn-

ergy 2008

2008 and 2009 are expected to be boom

years in the offshore sector in Europe – with

planned commissioning of a total of 1507.5

MW on new installations coming online. The

United Kingdom alone is likely to account for

about 800 MW of this. Another milestone in

offshore energy production will be the com-

mercial launch of a number of wind turbines

of the 5 MW class. The European Wind

Energy Association (EWEA) predicts that, by

the end of 2010, a cumulative offshore

capacity of between 3000 and 4000 MW will

be operational off the coasts of Europe. Off-

shore is therefore a central theme at the

upcoming HUSUM WindEnergy 2008. This

premier fair of the wind energy sector will be

held in the Northern German coastal town of

Husum from 9 to 13 September. A large

number of international companies that

develop or already commercially operate

wind turbines specially developed for off-

shore application will exhibit their products,

projects and specialised services in Husum.

Presenting the latest technical and scientific

offshore wind advancements is also a main

theme at the HUSUM WindEnergy confer-

ence, which is an integral part of the fair.

The growth plans are promising – a Euro-

pean offshore goal of 40 000 MW by the

year 2020 was announced at the European

Offshore Wind Conference 2007 in Berlin.

The United Kingdom alone aims at 33 000

MW by 2020. Germany wants 25 000 MW

offshore wind power by 2030, sufficient to

cover 15% of its energy demand. Other

more moderate targets have been

announced by the Netherlands (6000 MW by

2020) and Sweden (2500 to 3000 MW by

2015). However, there could be bottlenecks

due to the scarcity of offshore wind turbines

and the restricted number of suppliers.

Outside Europe, countries like the USA and

China have announced plans to exploit their

offshore wind potential. According to a study

by the National Renewable Energy Labora-

tory (NREL), the offshore wind energy poten-

tial of the United States is more than 1 000

000 MW. By comparison, some 1100 MW

offshore capacity was installed in Europe by

the end of 2007, with Denmark and the UK

the two main markets. Supply of offshore

wind turbines is currently dominated by Ves-

tas (with a market share of about 60%) and

Siemens, both of them exhibitors at the

HUSUM WindEnergy 2008. At the beginning

of 2007, Vestas had to withdraw the V90-3

MW turbine from the market for technical

reasons, but has released the machine for

sale again from May 2008 onwards. At the

beginning of March, the Dutch developer

Evelop selected Vestas for supply of 110 tur-

bines (V90-3 MW) for its Belgian 330 MW

offshore project Belwind.

At the end of 2007 Siemens had offshore

turbines in operation with a total capacity of

434 MW, and projects with more than 1080

MW in new portfolio projects. In 2007 the

company for the first time installed 25 off-

shore turbines of the 3.6 MW category off

the British coast, at the Burbo Banks wind

farm. A UK project with 180 MW will be com-

pleted in 2008, and at least three more proj-

ects off the British and Danish coasts are

planned for 2009, with a combined capacity

of 400 MW.

Starting in 2008, a number of companies are

joining the offshore competition for commer-

cial use of 5 MW turbines. German compa-

nies REpower and Multibrid, also present in

Husum, each developed a 5 MW turbine for

offshore application. Each of these compa-

nies has been operating a prototype on

shore since the end of 2004, and the tur-

bines are now ready for series production.

Rapid international expansion in this sector

is expected following acquisition by the

French nuclear group Arreva of 51% of

Multibrid shares from the German project

developer Prokon Nord in 2007. This year, a

first batch of six Multibrid 5 MW turbines will

be installed in the German offshore test field

alpha ventus. REpower will install another

six turbines of this category there in 2009.

REpower was the first company in the world

to install 5 MW turbines in “real” offshore

operation – two of these are installed off the

Scottish coast, in a record water depth of 44

metres. Another 60 turbines are currently in

the initial project phase, for C-Power’s 300

MW Farshore wind farm off the Belgian

coast. A scaled-up 6 MW model will be

launched in the next few years. A joint ven-

ture with rotor blade manufacturer A&R

Rotec is to start in Bremerhaven in the near

future, under the project name of

PowerBlades, for production of 61.5 m off-

shore rotor blades developed by REpower.

Other companies are likewise active in the

offshore market. Converteam, for example,

is a key partner in the Dutch 4.7 MW Dar-

WinD offshore turbine project, supplying the

direct drive generator.

Nordex of Germany is operating a 2.5 MW

turbine in the port of Rostock, and will deliv-

er another 21 units for Baltic I, Germany’s

first commercial wind farm. This 52.5 MW

project is scheduled to go on-line in 2009.

Nordex decided to enter the offshore sector

on a step-by-step basis, starting with the

development of a new 3 to 5 MW turbine

with “offshore features”. A prototype is to be

built in 2010, and the 0 series by 2011/2.

WinWinD of Finland has installed three of its

3 MW Multibrid type wind turbines on artifi-

cial islands in the Kemi Ajos wind farm close

to the shore.

And finally, the Dutch company Blue H Tech-

nologies will provide information on its inno-

vative “floating” offshore wind turbine tech-

nology at the HUSUM WindEnergy 2008. A

prototype is currently being tested off the

Italian coast. The next (pre) series model will

feature a two-blade in-house modified 2.5

MW wind turbine.

HUSUM WindEnergy 2008 – the leading

international wind industry fair – has for the

first time been organised as a cooperation

venture between the Messe Husum and the

Hamburg Messe. From 9 to 13 September,

some 700 exhibitors from 35 countries will

present their products and services at the

Husum trade fair site, including the world’s

leading wind turbine manufacturers and their

equipment suppliers. This fair is dedicated to

the wind industry, and will be the internation-

al meeting point and forum for companies

and trade visitors for five days. Further

www.husumwindenergy.com

HUSUM WindEnergy 2008

TTI and Tyco Electronics have recently

entered an exclusive partnership on the dis-

tribution of connectors for the aerospace,

defence and marine market. The aim of the

agreement is to considerably strengthen the

presence of Tyco Electronics’ products in the

referred markets within the regions Europe,

Middle East and Africa.

TTI is already a preferred distributor of Tyco

Electronics with a strong global presence.

The company constantly proves that it

actively promotes Tyco Electronics’ product

portfolio, with a special emphasis being

made on demand creation and the genera-

tion of new business. Thanks to TTI’s com-

mitted Military, Aero and Space team

focussing on the markets in question, Tyco

Electronics expects a significant boost in

activities soon.

www.tycoelectronics.com/

www.ttieurope.com

Exclusive Partnership on Distribution

P R O D U C T O F T H E M O N T H

10 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Single-chip solution targets portable applica-

tions, maximizing design flexibility while

reducing system cost, size and development

time.

Summit Microelectronics has announced the

latest addition to the company’s family of

multi-output programmable power manager

ICs. The SMB119 is targeted at portable

consumer equipment and integrates seven

precision programmable regulators and a

wide range of digital power control functions.

This “one-chip” solution offers the highest

design flexibility in the industry, while reduc-

ing system solution size and cost.

Summit’s easy-to-use PC-based graphical

(GUI) development environment lets system

designers digitally program the entire multi-

ple output power supply and associated

power management functions with a few

clicks of a mouse. In high-volume produc-

tion Summit provides product that is pre-pro-

grammed with the customer’s “custom con-

figuration” at no extra cost. Compared to

inflexible conventional analog power ICs, the

SMB119 yields optimized power system

designs in significantly shorter development

time.

Features

The SMB119 incorporates three synchro-

nous step-down converters, two step-up

converters, one configurable step-up or step-

down converter, and one low-dropout (LDO)

linear regulator. Also included is a fully pro-

grammable system supervisor that monitors

all channels for under-voltage and over-volt-

age events. The user can select how the

SMB119 should react under abnormal condi-

tions (assertion of RESET output, power-

down in sequencing order or force shut-

down), thereby maximizing system reliability.

The power manager operates at a switching

frequency of 1MHz, allowing for space-sav-

ing system components. DC-DC Power con-

version efficiency of up to 95 percent

reduces thermal dissipation and improves

battery life in portable systems. Further

enhancing battery life, a shutdown mode

reduces current consumption to 0.1μA while

automatic PWM/PFM operation improves

light load efficiency. A PWM-override mode

is also available for noise sensitive RF or

audio applications. Short circuit current limit-

ing and thermal protection safety circuits are

also built-in to enhance reliability.

Programmability

The SMB119 provides Digital Power Man-

agement via an I2C interface and non-

volatile memory allowing the user to config-

ure power functions and parameters for each

channel: individual channel enabling/dis-

abling, power-up/down sequencing, power-

up slew rate control, static and dynamic out-

put voltage control (Dynamic Voltage Man-

agement). A broad range of intelligent power

system diagnostics and monitoring functions

can be easily accessed via the I2C serial

interface and digital status outputs. These

include input and output monitoring for

under/over-voltage/over-current (UV/OV/OC)

and integrated RESET control. Enhancing

flexibility even further, the device can be pro-

grammed during development and then used

in a "fixed" configuration, or it may be re-pro-

grammed in-system via the I2C interface.

Applications

The SMB119 is ideal for a wide range of

portable consumer electronics such as digital

still cameras/camcorders (DSC/DCC),

portable media players (MP3/MPEG4), GPS

terminals, portable medical equipment, per-

Multi-Output ProgrammablePower Manager Combines

Advanced Power Delivery withDigital Power Control

Summit Diagramm

sonal digital assistants (PDAs), as well as

the next generation of “smart” mobile

phones. The dynamic voltage management

feature is particularly useful in Xscale™ and

ARM™ CPU applications and where LED

backlight brightness control is desired.

The SMB119 operates directly from +2.7V to

+6.0V input making it ideal for 1-cell Li-Ion

(+3.0V to +4.2V) battery applications,

although line-powered applications are readi-

ly supported as well. The device has an

operating temperature range of +0°C to

+70°C or –40°C to +85°C and is available in

the 7mm x 7mm 48-pad QFN package that

is lead-free and RoHS-standard compliant.

Design Software/Hardware and Program-

mer for Prototype Development

To speed user product development, Summit

offers customers the SMB119EV companion

evaluation board and a graphical user inter-

face (GUI) software so designers can quickly

see the features and benefits and design a

prototype power supply with the SMB119.

This is a complete development tool that lets

designers easily manipulate the characteris-

tics of their systems. The SMB119EV design

kit includes menu-driven Microsoft Windows

(R) GUI software to automate programming

tasks and also includes all necessary hard-

ware to interface to the USB port of a laptop

or PC.

Once a user completes design and prototyp-

ing, the SMB119EV automatically generates

a HEX data file that can be transmitted to

Summit for review and approval. Summit

then assigns a unique customer identifica-

tion code to the HEX file and programs the

customer’s production devices prior to final

electrical test operations. This ensures that

the device will operate properly in the end

application. The design kit software can be

downloaded from Summit’s website.

A reference design that utilizes the SMB119,

7-level programmable power manager, and

the SMB137, switch-mode charger with Cur-

rentPath™ control, is also available for

accelerating product development for a com-

plete portable system design.

About Summit Microelectronics

Summit Microelectronics is the leader in flex-

ible, highly integrated power management

solutions combining precision power regula-

tion with sophisticated digital control in a sin-

gle chip. The Company’s devices are found

in a variety of consumer, communications

and computing applications.

Summit’s unique programmable, non-volatile

mixed-signal IC technology combined with a

convenient GUI development environment

allows for unparalleled functional and para-

metric flexibility in power supply design. This

flexibility applied to common problems such

as dynamic voltage/current control and intel-

ligent battery charging, allows for significant

system performance improvement while real-

izing drastic reductions in design effort.

Digital programmability enables high integra-

tion and system flexibility in a single chip -

impossible with conventional “hard-wired”

analog power ICs. Additionally, this integra-

tion reduces the bill-of-materials yielding the

lowest total system cost and size. Summit

solutions address the biggest challenges

facing OEM developers today: increasing

system functionality, performance and com-

plexity accompanied by shrinking develop-

ment time cycles.

www.summitmicro.com

P R O D U C T O F T H E M O N T H

MAKING MODERN LIVING POSSIBLE

Simplify your design!

Danfoss Silicon Power GmbH • Heinrich-Hertz-Straße 2 • D-24837 Schleswig, Germany • Tel.: +49 4621 9512-0 • Fax: +49 4621 9512-310

E-mail: [email protected] • http://siliconpower.danfoss.com

E0 to E3 size Short and long pins Flexible pin-outIGBT’s and MOSFET’s from world class manufacturers Low and high voltage

For industry, transportation and automotive

We design and manufacture to your needs.

99

36

12 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Earlier this year, the world was shocked

when crude oil prices exceeded the

$100 per barrel mark. Now, oil commodi-

ty experts are attempting to prepare us

for the next shock of $200 per barrel

crude oil.

Most people worry about rising energy

prices. After all, nobody wants to pay

increased prices for electricity, petrol or

heating. However, there is an up-side.

Whether we like it or not, we all know

that we must do something drastic to

reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.

Along with the benefits of CO2 reduction

and improved air quality, we can also

reap the economic benefits of substitut-

ing fossil fuels with renewable energy

sources.

For those of us in the power electronics

community, we have our work cut out for

us! Photovoltaic and wind power conver-

sion equipment and hybrid electric vehi-

cles, as a matter of fact, most renewable

energy sources, use power electronics

as “the” enabling technology.

This will come as no surprise to most readers of “Bodo’s Power”

magazine, but we tend to keep our growing need for talent as a big

secret within our relatively small community. Our secrecy complicates

any efforts to recruit new talent to our cause and meet the power

electronics industry’s great unfulfilled need for power electronics pro-

fessionals.

I want to make the point that we in the power electronics industry

must cultivate excitement and awareness about our profession in the

world. If we want to recruit enough of the best minds, we must work

to attract young people to our industry during the time in their lives

when they are making important decisions about their education.

Our industry is full of exciting success

stories that will attract our future col-

leagues. Wind turbines in Northern Ger-

many and Denmark that today account

for more than 20% of the total electricity

consumption work only in an efficient

manner due to advanced power

electronics components. The same can

be said for photovoltaic energy genera-

tion that requires efficient power elec-

tronics components in order to feed the

power grid.

Whether used to accelerate an electric

motor or regenerate braking power,

power electronics is the enabling tech-

nology for hybrid electric vehicles. More

recently, our situation receives good

publicity from Formula 1 Racing. Formu-

la 1 teams will soon be required to race

hybrid electric cars in order to compete

in this sport.

A very pleasant surprise it was when

someone introduced me to a little “Pixi”

booklet at the recent PCIM 2008 exhibi-

tion. Phoenix Contact sponsors this booklet that tells the story of an

electrical engineer as seen through the eyes of a very young girl.

Phoenix Contact is taking positive action to raise the awareness of

the engineering profession in a young target group. Through Danfoss

Universe (http://www.danfossuniverse.com/), Danfoss introduces

young people to the engineering profession. I encourage everyone

else in our profession to follow these good examples and do even

more!

http://siliconpower.danfoss.com

G U E S T E D I T O R I A L

Two Hundred Dollar a BarrelBy Claus Petersen, CEO Danfoss Silicon Power

PCIM review by VideoJust go to Darnell PowerPulse and watch what industry presented!

http://www.powerpulse.net/conferenceVideo.php

You find more videos from industry about PCIM produced by ICC media!http://ece-news.stc-d.de/pcimvideos/pcim/pcim08videos.html

14 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

M A R K E T

ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY DIGESTBy Aubrey Dunford, Europartners

GENERAL

Worldwide revenue

for photovoltaic cells

is projected to

increase to as much

as $22.1 billion in

2012, up from $9.6

billion in 2007, so

iSuppli. By 2020,

about 50,000

Megawatts worth of PV systems (MWp) will

be installed annually, up by a factor of nearly

20 times from 2,538 MWp in 2007. But pro-

duction capacity limitations are constraining

polysilicon supply, causing PV suppliers to

realign their strategies and to seek alterna-

tive raw materials. The silicon shortage also

is driving the advancement of thin-film tech-

nologies that can act as the raw material for

PV cells. This will cause the revenue market

share of thin-film technologies to rise to 20

percent of the total PV market in 2010, up

from 5 percent in 2007.

SEMICONDUCTORS

The capacity utilization of semiconductor-

manufacturing plants worldwide edged up

0.1 percentage point from the previous quar-

ter to 90.5 percent, marking the fifth straight

quarter of rise, so SICAS. Actual wafer-starts

rose sequentially by 1.9 percent to 1.950

million per week in 8 inch equivalent wafers.

The utilization of advanced facilities that

make chips with circuits of less than 80 nm

came to 96.7 percent.

Freescale has informed workers at its plant

in East Kilbride, Scotland, that it was unable

to sell the fab and that it may be closed.

1,000 are employed at the site, with approxi-

mately 750 directly involved in manufactur-

ing. Freescale is also to close down its

design center in Cork, Ireland, with the loss

of 47 design engineering jobs, so Irish media

reports.

DIGEST – FORM

ON Semiconductor has announced plans to

close its two wafer manufacturing facilities

located in Piestany, Slovakia, and transfer

the production lines to other company-

owned facilities.

Texas Instruments has acquired Ireland-

based Commergy Technologies, a power

supply referenceb design provider that spe-

cializes in energy efficient and compact

architectures. The acquisition allows TI to

broaden its focus on improving energy effi-

ciency in endequipment designs, especially

in the areas of AC adapters and high-power-

density computing and server systems.

IXYS, a Silicon Valley power semiconductor

company, has made a proposal to acquire all

the outstanding shares of ZiLOG common

stock for per share consideration of $4.50, to

be paid in cash and stock. ZiLOG's micro-

controller semiconductor devices will com-

plement IXYS's IC business, so IXYS.

OPTOELECTRONICS

Large-sized LCD panel shipments in 2008

are projected to rise to 458.9 million units,

up 17.7 percent from 389.8 million in 2007,

so iSuppli.

Germany is a leading European market for

flat panel displays. In 2007, nearly 4.5 mil-

lion units of LCD and plasma television sets

were sold in Germany. Displaybank forecast

that the LED market would grow from US

$2,6B in 2006 to US$8.4B in 2011 with a

yearly average growth rate of 18 percent.

PASSIVE COMPONENTS

Germany’s PCB market revenue for Febru-

ary 2008 registered a 12.8 percent growth

compared with the same period last year,

albeit lower revenue compared with the pre-

vious month, so the ZVEI. During the first

two months of the year, total orders were 9

percent higher compared with the same peri-

od last year. Book-to-bill ratio, meanwhile,

stands at 1.06.

OTHER COMPONENTS

ANSYS has signed a definitive agreement to

acquire Ansoft for a purchase price of

approximately $ 832 M. The complementary

business combination of ANSYS and Ansoft

will create a provider of simulation capabili-

ties, with combined trailing 12-month rev-

enues of $ 485 M.

EMS PROVIDERS

Flextronics has completed its previously

announced acquisition of the FRIWO Mobile

Power (FMP) business unit of CEAG, a glob-

al market leader for power supplies and

chargers for mobile telephones. FMP is now

part of Flextronics' power supply division.

The acquisition will add approximately

18,000 employees and 700,000 square feet

of manufacturing capacity in China.

DISTRIBUTION

Future Electronics EMEA have been recog-

nized as the International Rectifier distributor

of the year for 2007. Avago Technologies

has also chosen Future Electronics for its

performance excellence in resale growth

across Europe. This was followed by Future

Germany's recognition by Avago for best

country performance for 2007. Future has 41

sales offices in 26 counties in the Europe,

Middle East and Africa region.

This is the comprehensive power related

extract from the « Electronics IndustryDigest

», the successor of The Lennox Report. For

a full subscription of the report contact:

[email protected] or by fax 44/1494

563503.

www.europartners.eu.com

P C I M I M P R E S S I O N S

Pull the rope.

We had 100 winners. Three walked away with a Marklin Starter Set.

Ten had a Lego Locomotive and all the others had a pickle in a can.

All of the winners walked away with the CD with all of the magazine

issues as pdfs.

It was so good to see so many happy people.

Bodo’s Podium at the PCIM show had put the mile stones down to

look into the future.

Just a few impressions and statements from experts.

Ecodesign and Efficiency

By Alfred Hesener, Director Applications&Marketing,

Fairchild Semiconductor EU

Ecodesign impacts: High efficiency (>94%), low standby power

(210mW), lowest component count and space requirements.

Blue Efficiency

By Dr. Martin Schulz AIM PMD ID TM Infineon

Energy Efficiency: the useful work per quantity of energy

Electrical Efficiency: useful power output per electrical power con-

sumed

Decreasing Computing Power Consumption

By Adam Latham, Intersil

The efficiency of the phase dropping/adding MOSFET drivers based

on LSI protocol data provides significant power savings. However, it

is not as efficient as the discrete circuitry solution that dynamically

adjusts based on current levels

The Next Level for Design

By Eric Persson, Executive Director, Global FAE,

International Rectifier

New Products targeted specifically at renewable energy inverters

(distributed solar arrays)

Blue Efficiency the Design

By Werner Berns, Technical Support Manager &

University Collaboration Europe National Semi-

conductor

PowerWise® Adaptive Voltage Scaling (AVS)

technology reduces energy consumption by

64% over other solutions for digital systems

Go Blue with TI

By François Malléus, EMEA Power Solutions & Services

Texas Instruments

Supporting renewable energy sources :

Generation: Letting nature work for us

Distribution: Smart metering and grid management

Smart appliances

Blue Efficiency at the Next Level

Recent news demonstrates that digital power conversion is no longer

just an emerging technology - digital power has entered the main-

stream. Some of the more interesting developments include: Infi-

neon’s purchase of Primarion, Fairchild’s second-source agreement

with Zilker Labs, Ericsson’s announcement of a digitally-controlled

MicroTCA power module, among others.

Infineon’s perspective on digital power can be seen in the following

statement made at the time of the Primarion acquisition: “Infineon will

now be positioned to set the benchmark in system density, efficiency

and control by combining the performance of Primarion’s digitally

controlled power-management devices with Infineon’s leading power

semiconductors portfolio,” said Peter Bauer, Member of the Manage-

ment Board and Head of Infineon’s Automotive, Industrial and Multi-

market Business Group.

“The addition of Primarion helps accelerate our access to the poten-

tial growth in the digital power segment by providing advanced sys-

tem solutions for our customers. This investment is also a great com-

plement to our power management activities based out of Villach in

Austria,” Bauer concluded.

Fairchild is similarly enthusiastic about digital power. Although

Fairchild is not a newcomer (the company has had a digital power

development effort underway for some time), Bob Conrad, Fairchild’s

Executive Vice President of the Mobile, Computing, Consumer and

Communications Product Group stated, “This partnership allows

Fairchild to manufacture and sell digital power products and

enhances our working knowledge of the digital power market and

application space, while promoting and driving its adoption.”

“Developing close relationships with our customers, and understand-

ing their challenges, will allow us to develop and provide next-gener-

ation, leading edge digital power products and solutions for a variety

of applications in the power management market,” Conrad predicted.

More recently, Zilker introduced what it describes as the industry’s

most accurate dc-dc power controller for meeting the ever-increasing

voltage regulation accuracy requirements of today’s high-perform-

ance embedded processors and ASICs. The ZL2004-01 uses Zilker

Labs’ Digital-DC technology to provide ±0.2% dc output regulation,

which is said to enable the most integrated and cost-effective solution

for delivering accurate power to sensitive devices, regardless of the

use of analog or digital techniques.

The ZL2004-01 interfaces with external drivers and MOSFETs, pro-

viding a flexible controller that can be implemented using a wide vari-

ety of power train components. The device also supports active cur-

rent sharing, allowing up to 8 devices in parallel to supply load cur-

rent requirements in excess of 100A.

The mainstreaming of digital power is also evident in the recent

announcement of a MicroTCA power converter by Ericsson Power

Modules. The digital control of the dc-dc converter that is embedded

within the module is described as being truly unique to Ericsson and

as providing cutting edge performance in terms of the level of control

available, and efficiency.

The power module was initially announced during 2007 as an evalua-

tive level product intended for interoperability testing. The results

from numerous interoperability workshops together with MicroTCA

component suppliers and system integrators have been incorporated

into the product, now called BMR 911 483/1. Two features that have

been added are a USB interface that is accessible to the user via the

faceplate, and redundant operation of payload and management

power.

MicroTCA is for use in many different types of applications and kinds

of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) equipment.

Some of the most suitable ones will most likely be edge and access

equipment. In addition to applications in the communications industry,

this power module is also suitable for applications targeting enter-

prise, military, medical and industrial markets.

In a related action, Verizon has established its own energy-consump-

tion standards and an associated measurement process for new

telecommunications-related equipment. The standards will be applied

to certain broadband, video, data-center, network and customer-

premises equipment purchased after January 1, 2009.

The target provided to the manufacturers of such equipment is 20%

greater efficiency than today’s gear. While not specifically calling for

digital power techniques, achievement of this level of efficiency is

often accomplished with a digital control loop.

“This is similar to a consumer buying appliances according to the

standardized ENERGY STAR® efficiency levels,” said Mark Wegleit-

ner, Senior Vice President-Corporate Network and Technology. “How-

ever, in most cases, an ENERGY STAR-type rating system did not

exist for the equipment we buy, so we set up our own standards and

measurement process to create an effective program. We want to

reduce our energy usage and do our part to improve the environ-

ment. We’re proud to be leading the industry with this initial, impor-

tant step, and invite others to use these standards so the cumulative

effect is increased.”

Verizon established a series of Telecommunications Equipment Ener-

gy Efficiency Ratings based on formulas that test the consumption of

equipment in various operating conditions and settings. Test data are

entered into formulas developed for each type of equipment, which

will indicate whether or not they achieve the target rating.

Equipment to be tested and rated includes optical and video trans-

port systems, switches and routers, DSLAM high-speed internet

equipment and optical line termination gear, as well as switching

power systems, data center servers and power adapters that operate

customer equipment.

M A R K E T

16 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Digital Power is a MainstreamPower Technology

By Douglas Bess, Editor, PowerPulse.Net

The requirements incorporate new applications of existing method-

ologies as outlined in SPECpower_ssj2008™ and the Energy Star

programs, combined with what are described as some innovative

Verizon-led concepts and methods of measurement. The concepts

and measurement methods have been submitted for consideration

by appropriate standards bodies, such as ATIS’ Network Interface,

Power and Protection Committee (NIPP).

CHiL Semiconductor, a developer of mixed-signal power manage-

ment ICs for a wide variety of computing devices, announced the

successful completion of its second major round of venture capital

financing, securing $16.7 million. Silicon Valley investor Panorama

Capital led the new round and joined the initial investor group of

Flybridge Capital Partners, Highland Capital, and IdSoft Capital.

The CHiL controller architecture is said to use mixed-signal technol-

ogy to optimize performance, increase power efficiency and

streamline the design. CHiL’s use of digital power techniques with

non-linear control is said to result in a very high bandwidth solution,

and to deliver a fast transient response for high performance

servers, computers and other systems requiring high efficiency

solutions. By efficiently using digital technology, CHiL claims that its

devices integrate a number of differentiating features such as moni-

toring and control capabilities with real-time response.

“As the world moves toward computing solutions that are environ-

mentally friendly, curtailing power consumption is the key” noted

Ram Sudireddy, Chief Executive Officer, CHiL. “We are implement-

ing our product roadmap for more efficient solutions, which ensures

that our customers can maximize their design investments with an

ongoing stream of new products with innovative technology and

features. This new round of funding will extend our global reach to

system and board designers in key markets in Asia Pacific and

North America.”

The mainstream nature of digital power is evident beyond the

news. It can be seen in the industry’s response to the fifth annual

Digital Power Forum. This year’s event has broadened to include

all aspects of embedded system powering, not just digital power

management and digital power conversion.

In response to industry demand, the 2008 Digital Power Forum

(DPF ’08), has added a new track of papers on Advanced Compo-

nents to the two existing tracks on Power Conversion and Mission

Critical Facilities. Papers will be presented on planar magnetics,

advanced thermal solutions, new semiconductor devices, including

Silicon Carbide, in addition to detailed discussions of power man-

agement, energy efficiency and, of course, digital power technolo-

gies.

“Our expanded content is a reflection of the fact that digital power

has rapidly become a mainstream power technology for embedded

systems,” stated Jeff Shepard, President of Darnell Group. “Two

years ago, if an engineer was considering using digital power tech-

nology, they had better have had a good reason. Today, an expla-

nation is necessary if digital power is not being considered,” Shep-

ard observed.

http://digitalpower.darnell.com

www.PowerPulse.net

www.bodospower.com

flowPACK 2 3rd gen up to 150A at 1200V

High Power Sixpacks forMotor Drives

IGBT4 technology for lowsaturation losses and improved EMC behavior

Low inductance layout and compact design

High power flow 2 housing

Power Modules

www.vincotech.com

NEW

Main Features

P68X series

18 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Development trends in power electronic systems continue to demand

power devices with continuously improved characteristics in terms of

reduced losses, increased ruggedness and improved controllability.

Following the introduction of the new generation of 1700V, 3300V

and 4500V SPT+ IGBT HiPak range, the next generation 6500V HV-

HiPak IGBT modules employing SPT+ IGBTs and diodes will be pre-

sented in this article. The SPT+ IGBT platform has been designed to

substantially reduce the total semiconductor losses while increasing

the turn-off ruggedness above that of the current SPT technology.

The SPT+ platform exploits an enhanced carrier profile through opti-

mization of ABB’s planar cell structure. The new cell technology sig-

nificantly increases the plasma concentration at the emitter, which

reduces the on-state voltage drop without affecting the turn-off loss-

es. Due to the combination of the enhanced cell design and the soft-

punch-through (SPT) buffer concept, the SPT+ IGBT design platform

enables ABB to establish a new technology benchmark for the 6.5kV

voltage class.

The on-state losses of the new 6.5kV IGBT exhibits approximately a

30% reduction as compared to the standard SPT device. This in

combination with the increased ruggedness of the SPT+ IGBT has

enabled the current rating to be increased from 600A for the standard

6.5kV HiPak up to 750A for the new SPT+ version. The new SPT+

modules will provide high voltage system designers with enhanced

current ratings and simplified cooling while further enhancing the

recently acquired robustness of the SPT IGBTs.

6.5kV SPT+ chip-set technology

The SPT+ IGBT platform was developed with the goal to substantially

reduce the on-state losses while maintaining the low switching loss-

es, smooth switching behavior and high turn-off ruggedness of the

standard SPT (Soft-Punch-Through) IGBTs. This was achieved by

combining an improved planar cell design with the already well-opti-

mized vertical structure utilized in the SPT technology.

In Fig. 1, a cross-section of the SPT+ IGBT can be seen. The planar

SPT+ technology employs an N-enhancement layer surrounding the

P-well in the IGBT cell. The N-layer improves the carrier concentra-

tion on the cathode side of the IGBT, thus lowering the on-state volt-

age drop (VCE,on) without significantly increasing the turn-off losses. A

further reduction of VCE,on was achieved by reducing the channel

resistance by shortening the lateral length of the MOS-channel. By

optimizing the shape of the N-enhancement layer, the turn-off

ruggedness (RBSOA) of the SPT+ cell could be increased even

beyond the level of the already very rugged standard SPT cell. In this

way, the SPT+ technology not only offers significantly lower losses

but also an increased SOA capability as compared to the standard

technology.

Fig. 1 shows also a cross-section of the SPT+ diode. The SPT+ diode

technology utilizes a double local lifetime-control technique to opti-

mize the shape of the stored electron-hole plasma. Due to the

improved plasma distribution, the overall losses could be reduced

while maintaining the soft recovery characteristics of the standard

SPT diodes. On the anode side, the SPT+ diode employs the same

design as used in the standard SPT technology, utilizing a high-

doped P+-emitter. The anode emitter efficiency is adjusted using a

first He++ peak placed inside the P+-diffusion. In order to control the

plasma concentration in the N-base region and on the cathode side

of the diode, a second He++ peak, implanted deeply into the N-base

from the cathode side is used. In this way, a double local lifetime pro-

file as shown in Fig. 1 is achieved. With this approach, no additional

homogenous lifetime control in the N-base is necessary. Due to the

improved shape of the stored electron-hole plasma, a better trade-off

between total diode losses and recovery softness was achieved.

6.5kV/750A HV-HiPak electrical performance

The 6.5kV HV-HiPak module is an industry-standard housing with the

popular 190 x 140 mm footprint. It uses Aluminium Silicon Carbide

(AlSiC) base-plate material for excellent thermal cycling capability as

required in traction applications and Aluminium Nitride (AlN) isolation

for low thermal resistance. The HV-HiPak version utilized for the

6.5kV voltage class is designed with an isolation capability of

10.2kVRMS. To verify the performance of the 6.5kV SPT+ chips and

the HV-HiPak module, extensive measurements were carried out.

The results of this characterization will be presented in this section.

C O V E R S T O R Y

6500V SPT+ HiPak ModulesHigher power and higher SOA performance

The next generation 6500V HiPak IGBT modules employing the newly developed SPT+

IGBT and diode chips is presented. The SPT+ IGBT range achieves significantly loweroverall losses while exhibiting higher safe-operating area (SOA) and the same desirable

electrical characteristics as the successful SPT generation.

By A. Kopta, M. Rahimo, U. Schlapbach, A. Baschnagel, ABB Switzerland Ltd, Semiconductor

Fig.1: SPT+ IGBT (left) and Diode (right) technology.

19www.bodospower.com July 2008

The nominal rated current of the 6.5kV HV-HiPak module is 750A,

which corresponds to a current density of 34.3A/cm2 for the IGBT

and 77.5A/cm2 for the diode. For dynamic measurements, the nomi-

nal DC-link voltage was 3600V, while SOA and softness measure-

ments were carried out at 4500V.

In Fig. 2-a, the on-state curves of the 6.5kV SPT+ IGBT can be seen.

The typical on-state voltage drop (VCE,on) at nominal current and

Tj=125 °C is 4.0V. The SPT+ IGBT shows a positive temperature

coefficient of VCE,on, starting already at low currents, which enables a

good current sharing capability between the individual chips in the

module. In Fig. 2-b, the on-state characteristics of the 6.5kV SPT+

diode are shown. Due to the advanced plasma shaping utilizing a

double He++ irradiation scheme, the diode has a strong positive tem-

perature coefficient of VF already well below the nominal current. At

rated current and 125 °C, the diode has a typical on-state voltage

drop of 3.5V.

Fig. 3-a shows the turn-off waveforms of the 6.5kV HiPak module

measured under nominal conditions i.e. at 750A and 3600V. Under

these conditions, the fully integrated turn-off losses of the module

amount to 5.2J. The module was switched-off using an external gate

resistor (Rg,off) of 15Ω, which results in a voltage rise of 2000V/μs.

The optimized N-base region combined with the Soft-Punch-Through

(SPT) buffer allows the collector current to decay smoothly, ensuring

Fig. 2-a: Forward characteristics of the 6.5kV SPT+ IGBT (modulelevel measurements).

Fig. 2-b: Forward characteristics of the 6.5kV SPT+ Diode (modulelevel measurements).

Bicron Electronics Companywww.bicronusa.us1 800 624 2766, 1 860 824 5125In Europe—TransElectro, DK +45 9858 1022

HF Transformer Types:

When power control failure is not an option . . . . .

a soft turn-off behavior without any disturbing voltage peaks or oscil-

lations even at high DC-link voltages and stray inductances.

Fig. 3-b shows the turn-on waveforms under nominal conditions. The

low input capacitance of the planar SPT+ cell allows a fast drop of the

IGBT voltage during the turn-on transient. This, combined with the

low-loss SPT+ diode, brings the turn-on switching losses down to a

typical value of 6.4J. By carefully designing the diode cathode-sided

He++ peak, a short, but still smoothly decaying current tail was

achieved. Under nominal conditions, the diode recovery losses are

2.8J. Thanks to the high ruggedness and soft recovery behavior, the

diode can be switched with a high diF/dt, which significantly reduces

the IGBT turn-on losses.

In Fig. 4 the trade-off curve between the IGBT on-state voltage drop

and the turn-off losses for the SPT+ as well as the standard SPT

IGBT measured at chip level can be seen. The different points on the

technology curves correspond to IGBTs with different anode emitter

efficiencies. The devices were measured at a collector current of

25A, which is the nominal current of the SPT IGBTs. The new SPT+

IGBT exhibits an approximately 30% lower on-state voltage drop

(VCE,on) for the same turn-off losses as compared to the standard

SPT chip. The final point on the technology curve for the SPT+ IGBTs

was carefully selected based on the trade-off between reverse leak-

age current and turn-off softness while maintaining a good balance

between switching and conduction losses.

In order to evaluate the performance of the 6.5kV SPT+ module

under real application conditions a thermal simulation of the output

current as function of the switching frequency was made. The results

can be seen in Fig. 5. The 6.5kV SPT+ IGBTs have been optimized to

operate in an application environment with high stray inductances uti-

lizing low switching frequencies.

One of the main advantages of the new 6.5kV SPT+ IGBT is its

extremely high turn-off ruggedness, setting a new benchmark for this

voltage class. Fig. 6-a shows a turn-off waveform at module level,

where a current of 2400A, which corresponds to more than three

times the nominal current, was switched-off against a DC-link voltage

of 4500V at a junction temperature of 125°C. The test was conducted

with an external gate resistance of 1.0Ω, without using any clamps or

snubbers. The stray inductance in this test was 750nH, which is more

than double of that expected in the targeted application environment

even under worst case conditions. Thanks to the ruggedness of the

SPT+ cell, the IGBTs are capable of sustaining a long period of strong

dynamic avalanche during the turn-off transient showing an excellent

SOA capability. In this test the turn-off peak power reached a value of

11.7MW. In the standard production-level testing all modules are sub-

jected to a turn-off SOA test with three times nominal current (2250A)

C O V E R S T O R Y

20 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Fig. 4: 6.5kV SPT+ IGBT technology curve measured at chip level.

Fig. 5: 6.5kV SPT+ HiPak module output current as function of theswitching frequency.

Fig. 3-a: 6.5kV SPT+ IGBT turn-off under nominal conditions meas-ured at module level. Eoff=5.2J.

Fig. 3-b: 6.5kV SPT+ IGBT turn-on under nominal conditions meas-

ured at module level. Eon=6.4J.

where the modules are driven into dynamic avalanche. This very

harsh test has been implemented in order to ensure high quality and

reliability of all shipped 6.5kV HV-HiPak modules.

Fig. 6-b shows a diode reverse recovery SOA test at module level

measured with a forward current of 750A (nominal current) and a DC-

link voltage of 4500V. Due to the IGBT turn-on characteristics the

diode peak power reaches its maximum value close to the nominal

current and starts decreasing again for higher forward currents. The

diode was switched using an external gate resistor (Rg,on) of 1.2Ωreaching a switching speed of 7000A/us and a peak power of 9.0MW.

The short circuit waveforms of the 6.5kV SPT+ module can be seen

in Fig. 7. The IGBT was carefully designed to withstand a short circuit

at VGE=15.0V for all DC-link voltages up to 4500V and junction tem-

peratures between –40 °C and 125 °C. The desired short-circuit

ruggedness was achieved by optimizations of the SPT-buffer and the

anode emitter efficiency.

Finally, to verify the surge current capability of the 6.5kV SPT+ diode,

the HiPak module was subjected to 100 surge pulse with a magni-

tude of 9.9kA and pulse duration of 10ms (I2t = 523kA2s) as shown in

Fig. 8. After the 100th pulse, the module was electrically retested to

ensure that no degradation had taken place. In the subsequent

destruction test the single pulse surge current capability was deter-

mined. The diodes reached a peak current of 12.3kA, corresponding

to an I2t value of 705kA2s before failing. This excellent surge current

capability was achieved thanks to a combination of the strongly

doped P+-emitter and a low on-state voltage drop facilitated by the

optimum plasma distribution shaped by the double He++ irradiation

scheme.

www.abb.com/semiconductors

C O V E R S T O R Y

21www.bodospower.com July 2008

Fig. 6-a: 6.5kV SPT+ IGBT turn-off under SOA conditions measuredat module level. Ppoff =11.7MW

Fig. 8: 6.5kV SPT+ diode surge current waveforms at module level.

Fig. 6-b: 6.5kV SPT+ diode reverse recovery under SOA conditionsmeasured at module level.

Fig. 7: 6.5kV SPT+ IGBT short-circuit characteristics measured atmodule level.

July 2008

Compared to previous generation IGBTs operated at 20 kHz, trench

IGBTs have lower conduction and lower switching losses at the same

operating conditions. These devices are also rated for 175°C maxi-

mum junction temperature to increase design margin further. Positive

Vce(on) temperature coefficient allows easier paralleling of the

devices for higher inverter power applications. In addition, 100 per-

cent of the parts are clamped inductive tested (ILM) at 4x the rated

current to guarantee robustness.

Trench IGBT

One of the major improvements in IGBT designs is the introduction of

trench gate IGBT. In a trench IGBT, the gate is trenched down into

the p+ body region. This results in reduction of saturation voltage,

Vce(on), when the IGBT is conducting. Another major improvement in

trench IGBT is the deploying of a depletion stop layer which allows

thinner IGBT with reduced tail current at turn off.

Figure 1 shows parametric comparisons between planar punch

through (planar) IGBT and trench depletion stop (trench) IGBT of the

same dimensions. This table shows important parameters of the

IGBTs in 20 kHz application. Trench IGBT parameters are superior to

those of planar IGBTs. Comparing parameter differences on Figure 1,

trench IGBT’s advantages can be summarized as follows: lower con-

duction voltage, Vce(on), lower switching losses and lower steady

state thermal resistance (Rth) compared to planar IGBTs.

Power Dissipation at 20 kHz

Power dissipation difference at 20 kHz is analyzed in Figure 2. 20

kHz is typically used for DC-AC inverter in applications such as solar

or UPS inverters. Calculation shows that there will be up to 30 per-

cent reduction in power dissipation at 20 kHz. This reduction means

end-products can be designed smaller or more output power can be

obtained from existing power board assembly.

Short Circuit Requirements

In a typical DC-AC inverter, output inductors and capacitors filter out

20 kHz switching harmonics. This results in an output voltage that is

very close to a true sine wave. When the output of the inverter is

shorted, the output inductors will limit the rate of change (di/dt) of the

current into the IGBT. Current will ramp linearly and the protection cir-

cuit should detect an over-current condition which terminates signals

to the gates of the IGBTs. This condition is different from the one in a

motor drive application where a short circuit usually means direct

short of IGBT terminals without inductor to limit di/dt of the current.

The waveform differences are shown in Figure 3. The first oscillo-

scope waveform shows current ramps linearly when an output induc-

tor is present on the output of the inverter. The controller sets over

current limit at 12 Amperes and stops the gate signal to the IGBT

when this limit is exceeded. When current ramps linearly, the IGBT is

not saturated and voltage drop, Vce(on), across it is small (1.7V).

Therefore, the instantaneous power dissipation is also relatively small

at 20.4 Watts (12A x 1.7V).

Assuming that the controller takes 500 nano seconds to react to this

over-current condition, the increase in the junction temperature of the

IGBT is calculated to be 0.204°C above the steady state junction

temperature. This is assuming an instantaneous thermal resistance

of 0.01 °C/W and following the formula: dT = Zth x Pdissipation, where

dT is the increase in junction temperature, Zth is the instantaneous

I G B T

22 www.bodospower.com

600V Trench IGBTs Optimized for 20 kHz Operation

The new generation of 600 Volt IGBTs is targeted for DC-to-AC inverter applications.These new devices use Depletion Stop Trench technology to reduce both conduction and

switching losses in high frequency switching applications such as UPS and solar invertersenabling higher efficiency power conversion. These devices have been optimized for

switching at 20 kHz with low short circuit requirements.

By Carl Blake and Wibawa Chou, International Rectifier

Figure 1:. Comparisons of planar punch through with trench depletionstop IGBTs

Figure 2: Trench IGBT offers 30% power dissipation reduction com-pared to planar IGBT in a 20 kHz DC to AC inverter application.

23www.bodospower.com

I G B T

thermal resistance and Pdissipation is power dissipation on the IGBT

die. This increase in the junction temperature is insignificant in most

applications and the IGBT should be able to survive this condition

without any problem.

On the second waveform, there is no output inductor that limits di/dt

of the current. IGBT reaches its current saturation level almost at the

instant the short circuit occurs. The entire bus voltage is dropped

across the IGBT and power dissipation is very large. In this example,

the current saturates at 33 Amperes and the entire bus voltage of

400V is dropped across the IGBT. The instantaneous power dissipa-

tion is approximately 13.2 kilowatts (33A x 400V). Using the previous

formula, the increase in junction temperature will be 132 °C above

the steady state junction temperature. This increase is very signifi-

cant such that the gate signal to the IGBT must be extinguished

immediately to prevent catastrophic device failure.

600V trench IGBTs for 20 kHz inverter application offer a trade-off

between short circuit time and Vce(on). Typically, the higher the short

circuit time, the higher Vce(on) will be. However, since output inductors

are always present on the application, current ramps linearly when

the output is shorted. Therefore, short circuit time handling capability

of the IGBTs does not have to be as long as that for motor drive

applications. These trench IGBTs have 5 usec short circuit time at

room temperature and 3 usec at 150°C. This specification is sufficient

for modern protection circuit and controllers to detect abnormality on

the inverter and to terminate gate signals to the IGBTs to prevent cat-

astrophic failure. Increasing short circuit time is not necessary as it

will increase the Vce(on) significantly which reduces efficiency of the

inverter.

Paralleling and 175°C Operations

Since 600V trench IGBTs are based on depletion stop thin wafer

design, the temperature coefficient of the Vce(on) is positive, similar to

that of a power MOSFET. This means increasing junction tempera-

ture will increase Vce(on) of the IGBT. This has an advantage when

multiple IGBTs are put in parallel to increase power handling capabili-

ty of the inverter. With positive temperature coefficient, when one

device takes more current than the others, it will heat up more and its

Vce(on) will increase. When Vce(on) increases, current through the

IGBT will automatically reduce and current balance is automatically

restored. On punch through planar IGBTs without thin wafer design,

the temperature coefficient is negative. Increasing temperature of the

IGBT will result in reduction in Vce(on). It is, therefore, more difficult to

achieve current balance in parallel operation since the device that

takes more current will have its Vce(on) reduced and continues taking

more and more current leading to device destruction.

Another improvement made

on the 600V trench IGBT is its

capability to operate up to

175°C junction temperature.

This improvement allows

design engineers to have

more design margin for relia-

bility. It also means that the

device can provide more

power density out of the same

package. This allows design

engineers to provide more

output current capability out of

the same power board assem-

bly. On planar IGBTs, the

maximum junction tempera-

ture is limited to 150°C.

4x Clamped Inductive Load

On an inverter with inductor at the output, the IGBT will see high cur-

rent and high voltage simultaneously at the instant the device switch-

es off. This is due to the transition time of the IGBT from conducting

to blocking (usually specified as tdoff and tf on the datasheet) and par-

asitic inductances of the circuit. These inductances are shown in Fig-

ure 4 for clarity.

During transition time, current on the output inductor can not change

instantaneously. This means that current will continue flowing on the

co-pack diode of the complementary IGBT. However, it takes time for

the co-pack diode to conduct, during which time, the voltage across

the IGBT will spike above the bus voltage. This high voltage spike

will coincide with the high current to be turned off causing a lot of

power dissipation across the IGBT. In order to guarantee robustness,

600V trench IGBTs are designed to be able to turn off four times its

rated current. This is guaranteed by 100 percent testing each device

in production for clamped inductive load test. Typical waveform

across the IGBT at turn off transition is shown in Figure 5.

Conclusions

600V trench IGBTs offer several benefits compared to planar punch

through IGBTs. These advantages are increased power density,

increased reliability and ease of paralleling. This generation of IGBTs

is targeted for DC-AC inverter application at 20 kHz with low short

circuit rating requirements.

www.irf.com

Figure 3: Output inductor limits the rate of change of current into theIGBT when the output is shorted.

Figure 4: Output inductor and par-asitic inductors on a typical halfbridge inverter.

Figure 5:. Typical voltage and current across the IGBT at turn offtransition.

24 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

In higher voltage applications, such as auto-

motive anti-lock braking systems, their com-

mutation speed allows them to be switched

on and off at very high frequencies, which is

a valuable asset in applications that use

pulse width modulation (PWM). However, the

growing spectrum of applications for high-

voltage MOSFETs – including high-efficiency

SMPSs (switched-mode power supplies),

industrial power converters and renewable

energy systems – creates a need for more-

efficient MOSFET technology. Superjunction

MOSFETs with higher breakdown voltages,

such as the Infineon CoolMOS™ 900V, meet

this need.

CoolMOS 900V power MOSFETs overcome

the “silicon limit” in power transistor manu-

facturing, and provide an alternative for high-

voltage designs using standard TO (Transis-

tor Outline) packages. The devices represent

the first time superjunction technology has

been extended to 900 V. They offer signifi-

cant performance capabilities that did not

previously exist, giving designers new ways

to think about implementing their high-volt-

age solutions.

Superjunction Technology

Conventional power MOSFETs today have

suffered from a “silicon limit,” which means

that doubling the voltage blocking capability

typically leads to an increase in the RDS(on)

(on-state resistance) by a factor of five.

With superjunction technology, the basic

idea is to allow the current to flow from top

to bottom of a MOSFET in very-high-doped

vertically arranged regions, so much more

charge is available for current conduction

compared to a standard MOSFET device

(Figure 1). In the blocking state of a super-

junction MOSFET, the charge is counterbal-

anced by exactly the same amount of

charge of the opposite type. The two

charges are separated locally in the device

by a very refined technology, and the result-

ing structure shows a laterally stacked fine-

pitched pattern of alternating arranged p-

and n-areas. The finer the pitch can be

made, the lower the RDS(on) of the device will

be. Infineon achieves the industry’s finest

pitch in its CoolMOS devices, yielding

benchmark-setting RDS(on) figures. Target

applications for the CoolMOS 900V MOS-

FETs are ATX (Advanced Technology

Extended) PC “silver box” power supplies,

quasi-resonant flyback designs for LCD TVs,

active 3-phase applications, solar converters

and other designs in which high blocking

voltage and low conduction and switching

losses combined with low gate charge are

necessary.

Device characteristics

Along with the world’s lowest RDS(on) per

package type for 900V MOSFETs (e.g., 120

mΩ in TO-247 and 340 mΩ in TO-220 pack-

ages), the Infineon CoolMOS 900V devices

have continuous drain currents of up to 36 A

and pulse currents of up to 96 A. They also

achieve a total gate charge (Qg) that is up to

25 percent lower than similar RDS(on) types.

This results in the lowest figure of merit, or

FOM (RDS(on) x Qg), in the voltage class,

which translates into low conduction losses,

easy driving and low switching losses.

In addition, the Infineon CoolMOS imple-

mentation of superjunction technology sets

new benchmarks for device capacitances.

The energy being stored in the output

capacitance is an effect that must be consid-

ered in the context of switching losses. This

energy, Eoss, is converted into heat during

hard-switched turn-on. Due to the strongly

nonlinear voltage dependence of the output

capacitance, the CoolMOS 900V devices

offer extremely good performance if switched

to more than 150 V. Energy stored in the

output capacitance of the MOSFETs is

reduced by a factor of two or more at the

working voltage.

The characteristics of the CoolMOS 900V

MOSFETs allow them to offer more design

flexibility, and let designers of power units

benefit from their high blocking voltage, low

RDS(on) and low Qg in a wide range of appli-

cations. Depending on the application, effi-

ciency can be increased and/or designs can

be simplified without additional costs or other

disadvantages.

M O S F E T

Renewable Energy Application Efficency

A new horizon for SMPS

Developed alongside such other power MOS devices as the IGBT, power MOSFETs havefilled niches for many applications. In lower voltage applications, they offer high efficien-cy for power supplies and DC-to-DC converters, and provide high stability in servo and

motor control designs.

By Dean Henderson, Segment Marketing Manager/Computing, Infineon Technologies North America

And Christian Wald,Senior Specialist, Regional Marketing Management, Infineon Technologies AG

Figure 1. Schematic cross-sections of stan-dard and superjunction power MOSFETs

25www.bodospower.com July 2008

M O S F E T

Single-Transistor-Forward (STF) Convert-

ers

The output power benchmark for STF con-

verters in PC “silver box” supplies can be

increased by using CoolMOS 900V MOS-

FETs. Up to 500 W is achievable with a sin-

gle MOSFET, with increased performance

and lower costs compared to standard two-

transistor-forward (TTF) converters using

200 mΩ 500 V/600 V MOSFETs (Figure 2).

The STF circuit uses only one transistor,

compared to the two transistors and pulse

transformer of a TTF, a topology change that

simplifies the design and adds layout bene-

fits without the disadvantages of TTF, such

as the need for high-side-switching.

Despite the higher RDS(on) of 900 V MOS-

FET, it is possible to design a STF with a

higher efficiency than a TTF that uses 200

mΩ 600V devices. This is due to the higher

dynamic losses in a TTF, in which in every

cycle two transistors have to be switched,

compared to only one transistor in an STF.

Also, the transformer in an STF converter

needs an additional demagnetizing winding,

which causes a small amount of losses that

do not exist in a TTF topology. Designs

using the 340 mΩ CoolMOS 900V have

been shown to reduce losses by up to 0.7

percent compared to TTF designs with 200

mÙ MOSFETs.

Quasi-Resonant Flyback

Converters for LCD TVs

Modern LCD TVs require out-

put power up to 200 W, with

high power supply efficiency

and low costs. The best

topology for these require-

ments is the quasi-resonant

flyback converter (Figure 3),

for which the CoolMOS 900V

is ideally suited.

Quasi-resonant flyback designs for LCD TV

power supplies can benefit from a higher fly-

back voltage, which provides a longer pri-

mary duty cycle with reduced peak current,

true zero-voltage switching and significantly

lower voltage stress on the secondary side.

Because of its very low RDS(on), a single

CoolMOS 900V MOSFET in a TO-220-FP

package can be used in such a design,

rather than the two or more TO-220-FP

packages that must be used with conven-

tional 900V MOSFETS. Efficiency improve-

ments of 0.2 percent compared to available

800 V parts, and of 0.7 percent compared to

standard 600 V/650 V parts, have been

demonstrated using CoolMOS 900V devices.

Renewable energy applications/solar con-

verters

In solar power generating systems, more

photovoltaic converter panels can be placed

in series instead of in parallel if the MOSFET

voltage is increased to 900 V, or solar panel

voltage window can be increased. This

series connection reduces cabling power

losses and costs, with cabling costs alone

cut by a factor of two when changing from

600 V to 900 V devices. In addition, Cool-

MOS 900V devices allow converters to be

designed with an enlarged input voltage

range, coming closer to the upper limit of

1000 V as defined by the IEC 60364 for

solar modules.

Another factor in photovoltaic systems is the

size and cost of magnetic components.

Offering a device with improved RDS(on) x Qg

and RDS(on) x Eoss performance allows an

increase of switching frequency without

increased losses. Therefore, a reduction of

system size is possible without losing energy

efficiency.

Lighting applications

Ballast designs for lamps that are fed from a

three-phase mains supply, such as special

discharge lamps used in comfort lighting and

electronic lamp ballasts for street lights and

greenhouse heating lamps, will also benefit

from topologies based on the CoolMOS 900

V family. The ballasts for such lamps require

a higher voltage capability than is offered

with 600 V or 800 V MOSFETs, as well as a

lower RDS(on) than is offered with convention-

al 900V MOSFETs. The CoolMOS 900V

devices allow improved design of PFC

(Power Factor Correction)

supplies and lighting ballasts

because they permit design-

ers to accept a higher DC

link or input voltage. For

example, high-power applica-

tions that use three-phase

PFC and PWM stages with

DC link voltages of up to 750

V will see such benefits as

higher power density from

having the industry’s lowest

RDS(on) in a small package,

such as the TO-247.

Conclusion

The key consideration with power MOSFETs

is how low can RDS(on) become at a particu-

lar breakdown voltage and in a given pack-

age. The introduction of superjunction MOS-

FETs at 900 V, with the lowest RDS(on) avail-

able at that voltage in a variety of small-

form-factor packages, gives designers of

high-voltage systems a new set of tools for

increasing switching speeds and perform-

ance while improving overall efficiency.

www.infineon.com

Figure 2a. Comparison of TTF and STF con-verter topologies (STF)

Figure 4. Typical DC/AC solar converter (with overvoltageprotection)

Figure 2b. Comparison of TTF and STF con-verter topologies (TTF)

Figure 3. Quasi-resonant flyback converter for LCD TV

26 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

D I G I T A L P O W E R

Power engineers associated digital power

with fears of z-transforms, software coding

or blowing up power supplies due to “blue

screen of death”, as sometimes seen in a

particular computer operating system. Fur-

thermore, prior to the introduction of semi-

conductors that included all the functionality

necessary to digitally communicate and con-

trol a complex power system, the fundamen-

tal concepts were proven using high cost

DSPs or performance limited FPGAs. Even

though digital power techniques had demon-

strated the ability to raise power system per-

formance, the industry could not accept

mimicking digitally what was already being

done in analog at more than 10 times the

silicon cost. Much progress has been made

during the past several years and market

analysts as well as financial investors

appear very optimistic regarding the future

growth of digital power.

Today’s digital power market is made up of

numerous semiconductor suppliers and orig-

inal equipment manufacturers (OEMs) each

contributing unique solutions. It’s important

to first distinguish what is meant by digital

power. Power system supervision, monitor-

ing, fault detection and data logging is one

aspect of “digital power management” (DPM)

that can be implemented using an inexpen-

sive microcontroller, FPGA or PLD, where

the time base requirements are relatively

slow. However, the more challenging exam-

ple of digital power refers to “digital control

of power” (DCP) where one or more power

supply control loops are closed around a

high speed analog to digital converter (ADC)

and a micro-controller, state machine or

DSP-based control algorithm.

Semiconductor market research firm, iSuppli

estimates that the total world wide digital

power market will grow from its current 2008

revenue of just over $200M to about $900M

in 2011. The digital power rate of revenue

growth is summarized graphically in figure 1

indicating a progressive growth pattern with

DPM far outpacing DCP for the next several

years.

The majority of dedicated digital controllers

available to date are targeted for high vol-

ume, non-isolated, DC-DC power conver-

sion, including voltage regulator modules

(VRM) and point of load (POL) converters.

These types of DC-DC converters typically

deliver power to low voltage, high current

digital loads such as microprocessors, DSPs

and other high speed digital circuits that are

very dynamic in nature. It is becoming

increasingly difficult to maintain accurate

voltage regulation around 1V, while meeting

load transient requirements approaching

200A/ns using pure analog control tech-

niques. Some digital controllers can offer

certain features, such as non-linear control

which may be more difficult or impossible to

realize in an equivalent analog IC. In fact,

just about all digital POL controllers include

some distinguishing control technique aimed

at improving transient response. Since most

of these proprietary control algorithms were

developed by start-up venture companies,

the OEM’s demand for preferred suppliers

and dual sourcing became a barrier to gain-

ing market acceptance. This in turn has led

to licensing agreements between a number

of digital power start-ups and the more

established analog semiconductor suppliers.

Non-isolated, DC-DC POL applications are

viewed as a digital power entry point into the

power conversion market. However, it is

eventually expected that isolated DC-DC

and AC-DC power factor correction (PFC),

which currently implement digital control

using non-dedicated DSPs, will gain even

higher acceptance in coming years.

The functional requirements for a digital PFC

controller are much different compared to a

Digital Power on the MoveA Panoramic View of Applications and Challenges

When digital power first emerged as a topic of debate in the early 2000s, most power supply designers cast their doubts at the thought of replacing analog

PWM controllers with a DSP based digital power supply controller.

By Steve Mappus, Systems Engineer,Fairchild Semiconductor, High Power Solutions, Bedford, NH

Figure 1. Global Digital Power Semiconductor Revenue Forecast (Millions of U.S. Dollars)(Source: iSuppli Corp, December 2007)

$0

$100

$200

$300

$400

$500

$600

$700

$800

$900

$1,000

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Rev

enue

in M

illio

ns o

fDol

lars

DPMDCP

Source: iSuppli Corp, December 2007

Mes

ago

Mes

sem

anag

emen

t G

mb

H, P

ost

fach

10

32 6

1, 7

0028

Stu

ttg

art,

Ger

man

y, s

ps@

mes

ago

.mes

sefr

ankf

urt

.co

m, p

ho

ne

+49

711

6194

6-82

8

Experience electric automationat its best!Come and see it all!Control TechnologyIPCsDrive Systems and ComponentsHuman-Machine-Interface DevicesIndustrial CommunicationIndustrial SoftwareInterface TechnologyElectromechanical Components and Peripheral EquipmentSensor Technology

Nuremberg

ElectricAutomationSystems and Components

Exhibition & Conference25 – 27 Nov. 2008

SPS/IPC/DRIVES/

www.mesago.com/sps

28 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

POL controller. PFC regulators require less

load regulation accuracy and operate at a

lower switching frequency and lower overall

control loop bandwidth making quantization

errors, limit cycling and ADC resolution less

of a design challenge. Still, there are unique

design issues with PFC controllers demand-

ing significant system knowledge and experi-

ence. Although load transient requirements

and dead-time optimization are not concerns

for PFC, non-linear control could be useful

for handling line transient conditions which

are characteristic of virtually all off-line con-

verters.

AC-DC power supplies generally require an

electro-magnetic interference (EMI) filter

capable of attenuating noise generated by

harmonic distortion and switching regulators.

Since EMI filters are designed using net-

works of inductors and capacitors that

appear in series with the AC mains, they

have a negative effect on overall efficiency

but are necessary for meeting certain equip-

ment specifications. Some digital PFC regu-

lators can incorporate features aimed at

reducing EMI filter requirements, resulting in

smaller more efficient EMI filters. Analog

PFC controllers are distinguishable by vari-

ous control algorithms and operating modes

such as discontinuous conduction mode

(DCM), continuous conduction mode (CCM)

or boundary conduction mode (BCM). Each

PFC operating mode has advantages and

disadvantages that become more evident at

various power levels. Similar to the multi-

mode operation of a digital POL, a digital

PFC controller could be assigned to operate

in either PFC control mode. Whether for

PFC or POL applications, a controller that is

configurable across many OEM product plat-

forms provides value through faster develop-

ment time and less component inventory to

maintain.

Higher power AC-DC applications are better

candidates for digital power because they

require one or more PFC regulators as well

as multiple, isolated and non-isolated power

rails and complex cooling profiles. Server

power systems are one example where digi-

tal control and power management can offer

performance and efficiency benefits in a dis-

tributed power architecture (DPA). As more

digital power content makes its way into the

server and computing power segments,

other high power DPA systems such as

those used in telecom and datacom are

beginning to embrace digital power solu-

tions. The depth of present and forecasted

market penetration for all digital power semi-

conductors is clearly being led by these

types of high power applications, as shown

graphically in figure 2. Interestingly, recent

government and regulatory requirements for

PFC above certain power levels combined

with the falling costs of silicon for digital con-

trollers may enable the feasibility for digital

power development in some consumer ac-dc

power supplies such as game systems, set-

top boxes, digital televisions, AC adaptors

and battery chargers.

Regardless of analog or digital, power sup-

plies developed for consumer market appli-

cations are especially cost sensitive. The

cost pressure compared to existing analog

solutions has made digital power a tough

sell for consumer applications but some

industry analysts predict that within 2008 the

silicon cost of existing digital controllers may

approach price parity compared to similar

analog solutions. The value proposition of

digital power will never be compelling

enough if compared to a simple analog

power supply solution. One power supply

OEM in particular has designed a platform of

digital power solutions that has been shown

to beat their existing analog solutions in

terms of performance and overall cost.

Issues such as system complexity and pro-

prietary intellectual property demanded that

the proof come from within their own compa-

ny. The cost comparison between digital and

analog power solutions has to be looked at

from the entire system point of view includ-

ing: the cost of design, process develop-

ment, test, qualification, manufacturing,

inventory control and component savings.

Although wide market adoption of digital

power is still early in its infancy, there are

several key factors for acceptance that can

not be ignored. Tougher global efficiency

requirements beg the question: what can

digital power contribute towards increasing

efficiency? When implemented correctly, dig-

ital control can potentially offer some effi-

ciency improvements through duty cycle

optimization, adaptive shoot-thru control,

meeting transient requirements while

enabling lower switching frequency, real time

adaptation of critical timing such as synchro-

nous rectification or resonant dead time,

phase shedding and varying operating

modes based upon load current. Digital con-

trol can yield better overall efficiency results

because the system power is managed more

efficiently according to the demands of the

load. Any efficiency improvement is always

welcome but in order to set realistic expecta-

tions, it is important to emphasize that effi-

ciency is primarily determined by the power

stage design.

A reliable, easy to use graphical user inter-

face (GUI) is an essential requirement for

the success of any digital power controller.

Many power designers are quick to nod in

agreement at the thought of wanting all the

flexibility a digital controller can offer.

Enabling flexibility through hundreds of pro-

grammable commands requires careful con-

sideration in terms of software layers, parti-

tioning, protection features and command

grouping. The GUI needs to have an intu-

itive, natural feel but most importantly it

needs to work one hundred percent of the

time. Power supply design is difficult enough

without adding doubt as to whether the con-

troller is behaving the way it was pro-

grammed.

D I G I T A L P O W E R

Figure 2. Digital Power Semiconductor Market Penetration Rates (Source: iSuppli Corp,December 2007)

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Pene

trat

ion

Perc

enta

ge R

ate Server dc-dc

Graphic CardTelecom dc-dcDatacom dc-dcComputing dc-dcac-dcLightingDigital TVTotal

Source: iSuppli Corp, December 2007

29www.bodospower.com July 2008

Digital controllers also need to be self-con-

figurable, meaning that no calibration should

be required by the end user. Some power

supplies are manufactured in an environ-

ment where the controller module and power

stage might be arriving from different suppli-

ers and are not integrated until final assem-

bly. In this case, there is no opportunity to

calibrate the controller since the power stage

is unavailable at the time of deliv-

ery.

Every digitally controlled power

converter inevitably requires a cer-

tain amount of analog circuitry.

Whether external or integrated into

the same package, gate drivers

are just one example of an inter-

face between the analog and digi-

tal domains. ADCs, voltage refer-

ences, regulators and comparators

are also required analog functions

that must perform seamlessly in or

around a digital controller.

Because there are numerous ways

to partition digital and analog func-

tions, obtaining the optimal bal-

ance between silicon performance,

efficiency, intelligence, cost,

process capability and die area

continually poses a difficult chal-

lenge for system engineers. In ret-

rospect, the concept of digital

power is really nothing new or rev-

olutionary. DSPs and microcon-

trollers have been widely used in

industrial motor control applica-

tions for many years. The power

supply industry has been inching

toward digital power adoption but

the necessary standards and dedi-

cated semiconductors were not

available until recently.

Digital content such as combina-

tional logic, clocks, counters and

timers have always existed inside

analog controllers. As mixed signal

design processes continue to

improve, expect the relationship

between digital and analog compo-

nents to be optimized to a much

higher degree. Depending on the

complexity of a targeted applica-

tion, some functions would benefit

best from a digital process while

others should remain in the analog

domain. At least in the near term,

the most cost-effective, optimal

solutions appear to be mixed sig-

nal approaches no matter how “digital” a dig-

ital power system becomes. The fundamen-

tal groundwork necessary for shaping the

landscape of digital power is in place but

there are still questions remaining as to how

digital power will complement or compete

with traditional analog solutions. Most

accomplished power supply designers who

recognize the value of digital power will

update their design skills accordingly but

regardless of different viewpoints on adop-

tion rates, one thing is certain: digital power

is inevitable.

www.fairchildsemi.com

D I G I T A L P O W E R

deadline for submission, July 18, 2008, go to web for details:

www.apec-conf.orgwww.apec-conf.org

CALL FOR PAPERS!CALL FOR PAPERS!

SPONSORED BY

2009February 13–21, 2009

Washington, DC

THE PREMIER

GLOBAL EVENT

IN POWER

ELECTRONICSTM

THE PREMIER

GLOBAL EVENT

IN POWER

ELECTRONICSTM

30 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

Where it makes sense.

Before the term „Digital Power“ was ever coined, it has been used

since decades whenever it made sense, i.e. in large power supplies,

especially in those destined for complex installations. However, the

term DP as it is used and advocated now applies to the replacement

of analog control by digital control using DSP’s resp. mixed chips in

all SMPS. This means to exchange something perfectly and reliably

functioning at low cost by something much more expensive, less reli-

able and without any tangible advantage. This is exemplified by the

quality and tenor of the „pushers‘“ arguments.

Quality of arguments for Digital Power (DP).

The abuse of the term „digital“ as a synonym for superiority like „digi-

tal is better than analog“ is marketing hype; scrutiny of the claims of

the DP pushers yields a list of major disadvantages for the vast

majority of SMPS. The pushers overlooked that all SMPS in the past

60 years functioned perfectly without DP which says enough about

the need for it

„Naturally, the digital loop concept is driven by the start-ups in the

power industry.“ In other words by people with zero or rudimentary

knowhow and experience in power design.

After conceding: „System makers push the market“, an analyst states

bluntly: „Analog technology cannot avoid becoming obsolete“, „Many

in the analog community do not appreciate the impact of Moore’s

Law and do not understand that the fate of analog power technology

is already determined.“ He concludes that DP ic’s will fast become

less costly than analogue ones and this would force total conversion.

Obviously, he assumes that SMPS consist of circuit boards full of ic’s.

Another analyst : „The analog designers’ identities seem to be tied up

with their black-art experience in analog; it’s just too scary or painful

to imagine that such knowledge might not be valuable in the near

future. However, the analog suppliers find themselves very much in

the same position as mom-and-pop grocery stores in the US...“

A DP pusher: „Before the advent of DP, hardware engineers were for-

ever tweaking and experimenting with different design approaches to

solve anomalies...“

Arguments of such quality are none but insults, and it remains the

secret of these authors why they consider insults the most effective

method of convincing prospective customers. Calling analog design a

„black art“ denounces professional engineering, not understanding

that analog design is immensely more difficult than digital design, the

latter being nothing else but a primitive reduced form of analog

design!

Claim 1: DP reduces costs, also SMPS can now be designed

within minutes.

Starting from the indisputable fact that present SMPS function per-

fectly well, the only salient argument for introducing DP would be

lower cost. Costs rule, and as long as a DP ic replacing a TL 431

costs more than this, i.e. a few cents, this claim remains false, even if

DP ICs would be given away, this would not materially affect the

BOM of a SMPS; it is the inductive and capacitive components, the

power semiconductors, the e.c. board, housing, connectors which

head the bill, the cost of the control chips is absolutely zilch. The

claim that with DP „a SMPS can now be designed within minutes“ is

utterly absurd: most of the design effort is and will remain devoted to

the design of the major components like transformers, the placement

of components, the conductor layout and testing; the design work to

fulfill the emi norms may take up a sizeable portion of the whole

design costs and time. The design of the control loops is not even

worthwhile mentioning.

Costs rule, this fact will prevent widespread use of DP, the cost

squeeze being extreme. It is astonishing why DP proponents still

wonder why the „breakthrough“ they predicted just doesn’t happen,

they just forgot about cost, underestimated the intelligence of SMPS

designers, also they never mentioned the disadvantages and dan-

gers!

Claim 2: DP is more reliable.

In all articles this author encountered, the serious dangers of using

today’s digital ic‘s inside a SMPS were omitted. In fact, there is no

environment more hostile to digital circuitry! There are extremely

strong magnetic and electric hf fields beyond 100 MHz emanating

especially from inductive components but also from others and the

conductors. And it is just the continuing shrinking of digital ic’s with

ever lower voltages down to below 1 V and higher speed which

makes them increasingly vulnerable to interference and hence unfit

for use inside a SMPS. Most SMPS are extremely densely packed.

„Obsolete“ fairly „slow“ 12 V CMOS ic’s with their 6 V threshold are

quite safe even close to 800 V signals with rise times of under 10 ns

and are being used since decades; there is nothing new about digital

circuitry in SMPS whereever it was appropriate, e.g. for generating

multiphase signals.

This problem is aggravated by the fact that microcomputers/ DSP’s

are basically highly vulnerable to interference: while analog or other

digital logic will either ignore an interference pulse or react at most

with a short hiccup, a single pulse disturbing any of e.g. 32 address

lines will cause the program to fetch from a wrong memory location,

so e.g. an add instruction will be replaced by e.g. a branch instruction

with catastrophic consequences. If an interference disturbs a data

bus or control signal, equally fatal results will ensue. But even without

the influence of interference, plain software errors will lead to disas-

trous failures, especially in high power supplies. Due to the nature of

these problems it will be close to impossible to ever reconstruct the

cause of the failure! A bit further down into the nitty-gritty: the inputs

and outputs of CMOS ICs must be protected against exceeding Vcc

or ground levels by more than 0.3 V; if this is not strictly observed,

arbitrary malfunctions or total failures may result. Interference pulses

are not only present during „normal“ operation, but especially during

start-up, overload or short-circuit conditions not to speak of extremely

high interference from the mains and the environment. Many SMPS

are not shielded, due to the high frequencies of cell phones any con-

ductor of a few centimeters may pick up high levels of hf which would

not affect properly designed analog circuits but well microcomputers

or DSP’s running at speeds of several hundred MHz, generating by

the way also additional highly undesirable emi.

G U E S T E D I T O R I A L

Digital PowerHope or Hype?

By Dr.– Ing. Artur Seibt, Vienna

Inside a SMPS temperatures run anywhere from 60 to over 100

degrees; transformers are designed for 100 degree operation. Such

ambient temperatures are detrimental to microcomputers/ DSP’s; the

usual answer that such chips are also used in cars disregards the

fact that the actual operating life of a car is just a few thousand hours

while a standard SMPS is expected to operate for 5 to 30 years! (Not

all electronics are pc’s designed for 2 years.) Here, another basic

severe problem of all present digital ic’s comes in: after a few years

they will no longer be available, hence a repair of a defective SMPS

will become impossible.

In case of malfunction of a DP ic, the state of its ports may become

any; if e.g. the drive signal of a power FET lasts a few microseconds

too long, it can destroy the FET. How do the proponents of DP guar-

antee that any conceivable malfunction will be automatically detected

and corrected within at most a few microseconds? The benefits of

DP in a cell phone may be real, but 3.6 V DC and 230 V AC with the

full power of the mains behind are two different stories. No type of

fuse or electronic circuit can prevent some components of a SMPS

from burning, e.g. capacitors and inductors. Analog circuitry is by

nature extremely reliable, anybody planning to replace it by some-

thing inferior should first learn about product safety and manufactur-

er’s liability and think twice about it! In EU, the liability is squarely on

the manufacturers!

In Germany e.g., the highest court (Bundesgerichtshof) ruled in 2004

that a person who suffered damage by a product could not only sue

the company but additionally all managers of that company who

decided upon product safety! The author has seen many managers‘

faces fall after they were presented with this court verdict!

As long as the „pushers“ of DP could not prove that their products

resp. circuitry are of equal reliability, they better abate their marketing

hype or give in writing that they will defend their customers in all

cases of product safety litigation.

Claim 3: DP offers better performance and higher efficiency.

Speaking about „better performance“ resp. „higher efficiency“ the first

question is which SMPS was taken as the reference for this claim, an

old-fashioned and poorly designed one?

The performance and the efficiency of a SMPS are determined

entirely by the circuit concept and the proper design resp. selection

of the vital components which is indeed an art but not a black one but

a professional one. Efficiencies of off-line PFC’s run from 96 to 98 %,

of combined PFC plus main converter SMPS from 87 to to > 90 %,

without DP, of course. Any further increase will require better compo-

nents. Low efficiency has nothing to do with the control loop but with

poor design and cheap components; no DSP in the control loop can

compensate for a poor transformer. Also, a properly designed SMPS

will function over its full line and load ranges down to no load with

standard analog control circuitry, a „change of parameters“ claimed

as necessary by the DP pushers is superfluous, it may be advanta-

geous in KW SMPS which constitute only a small fraction of the

SMPS population.

Summary.

Unless DP pushers can prove that their products save costs or offer

better performance so badly needed that customers are willing to pay

for it, it will fail; no customer will pay a cent more for „digital control“.

http://members.EUnet.at/seibt

31www.bodospower.com July 2008

www.kolektormagma.com [email protected]

ferrite cores

inductive components

absorber sheets

nanomaterials

www.h2expo.com

International Conference and Trade Fair on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies

22–23 Oct. 200822–23 Oct. 2008CCH – Congress Center Hamburg · Germany

Register online!

32 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

White light can come from a single white

LED or be generated by three separate R-G-

B LEDs with a color spectrum that closely

matches the color filters of the LCD pixels.

This results in a great improvement in light

efficiency and a wide color range for a more

vivid display. Currently LCD with CCFL back-

light can generate only 70-80% of NTSC col-

ors while newer displays based on LED

backlight will generate all the colors in the

NTSC specification plus additional colors. By

using the ultra-fast switching time of LEDs,

the backlight intensity can be modulated to

enhance picture contrast and reduce the

smearing effect due to fast-moving images.

To replace CCFL in small size (19” typical)

LCD monitors, tri-color LED devices can be

deployed alongside the housing to replace

the CCFL tubes. Typically, only the light

source (from CCFL to LED strings) is

changed; the housing, light guide and optical

films remain unchanged. For larger size LCD

(20” or above), where higher light throughput

is required, an LED matrix can be deployed

directly behind the LCD panel. The matrix

size, typically in hundreds, varies in accor-

dance with panel size. To ensure homoge-

neous illumination, a special diffractive dif-

fuser is used over standard optical film. As

LED technology improves, the number of

LEDs in the string or matrix can be reduced

as luminous output (lumens/W) increases,

further reducing overall material and system

cost.

Of course, there are challenges to deal with,

such as maintaining spectral consistency

due to temperature change and the rate of

LED aging. However, the future is promising.

Key players in the portable electronic indus-

try plan to roll out more models with LED

backlight. Large screen TV manufacturers

have committed resources to make LED

backlight more popular in the consumer mar-

kets.

There has been a recent breakthrough in

backlight panel technology – the utilization of

the newly available high-brightness white

LEDs in a backlighting panel for LCDs.

These new LEDs require a 4 Vdc power

supply at 200 W in a very small package

size. This design is based on the patented

technology of a company that develops and

markets innovative High Dynamic Range

(HDR) image technology. This technology

makes it possible to build much brighter dis-

plays, as much as ten times brighter than a

conventional LCD, by using intensive video

processing algorithms to adjust the bright-

ness of the LEDs. Every single LED in the

backlight is individually addressable so the

light levels can be changed dynamically

frame by frame and specifically microregion

by microregion. This technology for

P O W E R S U P P LY

Flexible, Accurate & EfficientPower Solutions for LED Backlighting Applications

V•I Chips enable high-current, low-voltage distribution inside displays

Traditionally, large size LCDs (liquid crystal displays) used CCFLs (cold cathode fluores-cent lamps) as the source of backlight to achieve a uniform white light. Using LEDs

(light-emitting diodes) as backlight is gaining share at key manufacturers as LED outper-forms CCFL in size, energy efficiency, spectral purity, mechanical ruggedness, reliability

and the elimination of hazardous substances such as mercury.

By Steve Oliver, VP, V•I Chip Inc. (a Vicor company)

enhanced dynamic range displays enables

them to display pictures much more vividly

with much darker darks and much brighter

brights than previously possible. An existing

application involves large-format displays (37

inch and 46 inch high-definition displays) for

high-end imaging applications.

New architecture

These new LEDs require a 4 Vdc @ 200 W

power supply in very small package size.

Earlier designs were powered from a 5.5 V

power supply at 500 A, an unwieldy amount

of current to distribute around inside the dis-

play due to I2R distribution losses with asso-

ciated large and expensive cabling and con-

nectors.

A V•I Chip™ BCM™ bus converter is now

designed into this high-power LED applica-

tion to address the current distribution issue.

The BCM utilizes a patented Sine Amplitude

Converter (SAC) topology with state-of-the-

art power density, efficiency and low noise.

With a footprint of just 1.1 in2 and weighing

15g, the BCM converter provides an isolat-

ed, stepped-down voltage to power niPOLs

(non-isolated point of load converters), in

this case LED driver ICs. Due to its fast

response and low output noise, the need for

limited life bulk capacitors at the load is

reduced or eliminated, resulting in saving of

board space, materials and total system

cost.

Now the system distributes 48 V everywhere

at a much lower current. At the point of load,

it is locally stepped down to high-current at

4 V. On each of the large format boards

there are four boards in one system. In total,

there are 16 BCM modules running in each

system. The result is 4 V at 200 A on each

board. In contrast, the previous design using

the large centralized power supply would

need to provide 800 A for each board incur-

ring significantly more distribution losses. Of

course, such a supply is dangerous as well

due to the high currents involved. That is

why 20 A of 48 V are distributed to each

board, which is much more manageable and

quite fusible.

Well-suited solution

Several factors make the BCM converter the

right solution. First, due to the small size and

high efficiency (>94%), no special heatsink-

ing is required. Second, it runs at 48 V – an

easily routed, safe (SELV) voltage. There is

a family of BCM devices providing different

standard output voltages which are optimal

for different applications. Typically, in the

LED backlight application, the downstream

LED driver ICs require an input voltage

trimmed to 4.1 to 4.2 V. As the BCM module

is an unregulated converter and not a regu-

lator, designers are able to increase the

input voltage to get to the designated output

voltage.

Other LED Backlight Options

Providing a Constant Current for PoweringLEDs

Other backlights may require a constant cur-

rent driving an array of high-power LEDs

connected in series. Generally, constant cur-

rent is required to ensure predictable lumi-

nosity and chromaticity levels. PRM™ regu-

lators and VTM™ voltage transformers,

though originally designed to provide a regu-

lated voltage from an unregulated input, are

able to provide an extremely efficient and

accurate constant current with a simple feed-

back circuit.

In a traditional DC-DC converter – the func-

tions of regulation and voltage transforma-

tion are combined limiting the ability to opti-

mize the system. The PRM regulator and

VTM transformer are individual components

and can be separated or ‘factorized’ to

enable higher power densities, higher effi-

ciencies and more efficient, flexible system

designs.

Using the PRM regulator and VTM trans-

former for constant current provides several

advantages over conventional approaches.

The implementation of a VTM module pro-

vides point-of-load current multiplication as

the output current is proportional to its input

current by the following equation:

Where K is the K-factor (transformer ratio) of

the VTM module.

Thus in a controlled current application, the

input current to the VTM transformer can be

sensed and regulated to control the output

current. Sensing a lower current (at a higher

voltage) requires a smaller sensor which dis-

sipates lower power and improves overall

efficiency. Also, as the V•I Chips themselves

provide high efficiency and high power den-

sity, this makes the overall LED system

small, cool and maximizes the output in

lumens per watt of dissipation – more than

>1,000 Lumens emitted per 1 Watt dissipat-

ed by the V•I Chips. The overall system

architecture is illustrated in Figure 2.

Most LEDs can be driven with a single PRM

+ VTM pair. The PRM regulator is pre-con-

figured with an internal voltage loop to regu-

late its output voltage to a set value. The

external constant current circuit is designed

to work in conjunction with the internal volt-

age control loop, changing the PRM voltage

reference in order to regulate the VTM out-

put current.

IOUT IIN

K

33www.bodospower.com July 2008

P O W E R S U P P LY

Figure1. Using a 48 Vin BCM to drive a white light LED

Figure 2. Regulated Current Source Basic Architecture

=

34 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

A simplified block diagram of the PRM internal voltage control loop is

shown in Figure 3.

Here, an internal reference is generated and connected to the SC

(secondary control) port through a 10 k resistor and a 0.22 μF capac-

itor, which provides a soft-start. The SC voltage can be adjusted by

adding an external resistor or by applying an external voltage.

The SC voltage is buffered and fed to the error amplifier through a

resistive divider represented by the gain block of 0.961. R68 forms

the top half of the voltage-sensing resistive divider. The bottom half

of the divider is formed by adding a resistor from the OS pin to SG

(ROS). Equation 2 defines the regulator output as a function of VSC

and ROS. From Equation 2, it is seen that for a given ROS resistor,

adjusting the SC voltage will determine the output voltage. This is the

method by which the external current control circuit will control the

output.

Where:

VSC is the voltage at the SC pin.

ROS is the resistance from OS to SG

of the PRM regulator.

R68 is the internal resistor.

Current Control Circuit

The recommended current control circuit is shown in Figure 4. As the

VTM transformer is a current multiplier, the output current can be reg-

ulated by its input current. The advantage of this approach is that the

current can be sensed prior to the current multiplication stage (at the

higher voltage), reducing the I2R power dissipation in the external

shunt. In addition, the control circuitry remains on the primary side

(linked to the PRM regulator’s output), eliminating the need for isolat-

ing the feedback signal.

The circuit consists of a voltage reference, shunt resistor, differential

amplifier, and error amplifier. Low-side sensing is implemented at the

output of the PRM using an op amp configured as a differential

amplifier. The voltage across the shunt resistor (R1) is sensed and

amplified with a gain determined by resistors R2 through R5. The ref-

erence voltage is generated using a precision adjustable shunt refer-

ence, and is tied to the non-inverting terminal of the error amplifier.

This is the voltage to which the error amplifier will compare the differ-

ential amplifier output (VSENSE). The output of the error amplifier

(VEAO) is tied to SC through resistors R7 and R8, allowing for the

adjustment of the regulator’s output set point. The error amplifier will

adjust the PRM output voltage until VSENSE is equal to the reference

voltage VREF. This forces the VTM transformer’s input current, and

hence, its output current to be constant as determined by the VREF.

The resulting current may be 99.7% accurate directly from the PRM

regulator and up to 98.7% when measured at the VTM transformer

output, as shown in figure 5.

A single PRM regulator with a simple external current sense circuit

can be used as constant-current source (at 26 - 55 V). The VTM unit

transforms this ‘factorized’ bus voltage to the voltage that matches

different color LEDs from 0.8 to 55 V (for instance, 6 V for a blue

LED, 14 V for amber and 24 V for green – though this varies by LED

manufacturer).

The flexibility of Factorized Power Architecture (FPA) allows the

same regulator to drive different transformers (of different K factors)

for different color LEDs. Also, if the LED color voltage requirement is

constant, the same VTM transformer may be used while the PRM

regulator may be changed for a different input source voltage. Fur-

thermore, by ‘factorizing’ the conversion, only the VTM transformer is

required at the LED load, minimizing the voltage droop and power

dissipation. The PRM regulator may be placed elsewhere, perhaps

on a separate PCB and linked via a cable or a connector.

Conclusion

V•I Chips represent an accurate, highly efficient, low profile power

train for LED backlighting and illumination applications. Depending on

the LED configuration (individual or in higher power ‘strings’), the

OS

OS68SCOUT

R

)R (R x V x 0.961PRM_V

+=

Figure 3. Functional Diagram of PRM Internal Error Amplifier

Figure 5. Current Source Accuracy (PRM regulator alone providing

48 V)

Figure 4. Constant Current Circuit

P O W E R S U P P LY

BCM converter or the combination of PRM regulator and VTM trans-

former provides the optimal solution, as shown in Figure 6 as an

example.

PRM, VTM, BCM, Factorized Power Architecture (FPA), Sine Ampli-

tude Converter (SAC) and V•I Chip are trademarks of Vicor Corpora-

tion.

The Application Note: 018, Providing a Constant Current for Power-

ing LEDs using the PRM and VTM is available

at:www.vicorpower.com/ccdemo

www.vicorpower.com

Figure 6. LED Options Powered by V•I Chips from 48 V

E M C C O M P O N E N T S I N D U C T O R ST R A N S F O R M E R SR F C O M P O N E N T SP R E S S - F I T T E C H N O L O G Y C O N N E C T O R S V A R I S T O R SA S S E M B LY T E C H N I Q U E www.we-online.com

24h sample servicefor customized transformer

8-days-service free of charge

10 customized samples

Rapid prototyping

Designed to your specification

Including datasheet & test report

www.we-online.com/speedy

For Power & Telecom Transformers

Tape Wound CoresBobbin Cores

Cut Cores

Kool Mu® CoresMolypermalloy Cores

High Flux CoresXFLUX™ Cores

Power MaterialsHigh Permeability Materials

Special Materials

Strip Wound Cores

Powder CoresFerrite Cores

110 Delta DrivePittsburgh, Pa 15238

Toll-Free: 1 800 245 3984Phone: 412 696 1333Fax: 412 696 0333

Web: www.mag-inc.comEmail: [email protected] Magnetics Hong Kong

Asia Sales and Service

Phone: +852 3102 9337Fax: +852 3585 1482

Email: [email protected]

36 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

For makers of advanced camera phones,

delivering the high peak current consumed

by high-intensity camera flash is of utmost

importance. As resolution of camera phones

grows to three megapixels and beyond, the

amount of light required to achieve a high

quality image has sharply increased. In order

to match the photo quality of digital still cam-

eras, cell phones must either drive flash

LEDs at currents as high as 2A or Xenon

flash tubes charged to over 330V. Other

applications in the phone such as the RF

power amplifier, GPS mapping, internet

access, music and video can also exceed

source current availability.

Design Challenges

Camera phones require a high intensity flash

in medium to low light conditions to produce

good pictures. Designers can choose either

LED or xenon flash units, but there are chal-

lenges with each:

High-current Flash LEDs need up to 400%

more power than a battery can provide to

achieve the light intensity needed for high-

resolution images. To overcome this power

limitation some camera phones have used

long flash exposure times to compensate for

the lack of light, resulting in blurry photos.

Xenon flash tubes deliver good light power,

but have a short flash exposure and can’t be

used for a video capture/movie-mode func-

tions. The required electrolytic storage

capacitors are very bulky for slim-line

designs, operate at high voltages, take a

long time to recharge between flashes and

cannot be used for other peak-power needs

in the phone.

One way to solve the problem with Flash

LEDs driven at 1 to 2A each is to use a

capacitor to store the current and deliver it

quickly without draining the main battery.

However, the use of conventional capacitors

would require either a very large case size

or multiple devices connected in parallel. A

more practical solution for space-constrained

portable systems is to use very high value

“super” capacitors. These devices offer high

levels of capacitance in a relatively small, flat

case size. By using a super capacitor,

designers can deliver the high current levels

needed for these short duration events and

then recharge from the battery between

events. To support the battery, designers can

add a thin super capacitor to handle the

phone’s peak-power needs – flash photos,

audio and video, wireless transmissions and

GPS readings – without compromising slim

handset design. It also allows the designer

to reduce the system footprint by optimally

sizing the battery and power circuitry to

cover just the average power consumption

instead of peak levels.

Defining a super capacitor

What is a super capacitor (SC)? Like any

capacitor, a super capacitor is basically two

parallel conducting plates separated by an

insulating material known as a dielectric. The

value of the capacitor is directly proportional

to the area of the plates and inversely pro-

portional to the thickness of the dielectric.

Manufacturers building “super” capacitors

achieve higher levels of capacitance while

minimizing size by using a porous carbon

material for the plates to maximize the sur-

face area and deploying a molecularly thin

electrolyte as the dielectric to minimize the

distance between the plates. Using this

approach they can manufacture capacitors

with values from 16mF up to 2.3F. The con-

struction of these devices results in a very

low internal resistance or ESR (Equivalent

Series Resistance) allowing them to deliver

high peak current pulses with minimal droop

in the output voltage. These super capacitors

reduce system footprint requirements by

delivering a very high capacitance in a rela-

tively small case size. They can be manufac-

tured in any size and shape and recharge in

seconds. By averaging high power

demands, they extend battery life by up to a

factor of five and allow designers to specify

much smaller, lighter and less expensive

batteries.

Inherent challenges

That low ESR presents designers with an

inherent problem during the charge cycle,

however. In any system the capacitor is ini-

tially discharged. When the supply voltage is

then applied, the super capacitor looks like a

low value resistor. This can result in a huge

in-rush current if the current is not controlled

or limited. Therefore, designers must imple-

ment some sort of in-rush current limit to

ensure the battery does not shut down. Any

circuit of this type also typically requires

short-circuit, overvoltage and current flow

protection.

The challenge for designers is how to effi-

ciently interconnect the battery, DC/DC con-

verter and super capacitor in a way that will

limit the super capacitor inrush charge cur-

rent and continually recharge the cap

between load events. LED flash drivers that

Super CapacitorReference Design

LED flash power issues for high resolution camera phones solved

Cell phones are becoming the ultimate converged consumer portable appliance. Capabilities include capturing high-quality photography, Wi-Fi web access, crisp audioand extended talk time along with longer battery life. A major design challenge is nowemerging. A phone battery still struggles to provide enough peak power to drive some

highly-complex mobile applications, driving the demand for circuits that can store highcurrents for short periods without overloading the battery to provide the power required

for high performance operation.

By Thomas Delurio, Applications Manager, Advanced Analogic Technologies, Inc

C A P A C I T O R S

38 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

C A P A C I T O R S

can manage super capacitor charging requirements have appeared

on the market to make the designers’ jobs easier, integrating the cir-

cuitry to save space, cost and time to market. Flash LEDs for digital

still cameras require 1 to 2A for up to 120mS.

A super capacitor can be used to store the required current and deliv-

er it quickly without draining the main battery. Working together with

the battery, the super capacitor discharges its power during peak

loads and recharges between peaks, providing the power needed to

operate systems from battery operated hosts up to 200% longer

while extending the life of the battery. Clearly, any time designers use

a super capacitor, they must limit in-rush current. Moreover, the super

capacitor needs to be recharged when the voltage drop or droops

below the operational limit of the LEDs. When the SC is fully

charged, it has to be disconnected from the source. Short circuit pro-

tection, source over voltage protection and current flow protection are

also required.

Benefits

Conventional capacitor technology would require either a very large

case size or multiple devices connected in parallel to achieve high

capacitance values. Super capacitors recharge in seconds with

>500k Cycles and store energy in an electrostatic field as opposed to

a chemical state like a battery. Since voltage does not droop exces-

sively until heavy load currents when fully charged, the use of a

super capacitor also reduces ESR and impedance.

Super capacitors can be manufactured in any size and shape, flat

and small size. They can be used to extend battery life by five times

by ‘averaging out' high power demands so they allow smaller, lighter

and cheaper batteries. Super capacitors also have a long life (10 to

12 years). Unlike a battery, they have an open-circuit (high ESR) fail-

ure mode that is not destructive. Similarly, if over-voltage is applied to

the device, the only consequence will be a slight swelling and a rise

in ESR, eventually progressing to an open circuit. There will be no

fire, smoke or explosion.

Design Solution

Super capacitor-powered LED flash units can drive high-current

LEDs to provide light intensity that is many times greater than stan-

dard battery-powered LED flash units or longer than xenon strobes.

In the block diagram shown in Figure 1, the AAT1282 contains a

step-up converter used to boost the 3.2V-to-4.2V battery input volt-

age up to a constant 5.5V. If the battery voltage is 3.5V and the boost

converter is 90% efficient, the battery would need to supply over 3A

for the duration of a 2A flash pulse. This will either cause the battery

protection circuit to shut the battery down or cause a low voltage

shutdown while plenty of energy still remains in the battery. This solu-

tion also offers flash management capabilities, such as movie-mode,

and super-capacitor charging capabilities. The solution controls and

regulates the current from a cell phone’s battery source, steps up the

battery voltage, and manages the charging of a super cap, for the

control and supply of high-current to flash LEDs In the end applica-

tion.

To better achieve this, the step-up converter features built-in circuitry

to prevent excessive inrush current during start-up as well as a fixed

input current limiter of 800mA and true load disconnect after the

super capacitor is charged. The AAT1282 boost converter’s output

voltage is limited by internal overvoltage protection circuitry, which

prevents damage to the AAT1282 converter and the super capacitor

from an open LED (open circuit conditions). During an open circuit,

the output voltage rises and reaches 5.5V (typical), and the OVP cir-

cuit disables the switching, preventing the output voltage from rising

higher. Once the open circuit condition is removed, switching will

resume. The controller will return to normal operation and maintain

an average output voltage. An industry-standard I2C serial digital

input enables, disables LEDs and sets the movie-mode current with

up to 16 movie-mode settings for lower light output.

In figure 2, a detailed schematic illustrates that few components are

required, An 0.55F, 85mOhm super capacitor delivers 9W LED

power-bursts using the AAT1282 LED Flash driver which has the SC

charger integrated with the Boost DC/DC LED Driver. To achieve high

light levels, the flash LEDs are driven at currents of between 1A and

2A. The forward voltage (VF) across the LED at these high currents

can range up to 4.8V. If we include 200mV of overhead for the cur-

rent control circuitry, it’s easy to see how the total load voltage during

a flash event can range up to 5V, demonstrating the need for the

5.5V step-up voltage.

Figure 1 - Using a super capacitor, it is possible to drive very highLED currents for an ultra bright LED flash. The actual size of thesuper capacitor is small and flat, ideal for cell phone applications.

Figure 2 – Detailed Circuit Schematic. Driven at 2A each, the LEDsdeliver more light than a K800i xenon strobe. The SC flash solution isless than 2mm thick.

Figure 3 – Performance results, two LEDS at 1A each or one LED at2A.

40 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

P C I M N E W P R O D U C T S

CONCEPT presented the next generation of

IGBT drivers for high-power applications

based on the new SCALE-2 chipset. This

product type has become a virtual standard

ever since CONCEPT presented a plug-and-

play driver solution for a high-voltage IGBT

for the first time ten years ago. Plug-and-

play drivers are complete ready-to-use IGBT

drivers that have been perfectly matched by

CONCEPT to a large selection of IGBTs.

CONCEPT now offers over 200 versions of

these drivers, which cover all voltage class-

es between 1200V and 6500V as well as a

current range from 50A to 3600A. This

makes CONCEPT the unchallenged technol-

ogy and market leader in its self-created

segment. The current family of plug-and-

play drivers supports all known IGBT manu-

facturers.

Thanks to SCALE-2 technology, the new

2SD421A and 2SD412B families comprise

extremely compact, 2-channel plug-and-play

drivers that can be used for the entire

PrimePACKTM portfolio from Infineon with

reverse voltages of 1200V and 1700V.

www.IGBT-Driver.com

Plug-and-Play Drivers for High-Power IGBTs.

Avago Technologies

announced a new gate drive

optocoupler targeting auto-

motive hybrid electric vehicle

applications. The company

is a leading supplier of ana-

log interface components for

communications, industrial

and consumer applications.

Designed to met stringent automotive AEC-Q100 guidelines, Avago's

new ACPL-312T provides 2.5A maximum peak output current to drive

high powered IGBTs/MOSFETs and operates up to a high tempera-

ture rating of 125°C. Additionally, a propagation delay of 0.5 ìs allows

the circuit designer to reduce switching dead time and improve inverter

efficiency.

www.avagotech.com/optocouplers

Automotive Grade 2.5A Gate Drive Optocoupler

Figure 3 shows test results using two flash LEDs at 1A each and one

LED at 2A. As can be seen, the super capacitor can easily supply the

necessary current for 120ms while holding up the supply voltage suf-

ficiently above the VF of the LEDs. Between flash events, the super

capacitor is recharged at a slower rate to be ready for the next pic-

ture. The time to charge the super capacitor between flashes is set

externally and can be optimized for different battery

sizes/chemistries. Figure 4 illustrates the digital control of the Flash

function and movie-mode option.

Conclusions:

Super capacitors have rarely been used in portable systems. Their

use has been typically limited to back-up or standby functions that

use relatively low currents and offer fairly long charge times. By com-

bining newly available boost converters with super capacitors,

designers can now create compact solutions that supply high levels

of current for short durations and, in the process, extend battery life

or allow the use of smaller, lighter and less expensive power sources.

By using a super capacitor and a Flash LED controller in a complete

reference design, it is possible to drive very high LED currents for an

ultra bright LED flash. For example, 2x Lumiled’s PWF4 Flash LEDs

can be driven at 1A each to deliver more light than a K800i xenon

strobe. The super capacitor is less than 2mm thick and can provide

other benefits such as extending talk time and improving audio

quality.

References:

Comparison of xenon flash and high current LEDs for photo flash in

camera phones

Use of Supercapacitors to Improve Performance of GPRS Mobile

Stations

Pierre Mars

CAP-XX Ltd.

9/12 Mars Road

Lane Cove NSW 2066 Australia

http://www.cap-xx.com

www.analogictech.com

C A P A C I T O R S

Figure 4 – Flash and movie-mode control. The movie-mode is con-trolled by the I2C interface while the Flash is controlled by a flashenable pin.

41www.bodospower.com July 2008

The commercial power supply market is

acutely aware of the need to Fairchild Semi-

conductor’s system-power experts from the

Global Power Resource Center in Fuersten-

feldbruck, Germany have developed the

industry’s first power supply reference

design for 400W ecodesigns. This power

supply reference design shows how the

combination of two state-of-the-art products,

the award-winning Green FPS™ power

switch (FSFR2100) and Power-SPM™

(FFP06R001) in modular SIP-9 packages,

creates an elegant and efficient design. With

efficiency at more than 92 percent, this

design exceeds the 87 percent efficiency tar-

get proposed by the Energy Using Products

directive (EuP).

www.fairchildsemi.com

Reference Design for 400W Ecodesigns

P C I M N E W P R O D U C T S

Rogers N.V. Power Distribution Systems

Division has shown its new RO-LINX® Ther-

mal (upgraded temperature rating) laminated

busbar.

The RO-LINX Thermal allows for a sizeable

increase in working temperature from the

previous limit of 105°C to 125°C.

RO-LINX Thermal offers a complete solution

to all aspects of busbar design. Most signifi-

cantly, it presents a distinct advantage for

customers: it allows for current system

designs to be upgraded to a higher power

level in a shorter time frame without the

need to start a complete new power module

design – avoiding expensive and time con-

suming new development.

Designed for use in propulsion systems, RO-

LINX Thermal busbars address specific elec-

trical requirements for voltage, current and

partial discharge.

www.rogerscorporation.com

Thermal Busbar

EPCOS has extended its range of EMC

power chokes by types designed for high

currents. Its double power line chokes now

attain current capabilities of up to 54 A. The

new B82725S* and B82726S* series cover

inductance values from 0.2 to 100 mH. The

triple chokes of the B8274* series are now

available with current capabilities of up to 62 A.

Depending on the type, their resistance is

between 1.5 and 2800 mÙ. The rated volt-

age of the double power chokes is 250 V

AC, that of the triple variants up to 690 V

AC. The chokes are designed for nominal

temperatures of between 40 °C and 85 °C

depending on their type.

www.epcos.com/power_chokes

EMC Power Line Chokes

Semikron has unveiled a new IGBT driver

generation. The new driver SKYPER® 52 is

based on fully digital signal processing,

allowing for the transmission of isolated sen-

sor signals and individual protection level

settings. This means that development engi-

neers can do away with costly discrete iso-

lated circuits. The result is fewer system

components and improved overall system

reliability.

Differential digital signal processing not only

provides numerous technical advantages but

also ensures a high level of signal integrity

and hence high noise rejection. With the dig-

ital driver SKYPER® 52, switching charac-

teristics, shut down levels, as well as error

processing can be set to meet the given

application requirements.

www.semikron.com

Drivers go Digital

The commercial power supply market is

acutely aware of the need to minimize failure

rates as more of their products are being

designed into high-end systems. This has

led to an increased demand for different lev-

els of enhanced-reliability, low ESR capaci-

tors. In response, AVX has introduced a new

range of product within its TRJ professional

series tantalum chip which delivers signifi-

cantly lower ESR while achieving reliability

levels twice that of standard tantalum

devices.

www.avx.com

Low ESR Enhanced Reliability Tantalum Capacitors

42 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

P C I M N E W P R O D U C T S

The participation of Ferraz Shawmut Ther-

mal Management in European thermal

research groups and design work on several

demanding thermal applications all over

Europe shows its expertise, today the group

develops its approach to China. At the PCIM

Exhibition to in Nuremberg, FERRAZ Shaw-

mut has presented its solutions for Thermal

Management.

In cases of extreme low environmental tem-

peratures, it may actually be necessary to

heat the electronic components to achieve

satisfactory operation.

Ferraz Shawmut Thermal Management

designs and manufactures a complete range

of cooling systems with high thermal per-

formances: heat sinks, cold plates, heat

pipes and cooling loops and units.

Each product range is made according to

standardized manufacturing technologies.

www.ferrazshawmut.com

High-Performance Thermal Management

V.I Chip, Inc., a subsidiary of Vicor Corporation, has announced a

constant current (CC) PRM™ regulator demonstration board for light

emitting diode (LED) applications such as street & stadium lighting,

high-end projectors, active outdoor advertising and architectural

installations.

The board provides a precisely regulated current as required for

direct-drive multi-LED applications where the intensity and brightness

are controlled by regulating the current through the LEDs. The board

can be used to provide adjustable current up to 240 W (5 A at 48 V)

when employed as an standalone non-isolated source or can be

combined with the range of VTMTM transformers to provide an

adjustable isolated current up to 100 A.

http://www.vicorpower.com/ccdemo

LED Constant Current Demonstration Board

LEM has introduced the HAB xx-S family of

current transducers for automotive battery-

monitoring applications. These transducers

have been designed to measure DC, AC, or

pulsed currents up to ±100A. A new Applica-

tion Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) incor-

porated into the units offers resolution 2.5

times better than previous models and a

two-fold improvement in offset error, coupled

with a significant reduction in price.

The transducers use open-loop, Hall-effect

technology that simplifies both installation

and servicing by removing the need to cut

the [primary] cable carrying the measured

current. They provide a pulse-width modulat-

ed (PWM) output signal proportional to the

primary current being measured and operate

from a unipolar 5V supply.

www.lem.com

Automotive Battery Monitoring Transducers

Microsemi Corporation has announced a

new family of high speed Power MOS8 insu-

lated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) featur-

ing punch through technology in 600 and

900 Volt devices.

The new Power MOS8 IGBTs target applica-

tions that include solar inverters, high per-

formance SMPS, and industrial equipment

such as welders, battery chargers, and

induction heaters.

The new Power MOS8 IGBT series exhibits

low conduction losses VCE(ON), typ = 2.0V

(600V) and 2.5V (900V), to increase overall

circuit efficiency. Low switching losses

enable operation at frequencies over

100kHz--approaching the performance of

power MOSFETs but at lower cost.

Power MOS 8 IGBTs are available as single

devices or packaged with DQ series fast,

soft recovery diodes. Samples are available

now.

www.microsemi.com

Punch Through Series IGBTs

43www.bodospower.com July 2008

P C I M N E W P R O D U C T S

Modules for transformer, transformer-less and neutral point solar

inverter topologies

Vincotech, the former Electronic Modules division of Tyco Electronics,

is releasing four module families specially designed for solar inverter

applications. The modules are optimised for a powers ranging

between 2kW and 6kW to satisfy the requirements of transformer-

based (up to 400Vdc) and transformer-less (400Vdc and 800Vdc)

architectures.

The chip technologies used are optimised for the individual require-

ments of each system. The two modules for transformer-based archi-

tectures enable the use of small transformers. Transformer-less sys-

tems are covered by a boost plus inverter circuit in one individual

module.

www.vincotech.com

Power Modules for Solar Inverters

Toshiba Electronics Europe has launched an evaluation platform that will simplify and speed the

development of brushless DC (BLDC) motor drives used in applications ranging from home appli-

ances and pumps to industrial automation and automotive motion control.

The TB6582FG_EVB3 brings together Toshiba’s latest motor controller IC ASSP and the company’s

single-chip inverter drive technology to provide a complete sensorless sine wave motor control and

driver solution on a single board.

www.toshiba-components.com

Motion Platform Speeds Development of BLDC motor

Infineon Technologies introduced its new

MIPAQ™ family of IGBT (Insulated Gate

Bipolar Transistor) modules that offers a

very high level of integration. The MIPAQ

(Modules Integrating Power, Application and

Quality) products enable highly efficient

power inverter designs to be used in Unin-

terruptible Power Supply (UPS); industrial

drives, such as compressors, pumps and

fans; solar power plants; and air conditioning

systems. The modules are characterized by

enhanced testing and are delivered as

known-good systems.

The MIPAQ family is based on an innovative

packaging concept and utilizes the advan-

tages of the Infineon IGBT4 chips. These

chips feature excellent electrical ruggedness,

provide approximately 20 percent lower

switching losses than IGBT3 and offer higher

power cycling capability. All MIPAQ products

feature an IGBT six-pack configuration.

www.infineon.com

MIPAQ Family of Power Modules

Building on its portfolio of advanced

pulse-width modulator (PWM) power man-

agement controllers, Texas Instruments

introduced a power supply controller for

unregulated output voltages that achieves

up to 97 percent system efficiency in an

intermediate bus architecture. The con-

troller allows intermediate bus architecture

power systems to combine the highest

amount of energy savings, high power-

density and low system costs in telecom

and data communication systems with

multiple downstream point-of-load con-

versions.

The integrated UCC28230 PWM con-

troller supports both the half-bridge and

full-bridge topologies and reduces overall

size and the need for external compo-

nents. Designers can set the operation to

work in a fixed volt-second or fixed fre-

quency mode, which reduces the size of

the transformer.

www.ti.com

PWM Controller Increases Efficiency Over Entire Load Range

N E W P R O D U C T S

44 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

TREK, INC., a designer and manufacturer of high-voltage power

amplifiers and high-performance electrostatic instrumentation, recent-

ly introduced a High Voltage Power Amplifier (Trek Model 40/15)

which, by providing up to 80 kV peak-to-peak (±40 kV), delivers the

highest level of output voltages for any amplifier in its class, taking

the term ‘high voltage’ to new heights – to voltage levels not previ-

ously feasible or available from high voltage linear amplifiers.

The Model 40/15 HV amplifier is the first of

its kind to achieve such high voltage

ranges along with high performance capa-

bilities typically available only with lower

voltage units.

www.trekinc.com

80 Kilovolt High Voltage Power Amplifier

Analog Devices introduced a high-bandwidth

MEMS vibration sensor to enable better

monitoring of equipment performance and

reduce costly downtime due to unforeseen

system failures on the factory floor. Based

on Analog Devices’ iMEMS Motion Signal

Processing™ technology, the new ADXL001

industrial vibration and shock sensor for the

first time allows designers of industrial

process control instruments to cost-effective-

ly incorporate high-performance, depend-

able high-bandwidth vibration monitoring into

their applications via an easy-to-use sensor

solution.

Vibration analysis is emerging as an impor-

tant preventative maintenance tool in today’s

factory environment. For many industrial

operations, however, vibration analysis

remains cost-prohibitive or is conducted only

periodically. Now, the new ADXL001 allows

vibration monitoring to be performed continu-

ously without interrupting normal operation

of the equipment.

www.analog.com/ADXL001

High-Bandwidth MEMS Vibration Sensor

Power Integrations announced the introduc-

tion of its LinkSwitch-II family of highly inte-

grated AC-DC switched-mode power conver-

sion ICs with very accurate primary-side

control. LinkSwitch-II dramatically simplifies

constant-voltage, constant-current (CV/CC)

converters, and enables consumer products

to meet all worldwide energy-efficiency and

no-load regulations, such as ENERGY STAR

2.0 for external power supplies. The new ICs

are ideal for applications such as chargers

for cell phones and cordless phones, high

brightness LED drivers and other accurate

CV or CC applications.

LinkSwitch-II, a new generation in Power

Integrations’ extremely successful

LinkSwitch series of ICs, simplifies the

design of accurate output CV/CC converters

by eliminating the need for optocouplers and

all secondary-side CV/CC control circuitry as

well as all control-loop compensation circuit-

ry. By integrating all control and protection

circuitry plus a 700 V MOSFET in an 8-pin

package, LinkSwitch-II significantly reduces

component count, space and system cost

while increasing reliability.

www.powerint.com

LinkSwitch®-II Exceeds Global Energy-Efficiency Standards

International Rectifier has expanded its port-

folio of 60 V, 75 V and 100 V MOSFETs for

switch mode power supplies (SMPS), unin-

terruptible power supplies (UPS) and indus-

trial applications such as power tools, fork-

lifts and other high power DC drives.

These new devices, an extension to IR’s

family of N-channel MOSFETs, feature low

on-state resistance (RDS(on)) and high

switching capability while the rugged TO-247

package provides a larger area for heat sink-

ing to improve thermal dissipation compared

to a TO-220 package. Incorporating IR’s

benchmark HEXFET® trench MOSFET tech-

nology in a robust TO-247 package these

devices offer designers more flexibility where

power and thermal performance are a priority.

The new devices are offered lead free and

are RoHS compliant.

www.irf.com

MOSFETs in Robust TO-247 Packag

P C I M N E W P R O D U C T S

13th European Conferenceon Power Electronics

and Applications

Receipt of synopses:Monday 3 November 2008

Receipt of full papers:Monday 11 May 2009

EPE 2009 Barcelona, Spain

www.epe2009.com

46 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

N E W P R O D U C T S

National Semiconductor introduced the industry’s first emulated current-

mode-controlled buck-boost DC-DC regulator controller with a best-in-class

operating voltage range of 3V to 75V for automotive, telecommunications and

battery-powered systems. The LM5118 features programmable switching fre-

quency up to 500 kHz, ultra-low shutdown current and smooth transition

between buck and buck-boost modes. The LM5118 switching regulator fea-

tures peak efficiency of 95 percent, positioning it among National’s Power-

Wise® family of energy-efficient products.

The simple two-switch configuration enables design engineers to easily

assemble a complete power converter with ultra-wide input voltage range.

Operation below 3V to 75V makes the LM5118 well-suited for automotive

applications such as powering the dashboard display, electronic controls

such as anti-lock braking or fuel injection control, and the multitude of micro-

controllers used in today’s cars.

www.national.com

Emulated Current-Mode-Controlled Buck-Boost

SMP Sintermetalle Prometheus GmbH & Co

KG introduces inductive components for

industrial power electronics, drives, power

generation and instrumentation and control

applications.

To meet the ever more demanding require-

ments in power electronics, SMP has devel-

oped high-performance chokes and filters.

These inductive components offer a high

energy storage capacity at low volume,

reduced losses, good EMC characteristics

and a cost-conscious design. Depending on

their application, they are constructed either

as single-conductor chokes for high-current

applications, individual chokes, choke mod-

ules or LC filters.

For use in power electronics, power genera-

tion, and instrumentation and control, SMP

supplies chokes and filters for frequencies

up to 200 kHz and current ratings up to 1000

amperes, with component sizes ranging from

36 to 300 mm diameter and weights from 50

g to 130 kg.

www.smp.de

Low-Loss Chokes and Filters

ROHM Electronics introduces the industry's

first AC/DC-isolated LED driver modules uti-

lizing constant-current circuits optimized for

driving LEDs. The new BP58xx series inte-

grates all required LED-driving control cir-

cuits, switching elements, isolation trans-

formers and constant-current circuits into a

single SIP package. The result is an all-in-

one solution that increases power-conver-

sion efficiency in a broad range of illumina-

tion/lighting applications, including theater,

landscape, residential, commercial and

emergency lighting. The two new AC/DC iso-

lated driver modules' constant-current output

and adjustable brightness control offer

designers a highly accurate, high-perform-

ance device for simplifying designs while

saving valuable board space.

The BP58xx series was developed using

energy-saving technologies culled from

AC/DC converter designs.

www.rohmelectronics.com

AC/DC-Isolated LED Driver Modules

Texas Instruments introduced a monolithic,

filter-free Class-D audio amplifier with an

integrated boost converter for portable appli-

cations including wireless handsets, person-

al navigation devices, portable gaming and

wireless speakers. Addressing the need for

louder volume and higher output power from

the speakers, the TPA2014D1 provides up to

1.5 W across an 8-Ohm load, ensuring that

volume is maintained even when the battery

discharges to its minimum voltage.

Conventional Class-D amplifiers for portable

devices are designed to provide high output

power, which is dependent on battery volt-

age. As the battery discharges, the maxi-

mum output power decreases, causing

reduced volume and increased distortion.

The TPA2014D1 provides a higher constant

output power across the entire Li-Ion battery

range, thus maintaining loud volume, even

as the battery discharges.

www.ti.com

Class-D Audio Amplifier with Integrated Boost Converter

N E W P R O D U C T S

47www.bodospower.com July 2008

The lighting and electronics specialist Hella

KGaA Hueck & Co is ready to launch serial

production of the first fully LED based head-

light this summer. It has been developed for

the Cadillac Escalade Platinum, which is the

first Sports Utility Vehicle in the world to be

fitted with this trend-setting lighting technolo-

gy. The high-performance multi-chip LEDs

are mounted on a specially developed Cer-

amCool ceramic frame. It is produced by the

high-performance ceramics manufacturer

CeramTec AG, Electronics Division, in Mark-

tredwitz, Germany. The partially transparent

frame is produced using the dry pressing

process and is then metallized. The high

level of customer requirements meant that a

special process had to be developed. Espe-

cially crucial to the process are the obser-

vance of the lowest tolerances and an

absolutely faultless metallization. Each head-

light is equipped with 7 LEDs and subse-

quently fitted with the ceramic CeramCool.

The LED solution is particularly robust and

works reliably in temperatures ranging from -

40°C to + 125°C.

www.ceramtec.com

CeramCool in the Cadillac

UltraVolt, Inc. announced an enhanced

series of floating-hot-deck power supplies.

“EFL” Series modules are isolated power

supplies featuring isolation up to 15kV, along

with analog & digital I/O. Therefore, “EFL”

Series modules create a completely integrat-

ed floating-hot-deck subsystem.

Floating hot decks operate multiple bias sup-

plies, pulse generators, and control systems

in E-beam, I-beam, and mass-spectrometer

systems.

While UltraVolt’s original floating-hot-deck

power supply, the “FL” Series, provides one

analog up channel, the new “EFL” Series

provides a second analog up channel and

improved input / output faraday shielding

along with upgraded low-voltage (LV) output

power and analog channels.

The improved input / output faraday shield-

ing reduces power-stage coupling noise. The

upgraded LV output power provides tightly

regulated ±15VDC @ 50mA and +5.1VDC at

500mA. The main output is now available at

12V 1amp or 24V 1amp / 1.5 amp.

The upgraded analog channels auto-zero

and auto-correct for linearity errors and full-

scale gain. This provides a control & monitor

capability of 0 to 10VDC with a temperature

coefficient of <10ppm per °C. These analog

channels have an initial offset error of <1mV

and a full-scale gain error of <0.1% while

keeping the linearity error to <0.1%.

www.ultravolt.com

Line of Floating Hot Deck Power Supply Subsystems

Endicott Research Group (ERG), specialist

in power solutions for LCD backlights since

1979, has released two new high-efficiency,

low-profile Smart Force™ LED driver boards

as standard products for a wide range of

industrial and medical LCDs.

The SFDE (Economical) and SFDM (Mini)

Series provide full function power supplies

with optimum power for high brightness as

well as lower power consumption and lower

cost in an exceptionally compact size. Both

driver boards are less than 5 mm in height,

and both provide brightness stability over a

wide input voltage and can power up to 6

LED strings.

The SFDE Series provides a plug-and-play

solution with an outstanding cost/perform-

ance ratio. It measures only 1.11” (28.2 mm)

x 3.10” (78.7 mm), and is less than 5 mm

high. It provides an input voltage range of

10-20 V, with external PWM dimming to

500:1. www.ergpower.com

Plug-and-Play Solutions for LED-Backlit LCDs

Fischer Elektronik have extended their prod-

uct range in the field of connectors by a

high-precision male header in horizontal sur-

face-mounted design, which is available with

immediate effect.

This high-precision male header with 2.54

mm grid spacing is offered with 2 – 20 con-

tacts. Other numbers of contacts are avail-

able on request. The insulator of the high-

precision male header is made from reflow-

solderable high temperature resistant plas-

tics (combustibility class UL94 V-0). The

contacts are either available with a gold-plat-

ed surface or made from tin (pure tin).

The high-precision male headers are in con-

formity with EU directive 2002/95/EC

(RoHS). The reference number for the 20-

contact design with gold-plated surface is

MK 27 SMD 20 G.

www.fischerelektronik.de

SMD High-Precision Male Header

C O N T E N T S

48 www.bodospower.comJuly 2008

ABB semiconductor C3

APEC 2009 29

Bicron Electronis 19

CT Concept Technologie 7

Danfoss Silicon Power 11

Darnell 37

EPE 2009 45

EXPO H2O 31

Fuji Electric 49

Husum Wind Energy 50

Infineon 13 + C2

International Rectifier C4

Intersil 5

Kolektor 31

LEM 1

Magnetics 35

Mesago 27

Microsemi 19

Power Electronics 39

Texas Instruments Bound Insert

Tyco Raychem 3

Vincotech 17

Würth Electronics 35

There are numerous integrated DC/DC con-

verters on the market, but systems design-

ers still find it tricky to create a working cir-

cuit when good regulation, input-output isola-

tion and reasonable efficiency are required

over a wide input voltage range that extends

remarkably below 5 volts. ANCRONA now

has developed a solution that maintains suf-

ficient efficiency even in low power designs.

The ANCRONA AM05 05S05RAW (World-

wide distribution: Willi Bacher GmbH;

Velden, Austria) operates over an input volt-

age range of 3.4 V to 8.4 V (1:2.5) and gen-

erates an output voltage of 5 V ±3% with a

load regulation ±0.8% from 25 mA to 100

mA load current and a line regulation of

±0.5% over the rated input voltage range.

The ANCRONA AM05 05S05RAW offers an

input-output isolation of 1000 VDC and con-

tinuous short circuit protection. Ripple and

noise are specified with 100 mVpp maximum

and can be further reduced with an external

capacitor. The SIL package measures 9.2 x

21.8 x 11.1 mm.

www.wbacher.com

Low Power DC/DC Converter

NEC Electronics Europe announced five new

high-performance optocouplers for industrial

and motor control applications. The PS9301

insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) gate

drive coupler with output of 0.6 amperes and

the high-speed PS8302, PS9303, PS9313 and

PS9317 couplers are packaged in a 6-pin

shrink dual inline package (SDIP) that reduces

the on-board footprint to half of a conventional

8-pin DIP.

The high-speed PS8302 and PS9313 couplers

mark an industry first by offering a communication speed of 1

megabit per second (Mbps) and guaranteed

operation at temperatures up to 110 degrees

Celsius (°C). The PS9317 is even faster,

offering a bit rate of 10 Mbps. All five opto-

couplers comply with common international

safety standards, making them ideally suited

for applications ranging from factory automa-

tion equipment to environmentally friendly

home appliances.

www.eu.necel.com/opto

High-Speed Optocouplers

vago Technologies introduced a new family of

compact high-brightness tricolor surface

mount (SMT) LEDs for indoor and outdoor full

color signs and video displays. Avago's

ASMT-YTB0 LEDs, which are available in a

PLCC-6 package, provides full color display

and video application designers with better

color control and contrast, and a 115-degree

viewing angle. With dimensions of 4.4 mm by

4.4 mm by 3.5 mm, this new family of LEDs

from Avago also incorporates silicone material

to extend light output performance over time.

Avago's compact ASMT-YTB0 package is specially designed to meet

indoor and outdoor LED screen requirements for better screen reso-

lution (greater than 12mm pixel size), and high-brightness perform-

ance. It also has six-leads to enable individual color control of each

color chip to display a multitude of colors including white and

enhanced thermal management. The ASMT-

YTB0 incorporates a separate heat path for

each LED dice to enable it to be driven at

higher currents. As a result, these SMT LEDs

can operate in a wide range of environmental

conditions to provide customers with high

reliability. These new tricolor LEDs are ideal

for use in indoor and outdoor video screens,

advertising displays and stadium score-

boards.

The family of ASMT-YTB0 LEDs are compati-

ble with reflow soldering processes and have

a moisture sensitivity level of 2a (MSL 2a) to make them ideal for use

in SMT production environments.

www.avagotech.com/led

High-Brightness Surface Mount Tricolor LEDs

ADVERTISING INDEX

Fuji Electric Device Technology Europe GmbHGoethering 58 · 63067 Offenbach am Main · GermanyFon +49 (0)69 - 66 90 29 0 · Fax +49 (0)69 - 66 90 29 [email protected] · www.fujielectric.de

� V-series: New Trench-FS Structure� Reduced turn-on dV/dt� Lower spike voltage & oscillation� Excellent turn-on dIc/dt control by RG

� Extended temperature range: Tj, max = 175°C� Extended package capacity

The new IGBT Generationwith improved switching characteristics & thermal management

6-Pack IGBT1200V

50A75A

100A

100A150A180A

PIM IGBT1200V

25A35A50A

75A100A150A1

2-Pack IGBT1200V

225A300A450A600A

Meet the wind experts!

Where better to discover the potential of wind power than on the bracing North Sea coast? It’s small wonderthat Husum has hosted the world’s largest specialist trade fair for the wind energy industry for almost 20 yearsnow. Over 700 renowned exhibitors and 18,000 visitors will be attending.

So don’t miss out – join us at HUSUM WindEnergy 2008.

9 –13 September 2008

www.husumwindenergy.com

A co-operation between Partners

© T

hom

as/P

ixel

io

Natural Selection

ABB Switzerland Ltd SemiconductorsTel: +41 58 586 1419www.abb.com/semiconductors

Power and productivityfor a better world™

HiPak with SPT+

Revolutionary Evolution!

Part NumberVDS

(V)ID

(A)

RDS(on) MaxVGS=10V

(m )

Qg(nC)

Package

IRF2804PBF 40 270 2.3 160 TO-220

IRF2804SPBF 40 270 2.0 160 D2-PAK

IRF2804S-7PPBF 40 320 1.6 170 D2-PAK -7

IRFB3306PBF 60 160 4.2 85 TO-220

IRFP3306PBF 60 160 4.2 85 TO-247

IRFB3206PBF 60 210 3.0 120 TO-220

IRFS3206PBF 60 210 3.0 120 D2-PAK

IRFP3206PBF 60 200 3.0 120 TO-247

IRFS3207ZPBF 75 170 4.1 120 D2-PAK

IRF2907ZS-7PPBF 75 180 3.8 170 D2-PAK -7

IRFB3077PBF 75 210 3.3 160 TO-220

IRFP3077PBF 75 200 3.3 160 TO-247

IRFS4310ZPBF 100 127 6.0 120 D2-PAK

IRFP4310ZPBF 100 134 6.0 120 TO-247

IRFB4110PBF 100 180 4.5 150 TO-220

IRFP4110PBF 100 180 4.5 150 TO-247

• Tailored for Synchronous Rectification

• Optimized for fast switching

• Up to 20% lower RDS(on)

*

• Up to 20% increase in power density*

• RoHS Compliant

• Lead Free

*Compared to previous generations

For more information call +33 (0) 1 64 86 49 53 or +49 (0) 6102 884 311

Your FIRST CHOICEfor Performance

or visit us at http://www.irf.com

Lower RDS(on) Higher Performance

THE POWER MANAGEMENT LEADER