Panasonic Corporation today announced that it will start shipping its new PSiP (Power Supply in Package) dc-dc regulator power supply modules with integrated inductor later this month. The PSiP power supply modules, NN31000A, NN31001A and NN31002A, are suitable for use in communications infrastructure equipment - such as radio base stations, light transceivers, routers, switches and servers - and industrial applications, as well as other applications such as security cameras and measuring devices. Panasonic's PSiP series claims the smallest mounting area in the industry, with its unique configuration to mount all the necessary components for a dc-dc regulator, used in communication infrastructure equipment and industrial and other devices, into a single module. These PSiPs are 50% smaller compared with Panasonic's existing 10A dc-dc regulator MCP (Multi Chip Package) with integrated MOSFET (NN30312A). The new power supply modules offer improved performance in terms of low heat generation and low noise profile.
They also eliminate the need of designing a separate power source system and reduce the burden of incorporating heat and noise considerations into circuit board design, thereby making the overall design time significantly shorter. A hysteretic control method has been used to control the dc-dc regulator, thereby improving high-speed response to load fluctuations within the regulator. Panasonic's hysteretic control method uses an error amplifier found in normal feedback control to operate the comparator without phase compensation. This offers the fastest theoretical response to fluctuating input/output conditions to control output. As a result, it is possible to minimize output voltage fluctuations caused by load change in PSiP, as well as improving device operation stability by eliminating erroneous operation in devices such as CPUs and FPGAs.
Panasonic's unique component layout structure has been deployed to integrate the control IC, MOSFET, capacitor and inductor components needed for a dc-dc regulator into a single module package, thereby eliminating the time otherwise required for power source system design. Additionally, Panasonic's high-efficiency technology has achieved lower heat generation, while the smaller mounting area has reduced the areas for generating heat and noise. This allows for greater freedom in component and wiring layouts, so that the design process can be completed more quickly. Besides, the new modules' high-speed load response minimizes fluctuations in output voltage to improve stability in device operation, leading to safer design and significant reduction of the time needed to evaluate the finished set.
Integrating the power supply into a single module has made the PSiP series the smallest package in the industry. A low ON resistance trench MOS has been used in MOSFET for optimum switching control, thereby improving power conversion efficiency up to 95% at high current, and lowering heat generation from components on the circuit board. Usually, device miniaturization leads to increased heat generation, but the new power supply modules combine both miniaturization and lower heat generation.
Since the integration into a single module also enables the high current lines and noise lines to be kept within PSiP, both the heat generation area and the noise generation area can be reduced by two thirds. With a smaller package, low heat generation, and smaller areas for heat and noise generation, the new products make it possible to mount components more densely while reducing the size of both circuit board and heat dissipation components.
Recent years have seen increasing focus on the Internet of Things (IoT), whereby electronic devices are connected and communicate each other via the Internet. With the advent of the IoT era bringing an increase in the volume of information and the number of users of connected devices, there is growing demand for communication infrastructure devices such as high-density servers and compact, lightweight small-cell base stations that can be installed anywhere to boost accessibility. To make such devices compact and lightweight, power supply modules used in them need to be made smaller.
