Supercapacitor Energy Modules for NVDIMM Backup Power
AgigA Tech, Inc., a subsidiary of Cypress Semiconductor Corp., today announced the availability of its new family of PowerGEM® Green Energy Modules. The Amber/Amber4X product family incorporates the latest in hybrid supercapacitor technology to enable small form factor modules that can support backup power for a single Non-Volatile DIMM (NVDIMM) or multiple NVDIMMs.
The Amber modules have been designed to support both AgigA Tech AGIGARAM® and OEM partner NVDIMM-N solutions designed around JEDEC specifications.
In addition, AgigA has developed a simple management and control interface that can enable a central power mode option. In this mode, a host server system can provide 12V power to the DIMM sockets directly during a power loss event, much like a micro-UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply). This eliminates the need for any external cable connections from the NVDIMM modules to the PowerGEM.
“As NVDIMM capacity increases and use cases for persistent memory become more prevalent, there is a clear need for smaller form factor energy solutions to provide backup power to ensure critical data does not get lost,” said Ron Sartore, president and CEO of AgigA Tech.
“Our new Amber PowerGEM modules provide this smaller form factor, along with the ability to support multiple NVDIMMs in a single module, which lowers the total solution cost for the system,” added Sartore.
The Amber PowerGEM supports up to a single 32GB NVDIMM-N module, while Amber4X can support up to 4x 16GB or 3x 32GB NVDIMM-N modules. The patent-pending design is offered in multiple form factors, including a 2.5” drive and half-height half-length (HHHL) PCIe card.
The new PowerGEMs are fully certified to industry standard safety regulations, including UL 60950-1 (Underwriters Laboratories), CSA C22.2 No. 60950-01-07 (CSA International), and CB Certification to IEC 60950-01 and/or EN 609050-1. These certifications include Energy Hazard Testing, and are a critical step in ensuring a safe and reliable product when deployed into production.
AgigA Tech has spent more than a decade running reliability testing on supercapacitor (or supercap) technology from multiple vendors. Only the supercaps that have passed this rigorous testing have been qualified for use in AgigA’s PowerGEM products. AgigA has shipped more than 1 million supercaps to the field to date, without a single return due to a failed cell.
The company has extended this test methodology to the newer hybrid supercap cells, and with more than 2 years of testing, has now qualified the cells for production. AgigA PowerGEM modules are designed to operate up to 5 years at 55°C without the need for maintenance or replacement, and unlike battery solutions, they can be shipped and disposed of without restrictions.
Production samples of the Amber/Amber4X PowerGEM family are now available. Below are the various options currently being offered by AgigA Tech:
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