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Power Supply in Inductor Construction Delivers up to 1600W/ Cubic Inch

October 09, 2017 by Paul Shepard

Sumida Corp. has announced three new integrated Power Module products: SPM1006, SPM1008 and SPM1105. Together with the SPM1004 and SPM1005, the SPM series of non-isolated Point-of-Load power converters (POL) now extends from 3.3V to 36V input and from 0.6V to 18V output, with maximum load capability up to 12A.

The Land Grid Array (LGA) package with a very low profile and small footprint offers very high power density, up to 1600 W/cu in for the SPM1006. Apart from input and output capacitors, all major components are internal to the modules minimizing total board area for high density applications.

All these Sumida Power Modules use proprietary Power Supply in Inductor (PSI2) technology to offer a very high efficiency in a small, low profile package. This technology also provides excellent thermal management to achieve very high power density, as well as improved EMI shielding.

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Details of the new modules include: SPM1006 operates over an input voltage range of 4- to 28-Vdc and delivers 8A with an output voltage of 0.6- to 5.0-Vdc. SPM1008 operates over an input voltage range of 4- to 16-Vdc and delivers 12A with an output voltage of 0.6- to 5.0-Vdc. SPM1105 operates over an input of 4.5- to 36-Vdc and delivers 5A with an output voltage of 1.0- to 18.0-Vdc.

Benefits of PSI2 technology:

  • Compared to conventional packaging technologies, PSI2 reduces constraints on the inductor size. This allows for larger gauge wire and coil diameters to be used within the inductor structure which results in lower power losses and a high efficiency module.
  • The core material is a metal composite with good thermal conductivity which avoids hot spots and reduces the module's operating temperature by transferring heat to the ambient air.
  • The inductor body encases the switching components in magnetic material which provides electromagnetic shielding for reduced EMI.
  • The small size and very low profile (3mm) package reduces board space, allowing higher density designs.
  • The inductor body acts as a heat sink to evenly distribute heat, produced by the IC and inductor, across the package and dissipate it to the ambient air. The measured surface temperature is reduced by up to 11.5 °C compared to a module with an internal inductor under identical conditions (Figure 1, below). High thermal conductivity avoids "hot spots" (Figure 2, below).

(click on image to enlarge)

Applications for these modules include communication and industrial products, medical equipment, test equipment, and distributed power systems.