Reduce BOM, Increase Efficiency Thanks to the Latest Power Components

October 01, 2021

Blog

Power Integrations, a major player in the power components space, recently unveiled a pair of products that can reduce BOM cost, simplify design, and increase efficiency.

First is the SCALE-iFlex single gate drivers for the company’s dual 100- by 140-mm IGBT modules. These compact drivers support modules up to 3.3 kV and are suited for light-rail, renewable energy generation, and other high-reliability applications that demand compact, rugged driver solutions.

The gate-drivers are designed with Power Integrations’ SCALE-2 ASIC technology which reduces component count compared to competitive products. In addition, advanced active clamping (AAC) over-voltage protection during normal operation, an improvement over simple soft shut down, adds extra protection in case of short-circuit during turn-on. Devices are conformally coated and feature reinforced isolation. Isolated housings ensure isolation between modules when they are mounted side-by-side. The parts are pre-qualified according to railway standards IEC 61373 Class 1B (shock & vibration), IEC 61000-4-x (EMC tests), and IEC 60068-2-x (serial environmental tests). Burn-in is optionally available.

The second product is the InnoSwitch3-PD family, a highly integrated solution for USB Type-C, USB Power Delivery (PD), and USB Programmable Power Supply (PPS) adapters. This compact InSOP-24D-packaged IC includes a USB-C and PD controller, a high-voltage PowiGaN switch, a multi-mode quasi-resonant flyback controller, secondary-side sensing, FluxLink isolated digital feedback, and a synchronous-rectification driver.

Aimed at designers seeking maximum charger power density, the InnoSwitch3 family simplifies the development and manufacturing of compact, energy-efficient USB PD power supplies for smartphones, tablets, notebooks, and other devices that benefit from fast charging. The devices reduce the BOM count to half that of conventional designs, reducing design time and simplifying high-volume manufacture for slim, ultra-compact chargers.

Featuring no-load power consumption as low as 14 mW, power supply designs using InnoSwitch3-PD ICs meet all global energy-efficiency regulations. The high efficiency of these devices ensures low heat dissipation, eliminating the need for bulky heatsinks. Power Integrations’ FluxLink high-speed communications feedback link ensures fast, accurate secondary-side regulation. InnoSwitch3-PD ICs are also fully protected, with input voltage monitoring, accurate brown-in/brown-out and overvoltage protection, and output over- and under-voltage fault detection with independently configurable fault responses.