Features - Bodo's Power

ISSN: 1863-5598 

ZKZ 64717 

08-09 

Electronics in Motion and Conversion August 2009

2SC0650P Dual Gate Driver 

The new SCALE-2 dual driver core 2SC0650P combines 

highest power density with broad applicability. The 

driver is designed for both high-power and high-frequency 

applications. It is suit-able for IGBTs with reverse 

voltages up to 1700V and also features a dedicated 

MOSFET mode. Intelligent paralleling allows all forms of 

parallel connection of high-power modules. Multi-level 

topologies are also supported. The 2SC0650P offers all 

�� 

ultra-short signal delay times. CONCEPT’s patented 

�� 

�� 

the highest requirements. 

A Good catch! 

SAMPLES AVAILABLE! 

Features 

50A gate drive current 

2 x 6W output power 

+15V/-10V gate voltage 

Separated gate paths (on/off) 

150kHz switching frequency 

80ns delay time 

±1ns jitter 

3.3V to 15V logic compatible 

Integrated DC/DC converter 

Short-circuit protection 

Embedded paralleling capability 

Superior EMC (dv/dt > 100V/ns) 

CT-Concept Technologie AG, Renferstrasse 15, CH-2504 Biel, Switzerland, Phone +41-32-344 47 47 www.IGBT-Driver.com

www.bodospower.com August 2009 

CONTENTS 

Viewpoint 

From Green to Blue ................................................................................................................... 4 

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

News ...................................................................................................................................... 6-8 

Blue Product of the Month 

Improved MOSFETs for PoL Synchronous Buck Converters; International Rectifier...............10 

Green Product of the Month 

Triple Current Measurement in Single Housing; LEM ............................................................. 12 

Product of the Month 

DC “LINK” Filter Capacitors with High Energy Density 

Electronic Concepts................................................................................................................. 14 

Guest Editorial 

Materials Development – New Competencies Required for the Development 

of Power Modules 

By Dr.-Ing. Frank Osterwald, Director Research&Development, Danfoss Silicon Power ....... 16 

Market 

Electronics Industry Digest 

By Aubrey Dunford, Europartners............................................................................................ 18 

Market 

Advances in DC Powered Facilities 

By Richard Ruiz Jr. Research Analyst, Darnell Group ............................................................ 20 

VIP Interview 

Bernd Pfeil VP Sales & Marketing Central Europe, 

EBV Elektronik on Power Electronics Support .................................................................. 22-23 

Cover Story 

2500A/1200V Dual IGBT Module 

By Ayumi Maruta and Mitsuharu Tabata, Power Device Works, 

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Japan ............................................................................... 24-27 

IGBT Modules 

IGBT Power Modules Utilizing 650V IGBT3 and Emitter Controlled Diode3 

By Zhang Xi and Uwe Jansen, Infineon Technologies AG, Warstein, Germany 

By Holger Rüthing, Neubiberg, Germany........................................................................... 28-30 

Digital Power 

Control Law Accelerator Boosts Digital Power Performance 

Richard Poley, Field Applications Engineer, Texas Instruments ........................................ 32-33 

Renewable Energy 

Inverter for Small Wind Power Stations 

By Tobias Hofer and Ralf Negele, Negal Engineering GmbH Switzerland........................ 34-35 

Transformer 

Power Planar Magnetics and Hybrid Electric Vehicles 

By Jim Marinos - Executive VP Marketing & Engineering, Payton America Inc. .............. 36-37 

Portable Power 

Saving Energy in Portable Electronics Using Ambient Light Sensors 

By Steve Chutka, Field Application Engineer, ROHM Semiconductor............................... 38-39 

Power Supply 

Power Conversion Standard Sets Direction for Suppliers and OEMs 

By Tom Newton, IPC Director of PCB Programs, Standards and Technology .................. 40-41 

Power Supply 

Simple High Voltage Conversion Solutions for Security Control 

By Bruce Haug, Product Marketing Engineer, Linear Technology ..................................... 42-44 

New Products.................................................................................................................... 46-48 

Ready for 

mass production 

HMS 

Taking open loop technology to 

the next level: introducing a 

surface mount device. 

��Automatic assembly 

��Dedicated LEM ASIC inside 

��Compatible with the 

microcontroller or A/D 

converter, reference provided 

outside or forced by external 

reference, 5 V power supply 

��Improved offset and gain drifts 

and enhanced linearity over 

traditional open loop designs 

��VRef IN/OUT on the same pin 

��8 mm creepage and clearance 

distances + CTI: 600 

��No insertion losses 

��Several current ranges from 

5 to 20 A RMS

The Gallery 

2 Bodo´s Power Systems ® August 2009 www.bodospower.com

PressFIT – solder-less and reliable mounting 

For Power modules from 15A up to 200A in several configurations. 

Portfolio 

Pins 

INFINEON’S PRESSFIT TECHNOLOGY offers the possibility for reliable, solder-less 

mounting of power modules, meeting the nowadays demands of lead free tech- 

nology and reducing the mounting time of the assembly enormously. 

The high reliability of PressFIT contacts in general promises to increase the 

system reliability, which is especially of interest, if modules are operating in 

harsh environments. 

Key features: 

� PressFIT saves process time 

� Reliable cold welding connection of module pins and PCB 

� Low ohmic resistance 

� Module mounting possible on soldering and component side of PCB 

� Established technology in automotive, communication & industrial 

applications 

� Improvement of FIT-rate (up to 100 times the reliability of standard 

solder joints) 

[ www.infineon.com/highpower ]

4 

VIEWPOINT 

A Media 

Katzbek 17a 

D-24235 Laboe, Germany 

Phone: +49 4343 42 17 90 

Fax: +49 4343 42 17 89 

editor@bodospower.com 

www.bodospower.com 

Publishing Editor 

Bodo Arlt, Dipl.-Ing. 

editor@bodospower.com 

Creative Direction & Production 

Repro Studio Peschke 

Repro.Peschke@t-online.de 

Free Subscription to qualified readers 

Bodo´s Power Systems 

is available for the following 

subscription charges: 

Annual charge (12 issues) is 150 € 

world wide 

Single issue is 18 € 

subscription@bodospower.com 

circulation 

printrun 

25000 

Printing by: 

Central-Druck Trost GmbH & Co 

Heusenstamm, Germany 

A Media and Bodos Power Systems 

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. 

Events 

EPE Barcelona Spain 

September 8-10 

www.epe2009.com 

SIC User Forum 

Barcelona Spain 

September 10-11 

www.ecpe.org 

Digital Power Workshop, 

Freising, Germany 

September15-18 

www.biricha.com/ 

Digital Power Forum 

Santa Ana CA September 21-23 

www.digitalpower.darnell.com 

SEMICON Europa 

Dresden Germany October 6-8 

www.semiconeuropa.org/ 

Productronica 

Munich Germany 

November 10-13 

http://productronica.com/ 

From Green to Blue 

Turning “Green” to “Blue” happened a while 

ago in my publication. It is nice to see and 

also to recognize that the mainstream had 

found its way to Blue as well. But “Green” is 

only a slogan and could be any colour as 

long as it stands for efficient design. Let me 

just summarize my Viewpoints during the 

last three years that encourage efficiency 

improvement. 

My Statement in January 2007: “Regenerative 

energy, like solar and wind power, will 

help to develop our future. The “P” in Bodo’s 

Power Systems has become green. I am 

committed to give attention to solar and wind 

power activities worldwide. You will see more 

about these technologies in my magazine. 

These areas will develop our future.” 

My Statement in May 2007: “Remember, my 

special focus at PCIM2007 will be “Green 

Power”. Mark your calendar for the podium 

discussion, “Green Power - The Challenge 

of Smarter Design”. Green Power is a very 

important thinking process for us.” 

My Statement in September 2007: “More 

Efficiency and Less Losses are Key”. 

Electric Hybrid Vehicles can do a lot to 

reduce energy consumption – they operate 

electric-only in stop-and-go traffic and then 

recover stored momentum when braking. 

My Statement in January 2008: “What is 

important in the New Year for power electronics? 

Efficiency, efficiency and, again, efficiency! 

Minimizing semiconductor switching 

and conduction losses is only the beginning.” 

My Statement in February 2008: “Dresden, 

known as Florence on the Elbe, has a 

famous blue bridge built in 1893 that crosses 

the river. Legend has it that the paint lost its 

yellow pigment and changed from green to 

blue. The sky is blue - we enjoy its oxygen, 

take deep breaths of it, and it’s a basic 

requirement for life on our planet. Reflecting 

this, “Bodo’s” is changing from yellow to blue 

and, as I’ve already mentioned, my focus for 

the next PCIM Europe is Blue Efficiency.” 

My Statement in May 2008: “Blue Efficiency 

at the Next Level” was my podium discussion 

at PCIM 2008. 

In September 2008, the financial system 

failed badly and began a world recession. 

Speculators have ruled the economy for a 

while and ruined it. Engineers are working 

hard to catch up with better solutions for 

best efficiency. 

My Statement in May 2009: Experts from 

the companies involved in new semiconductor 

materials painted a picture at my PCIM 

podium discussion “Semiconductor Materials 

for Higher Efficiency in Power”. 

I see strong signs of the economy improving 

even though we as the working population 

are assuming the burden of bad management 

by financial institutions. Risky loans 

and bad banks are getting government insurance. 

We, the hard working population, have 

to pay for some financial people continuing 

their poor practice. 

There is no better way to communicate. We 

all share one world. As a publisher, I serve 

the world: one magazine, on time, every 

time. 

My Green Power Tip for a summer month: 

Share a ride to the air port or other places, 

rather than driving your own car. Little savings, 

one at a time will add up and over time 

become significant. 

Are you ready for the upcoming events this 

autumn? 

Best regards 

Bodo´s Power Systems ® August 2009 www.bodospower.com

NEWS 

Luc Van den hove to Serve as President and CEO 

Leuven, Belgium – 

June 2, 2009 – 

IMEC today 

announced that its 

board of directors 

has named Luc 

Van den hove as 

IMEC’s new President 

and Chief 

Executive Officer. 

Gilbert Declerck is 

elected as member of the Board of IMEC 

International. In addition, he will continue to 

serve IMEC as Executive Officer, concentrating 

on key governmental and industrial relations 

and on strategic advice. Changes will 

ANSYS, Inc. announced the latest release of 

SIwave software. Part of the Ansoft family 

of products, version 4.0 of this technology 

includes new features for signal-integrity, 

power-integrity and electromagnetic compatibility 

testing. It includes numerous enhancements 

including an improved desktop graphical 

user interface with new post-processing 

become effective on July 1, 2009. 

Luc Van den hove has spent his entire 

career at IMEC, where he started as a team 

leader in silicide and interconnect technologies 

research. In 1988, he became manager 

of IMEC’s micro-patterning group (lithography, 

dry etching). As of 1998, he led as Vice 

President the Division of Silicon Process and 

Device Technology. Since 2007, he served 

as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating 

Officer. 

Luc Van den hove said: “It’s a great honor to 

manage one of the world's greatest research 

centers, with a proud history of 25 years of 

innovation and outstanding talent. Under 

Gilbert’s management, IMEC has grown into 

Advancements in Signal- and Power-Integrity, Electromagnetic Compatibility Testing 

of results, solver enhancements that provide 

accurate solutions beyond 10 Gb/s, and 

automation that links SIwave electromagnetics 

with circuit simulation using Ansoft 

Designer® and Nexxim®. Additionally, a new 

link between electromagnetics and thermal 

analysis has been created for board and 

package thermal effects via ANSYS ® Icepak ® 

Electrical Drive to beet Combustion Engine 

SCHOTT Solar, a leading photovoltaics manufacturer, 

entered into a 3 year research 

partnership with IMEC, Europe’s leading 

independent nanoelectronics research center. 

SCHOTT Solar joins IMEC’s newly 

launched silicon photovoltaics industrial affiliation 

program (IIAP). Within this multi-partner 

R&D program, IMEC aims to explore 

and develop advanced process technologies 

to fuel the steep market growth of silicon 

solar cells in a sustainable way. The program 

will concentrate on a sharp reduction 

in silicon use, whilst increasing cell efficiency 

and hence further lowering substantially the 

cost per Watt peak. 

By joining the silicon photovoltaics IIAP, 

researchers from SCHOTT Solar will be able 

The University of Applied Sciences in Kiel, 

Germany has started a project to equip a 

quad bike with a full electrical drive. Final the 

goal is to compete with the combustion version. 

It is a challenging task supported by 

four Professors and their students. My magazine 

will keep track of progress. 

www.fh-kiel.de 

to closely collaborate with IMEC’s research 

team to build up fundamental understanding 

and develop robust solutions for next-generation 

silicon based solar cells. The program 

will bring together silicon solar cell manufac- 

an internationally renowned institute with 

solid partnerships around the world. Since 

my start at IMEC, I have closely teamed with 

Gilbert and I’m looking forward to continue 

this fruitful collaboration and to build further 

on its success. By connecting technology 

and industry through research partnerships 

as initiated by Gilbert, I’m confident that 

IMEC will play an important role in providing 

leading-edge nanotechnology R&D which 

will enable solutions for a sustainable society.” 

www.imec.be 

software. The link enables accurate characterization 

of additional heating due to copper-resistive 

losses that engineers have previously 

estimated or ignored completely. 

www.ansys.com 

SCHOTT Solar Joins IMEC Research Program on Silicon Photovoltaics 

turers, equipment and material suppliers and 

is based on a sharing of intellectual property, 

talent, risk and cost. 

Crystalline silicon solar cells are the workhorse 

of the photovoltaic industry, having a 

market share of more than 90% of the world 

production of solar cells. Within its IIAP, 

IMEC aims to reduce both the cost of producing 

crystalline silicon solar cells and the 

amount of Si/Watt that is needed by half. 

Efficiencies of about 20% are targeted. 

www.imec.be 

www.schottsolar.com 


Joint Venture for Electric 

and Hybrid VEHICLES 

Magna Electronics, an operating unit of Magna International Inc. that 

delivers innovative electronic solutions to the automotive market, and 

Semikron, technology leader for power semiconductor components 

and systems, announced today the formation of a 50/50 joint venture 

to develop and produce power electronics for future electric and 

hybrid vehicle applications. 

“This joint venture with Semikron, a global player across multiple 

industries, provides us with an experienced and strong partner in the 

field of power electronics,” said Matthias Arleth, Vice President 

Magna Electronics Europe. “In combination with Magna Electronics’ 

experience as a worldwide automotive supplier, we are well positioned 

to anticipate the challenges of the market and exceed customer 

requirements for electric and hybrid vehicle components and 

systems.” 

“With Magna Electronics we have a valuable partner which is a wellknown 

and well-respected supplier in the automotive industry. 

Magna’s experience and capabilities will enable us to make best use 

of our know-how and our innovations in this sector of the industry,” 

said Peter Frey, General Manager of Semikron International. ”Power 

electronics is a key technology to assure future mobility with electric 

and hybrid vehicles, the answer to increasing emissions and limited 

natural resources.” 

CUI Europe 

Phone +46-40-150565 

Krossverksgatan 7H, 

216 16 Limhamn, Sweden 

www.semikron.com 

www.magnaelectronics.eu 

INTRODUCING THE NEW 

V-INFINITY 

POWERING INGENUITY 

dc-dc converters 

isolated board mount 

isolated chassis mount 

non- isolated regulators 

LED driver modules 

Eco Transformer 

Transformer for energy saving electronic devices 

High efficiency 

Reference design of all major 

IC manufacturers 

Universal input voltage: 85-265 V AC 

Guaranteed in stock 

EMC COMPONENTS 

INDUCTORS 

TRANSFORMERS 

RF COMPONENTS 

POWER ELEMENTS 

CONNECTORS 

CIRCUIT PROTECTION 

ASSEMBLY TECHNIQUE 

switching power supplies 

embedded power 

open frame 

chassis mount 

multi-blade 

Samples free of charge 

4kV isolation voltage 

external adapters 

wall plug 

desk-top 

multi-blade 

www.we-online.com 

www.v-infinity.com 

7

NEWS 

Patent for Hyper-X Magnetic Technology TM 

RAF Tabtronics LLC announced today that it 

has received a patent for its Hyper-X Magnetic 

Technology TM (HXMT). The patent 

enables RAF Tabtronics to be the leading 

designer and supplier of smaller, more efficient 

inductive components for the most 

demanding power electronics applications. 

HXMT will enable energy saving advancements 

in Solar, Wind, Hybrid Vehicles, Medical, 

Defense and Aerospace applications. 

Schmid-Wiedersheim Project Manager H2Expo 2010 

Johannes Schmid- 

Wiedersheim (32), 

head of the new 

department Fairs 

and Exhibitions 7 

at Hamburg 

Messe und Congress 

(HMC), will 

be taking on the 

project manage- 

ment for the conference and exhibition 

H2Expo from 1 July. Mr. Schmid-Wiedersheim 

also is responsible for NORTEC, the 

Trade Fair for Manufacturing Technology, at 

HMC among other things. The previous Project 

Manager, Peter Bergleiter, who has also 

been responsible for the maritime exhibitions 

SMM and MS&D in Hamburg and abroad 

since 2008, will continue to have a consulting 

function for H2Expo. 

Distribution Agreement with Butler Technologies 

TDK-Lambda’s Regional 

Sales Manager, Sean 

Evans (pictured left) firms 

the deal with Aidan Butler, 

Sales Director of Butler 

Technologies 

Waytronx, Inc. a 

leading provider of 

openly licensable 

advanced systems 

cooling solutions, 

announced today 

that Mark Adams 

has joined its wholly 

owned sub- 

RAF Tabtronics believes that the use of 

Hyper-X Magnetic Technology will allow the 

integrator to offer the end-user significant 

size, weight, and energy savings in devices 

which incorporate this patented technology. 

U.S. Patent number 7,506,280 provides 

technology that optimizes electromagnetic 

coil constructions on a layer-by-layer basis. 

This optimization yields preferred configurations 

to achieve desired electromagnetic 

Mark Adams VP of Worldwide Sales 

sidiary, CUI, Inc., as Vice President of 

Worldwide Sales. He is currently focused on 

identifying, acquiring, and managing a global 

sales representative network. 

Prior to his arrival at CUI, Adams was a 

sales and product development leader in the 

semiconductor industry with more than 17 

years of experience. He has acquired and 

managed major accounts such as Cisco 

Under the terms of the agreement, 

Butler Technologies will have access 

to the whole of TDK-Lambda’s 

power product offering, which range 

from tiny board-mounting DC-DC 

converters to multi-kilowatt power 

supplies, and will support them 

directly to its Irish customer base. 

Products of particular note include 

TDK-Lambda’s standard AC-DC 

PSUs, such as the LS low cost, general 

purpose supplies; the HWS 

range, which comes with a lifetime 

warranty; and high density PFE fullbricks, 

as well as its configurable 

products, which comprise the all digital 

EFE series, and the NV and Vega 

ranges. 

component functions. For example, minimum 

loss or minimum cost winding configurations 

may be computationally deduced for complex 

waveforms including phase displaced 

operating conditions. RAF Tabtronics has 

implemented this technology in many 

designs since its initial development in 

November 2004. 

www.raftabtronics.com 

Systems, Juniper Networks, Dell, Hewlett 

Packard (HP), Intel and others. Adams has 

represented proprietary products, commodity 

products, and value-add programs for Zilker 

Labs, Thorson Pacific, and Future Electronics. 

www.waytronx.com 

H2Expo, the International Conference and 

Trade Fair on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies, 

will be taking place in Hamburg 

from 17 to 19 November 2010. 

www.h2expo.de 

Providing a broad range of products and services to the electronics 

and communications industry, Butler Technologies has an established 

customer and opportunities base in Ireland. Aidan Butler, Sales 

Director comments: “As one of the world’s largest manufacturers of 

standard and configurable power supplies, TDK-Lambda’s pedigree 

fits well within our company’s philosophy to partner with the best in 

class.” 

Steve Read, Sales Manager of TDK-Lambda in the UK and Ireland, 

says: “We believe that Butler Technologies has the ability to augment 

our customer base further in Ireland. Their broad range of diverse 

services and technical capability are extremely impressive; this is 

topped by their excellent reputation and in-depth understanding of 

the Irish market.” 

www.emea.tdk-lambda.com 

www.butlergroup.ie 


BLUE PRODUCT OF THE MONTH 

Improved 25V and 30V 

MOSFETs for Point of 

Load Synchronous Buck 

Converter Applications 

International Rectifier has launched a series 

of 25V and 30V N-channel trench HEXFET® 

power MOSFETs featuring enhanced switching 

performance for synchronous buck converter 

and battery protection. 

The new family of MOSFETs utilizes IR’s 

proven silicon technology to deliver benchmark 

on-state resistance (RDS(on)) and 

improved switching performance. The 

Specifications 

Single N-Channel 

Part Number 

Bvdss 

(V) 

Package 

devices’ low conduction losses improve fullload 

efficiency and thermal performance 

while low switching losses help to achieve 

high efficiency even at light loads. 

The new MOSFETs are also offered in a 

Power QFN package to provide improved 

power density when compared with an SO-8 

package while keeping the same pin-out 

configuration. Depending upon application, 

RDS(on) 

Max 

@10Vgs (m Ω) 

RDS(on) 

Max 

@4.5Vgs (m Ω) 

the dual SO-8 MOSFETs allow a ‘two for 

one’ exchange to reduce component count. 

Single and dual N-channel MOSFETs are 

available. Single devices are offered in a 

PQFN 5x6mm and 3x3mm package optimized 

for high volume production in addition 

to D-PAK, I-PAK and SO-8 packages while 

dual devices are offered in an SO-8 package. 

The new devices are RoHS compliant 

and can be offered as Halogen free. 

Id @ 

T C=25C 

(A) 

Id @ 

T A=25C 

(A) 

IRL(R,U)8256(TR)PBF 25 D-Pak/I-PAK 5.7 8.5 81 N/A 10 

IRL(R,U)8259(TR)PBF 25 D-Pak/I-PAK 8.7 12.9 57 N/A 6.8 

IRF8252(TR)PBF 25 SO-8 2.7 3.7 N/A 25 35 



IRL(R,U)8721(TR)PBF 30 D-Pak/I-PAK 8.4 11.8 65 N/A 8.5 


IRFH3702(TR,TR2)PBF 30 PQFN 3 x 3 7.1 11.8 N/A 16 9.6 


IRFH7932(TR,TR2)PBF 30 PQFN 5 x 6 3.3 3.9 N/A 24 34 




IRFH7914(TR,TR2)PBF 30 PQFN 5 x 6 8.7 13 N/A 15 8.3 

IRF8788(TR)PBF 30 SO-8 2.8 3.8 N/A 24 44 

IRF7862(TR)PBF 30 SO-8 3.7 4.5 N/A 21 30 

IRF8734(TR)PBF 30 SO-8 3.5 5.1 N/A 21 20 

IRF8736(TR)PBF 30 SO-8 4.8 6.8 N/A 18 17 

IRF8721(TR)PBF 30 SO-8 8.5 12.5 N/A 14 8.3 

IRF8714(TR)PBF 30 SO-8 8.7 13 N/A 14 8.1 

IRF8707(TR)PBF 30 SO-8 11.9 17.5 N/A 11 6.2 

Dual N-Channel 

Bvdss 

(V) 

RDS(on) Max 

@10Vgs (m Ω) 

Vgs 

Max. (V) 

Part Number Package Configuration 

IRF8313PBF SO-8 

Independent 

symmetric 

30 15.5 ± 20 6.0 

IRF8513PBF SO-8 

Half-Bridge 

asymmetric 

30 

12.7 

15.5 

± 20 

7.6 

5.7 

Qg 

Typ (nC) 

N/A = Not Applicable 

10 Bodo´s Power Systems ® August 2009 www.bodospower.com 

Qg 

Typ 

(nC) 

Additional information is available on the 

International Rectifier website at: 

www.irf.com

All the power you need... 

For a more efficient future 

Intelligent Power Modules 

for Photovoltaic Application 

� 5 th Generation trench chip (CSTBT) for lower saturation 

voltage VCE(sat) = 1.55V at rated current and Tj = 125°C 

� Integrated high speed control ICs for switching 

frequencies up to 30kHz 

� Low noise (controlled di/dt) 

� On-chip temperature sensing and individual OT protection 

� With one, two or without boost converters built in for 

multi-string operation 

� Rated currents of 50A and 75A with a rated voltage of 600V 

Solar Cells 

Connection 

Box 

Filters 

semis.info@meg.mee.com · www.mitsubishichips.com 

IPM 

Filters

GREEN PRODUCT OF THE MONTH 

Triple Current Measurement 

in Single Housing 

LEM has introduced the HTT series of PCBmounting 

current transducers to provide the 

facility to measure three currents with a single 

PCB-mounted unit. The new transducers, 

with maximum measurement currents ranging 

from 25 to 150 A RMS, allow three-phase 

currents to be monitored independently by a 

unit occupying a mounting area of only 16.8 

cm2 and with a height of only 29 mm. 

The HTT transducers have three 12 x 10mm 

apertures for the primary conductors and are 

securely mounted by four metallic pins, 

which are soldered to the PCB. Secondary 

connections for power supply, 0 V and the 

three voltage outputs are also made to the 

PCB by pins. 

Five different models using the same housing 

are available to cover nominal current 

measurements of 3 x 25, 50, 75, 100 or 150 

A RMS, working with a bipolar power supply of 

± 12 to ± 15 V. The use of open-loop Halleffect 

technology allows DC, AC or pulse 

currents to be measured and provides galvanic 

isolation between the primary and output 

circuits, withstanding a test isolation voltage 

of 2.5 kVRMS/50Hz/1min. 

The transducers conform to the EN 50178 

standard and are CE marked according to 

European Directive 2004/108/EEC. They are 

particularly suitable for industrial applications 

and home appliances, such as variable 

speed drives, UPS, SMPS and air-conditioners. 

The HTT series is covered by a fiveyear 

warranty. 

LEM is a market leader in providing innovative 

and high quality solutions for measuring 

electrical parameters. Its core products – 

current and voltage transducers – are used 

in a broad range of applications in industrial, 

traction, energy, automation and automotive 

markets. LEM’s strategy is to exploit the 

intrinsic strengths of its core business, and 

develop opportunities in new markets with 

new applications. LEM is a mid-size, global 

company with approximately 900 employees 

worldwide. It has production plants in Gene- 

Biricha Digital Power offering 

Digital Power Supply Workshop based on TI's F28x family. 

For more information and your free drill hole stencil please visit 

www.biricha.com 

va (Switzerland), Machida (Japan), Beijing 

(China), plus regional sales offices, and 

offers a seamless service worldwide. Further 

information is available at: 

www.lem.com 


new munich trade fair centre 

10–13 november 2009 

www.productronica.com 

what’s new 

in electronics production? 

Register online + enjoy the benefi ts: www.productronica.com/ticket 

Forward-looking solutions that cover the entire value-added chain in electronics production. 

From classic sectors to tomorrow’s growth markets. Add to that the entire range of advanced 

technologies, hot topics and trends. The industry event of the year. 

innovation all along the line 

18th international trade fair for 

innovative electronics production

PRODUCT OF THE MONTH 

DC “LINK” Filter Capacitors 

with High Energy Density 

Electronic Concepts, an Irish capacitor manufacturer, 

has brought out two new series of 

filter capacitors whose high energy density 

makes them a suitable substitute for electrolytic 

capacitors. The UP3 and UL9 series 

are self-healing, metallized polypropylene 

capacitors. The key advantages over electrolytic 

capacitors are a life of at least 

100,000 hours at a maximum temperature of 

70°C, low ESL and ESR values, a high current 

capability of triple the peak current and 

a surge voltage capability of 1.5 times the 

rated voltage. The rated voltage of the UP3 

series extends from 700 to 3,000V, the maximum 

current to 100Arms and the standard 

capacitance from 65 to 2,100 microfarads 

with a tolerance of 10%. Series resistance is 

in the range of 0.6 to 6.5mOhm, while the 

permitted peak currents are between 1,350 

and 13,000A. The dielectric loss factor is 

2x10-4 and the capacitors have an operating 

temperature range of -40°C to +85°C. The 

dielectric strength between the case and the 

terminals is tested for 3kV at 50Hz for 10s. 

Other routine tests are for capacitance, dissipation 

factor, series resistance, dielectric 

strength between the terminals and an external 

inspection, all in accordance with 

IEC61071. 

The UL9 series has essentially the same 

characteristics as the UP3 series, as it is 

manufactured using the same technology. 

The parallel wiring of discrete individual 

components allows greater capacitances 

and consequently larger case designs. While 

the 40 members of the UP3 series are 

accommodated in an aluminum cylinder 

case with a diameter of 85 to 136mm and a 

height of 130 to 230mm, the 28 members of 

the UL9 series are housed in cuboid aluminum 

cases with lengths of 320 to 470mm, 

widths of 95 to 145mm and a height of 

330mm. The UL9 series is available with 

capacitances of 380 to 17,100 microfarads. 

The terminals are available in screw type 

and also available with solid bus terminals 

which are suitable for IGBT direct mounting. 

Additional capacitance values, voltages and 

mechanics are available on request. 

The film capacitors are destined for power 

conversion applications as developers can 

replace electrolytic capacitor banks with 

these components. 

Since its incorporation, Electronic Concepts 

has grown to be a recognized and respected 

name in the electronic component industry, 

focusing on specialty polycarbonate film 

capacitors. Through engineering innovation 

and expertise, production flexibility, and service, 

Electronic Concepts has become a 

major supplier in high technology fields of 

Avionics, Medical Electronics, General 

Instrumentation, Telecommunications, and 

many others. 

A major factor in the growth and success of 

Electronic Concepts has been out leadership 

role in the area of new and emerging technologies 

and our ability to address the 

changing needs of the industry. This effort is 

evidenced by our many patents and by the 

following innovative products: 

• Type ECR capacitor: this capacitor is 

physically the smallest film capacitor in the 

industry. It is the same size as the ceramic 

CK05. 

• Type HECR capacitor: This is a hermetically 

sealed version of the ECR, suitable 

for more stringent applications. Both the 

ECR and HECR capacitors are qualified to 

military specifications. 

• Type 5MC capacitor: This Capacitor type 

directly addresses the requirements of the 

switch-mode power supply industry, especially 

in view of the new, higher frequency 

technology being utilized in recent design. 

• Type MP80 and MP88 capacitors: These 

are Snubber Capacitors especially 

designed for protecting IGBT’s used in 

inverters and chargers in electric vehicles. 

• Unlytics: These are characterized by high 

energy density and are used in such applications 

as defibrillators. 

In order to provide swift and comprehensive 

worldwide service, the European Headquarters 

of Electronic Concepts is located in a 

20,000 square foot facility in Galway Ireland, 

established in 1982. 

In order to support our continuing technical 

advances, Electronic Concepts employs a 

staff of engineers whose combined film 

capacitor experience is in excess of 100 

years. Our talented engineers, in addition to 

keeping abreast of industry trends, are in 

frequent contact with customers to address 

their current, specific requirements. 

Complimenting the technical innovativeness, 

a total commitment to customer service has 

also been made in areas of quality, on-time 

delivery, and responsiveness. 

Quality: Several customers have included 

Electronic Concepts in “Dock-to-Stock” programs 

whereby incoming inspection has 

been eliminated. Participation in such programs 

is restricted to suppliers who have 

consistently demonstrated high levels of 

quality. In this respect, Electronic Concepts 

meets or exceeds the requirements of MIL-I- 

45208 in conjunction with MIL STD’s 45662 

and 202. As a result, we have been qualified 

to virtually all of the active film capacitor military 

specifications. Additionally, an SPC program 

is in effect and qualification to ISO 

9000 is in progress. Electronic Concepts 

(Europe) Quality Standards: ISO 9001, 

AS9100, QPL, CPES, IEEE and UL Recognized. 

Electronic Concepts offers the electronic 

industry a unique combination of resources: 

vertically integrated manufacturing; modern, 

automated production; broad engineering 

expertise which results in capacitor designs 

that set the industry standard – and the flexibility 

to handle any film capacitor requirement, 

with a commitment to quality and service. 

Current limits on capacitor technology only 

exist to be broken. It’s what we believed 

when we started. It’s what we believe now: 

Film Capacitor Innovation…Without Limits. 

Application Design Engineers are ready to 

help you harness our innovative expertise. 

We’ll be with you every step of the way, from 

concept to finished product. 

www.electronicconcepts.ie 


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GUEST EDITORIAL 

Materials Development – New 

Competencies Required for the 

Development of Power Modules 

By Dr.-Ing. Frank Osterwald, Senior Director Research & Development, Danfoss Silicon Power 

The development 

of power 

modules and 

their components 

is a 

multi-disciplinary 

task. 

Power module 

developers 

have to be 

trained in thermal,mechanical, 

electrical 

and materials engineering. Furthermore, 

they must understand requirements coming 

from applications, in order to proactively 

drive power module development in the right 

direction. Typically, “right direction” means to 

achieve a targeted quality, reliability and 

cost/performance ratio. 

The first step in power module development 

is to find out what the application requires in 

terms of power and in terms of mission profile. 

After that, many other requirements 

must be taken into account - all of them 

influencing the outline, arrangement, and the 

material of the ingredients and joints in a 

power module in order to obtain the desired 

properties. 

To get to lower cost, one could try just leaving 

out some costly components or parts. 

However this is not possible in general – but 

an approach like this might work if another 

component or part is able to take over the 

function of the missing component or part. 

Usually, this leads to multifunctional components 

or materials. 

In the past, for example, for the double function 

of good electrical conductivity and thermal 

properties, an engineer would have chosen 

a suitable material like copper. If more 

functions were required, such as corrosion 

resistance, a nickel-layer would be added to 

ensure that copper surface properties are 

properly modified, without significantly 

changing good electrical and thermal properties. 

Nowadays, there are many examples of 

multifunctional materials in power modules, 

and more are in development to adapt to 

even more functions. Some current multifunction 

examples are; 

• frame material that fulfil many roles, 

• silicone gel that is multi-talented, 

• base plates designed to obtain certain 

properties in conjunction with soldered 

DBC’s, or substrates already including the 

functionality of base plates, 

• solder that fulfils with good electrical and 

thermal properties, while being flexible 

enough to withstand thermo-mechanical 

stresses, 

• mould compounds that protect the power 

semiconductors against bad environments 

(not just rains and storms) while being 

easily processed and without increasing 

CTE mismatch, 

• AlSiC base plates tailored to perfectly 

adapt to the CTE of the substrates that 

are soldered to them, while keeping reasonable 

thermal conductivity and solderability, 

• pressure sinter materials with lowered sintering 

temperatures achieved by applying 

nano-technologies in the joining materials 

leading to better manufacturability and 

extended performance of the power modules. 

From my point of view, the development of 

power modules is currently undergoing a 

shift towards more intense material development. 

Whenever a discussion targets new 

concepts or joining methods for power modules, 

we ask the question: “How can this or 

that property or behaviour of a certain material 

be modified?” 

We discuss modification of surface properties 

using extra layers, or we look for a 

change in the properties or behaviour of the 

bulk material itself through adding or removing 

ingredients (as little as a few “ppm”), or 

to subject the bulk material to heat treatments 

or other processes. 

Whatever intention we might have as power 

module developers will not be achieved without 

close cooperation with our materials suppliers. 

And since materials development 

requires target specifications, our material 

suppliers need to be involved in our projects 

from the very beginning, as specialized 

equipment manufacturers will have to be. 

To be able to really achieve a better 

cost/performance ratio, together we must 

keep a close focus on cost. However, in this 

case, the total cost of ownership is to be 

considered, rather than just the materials 

price per kilo by itself. 

In this light it is highly appreciated that more 

and more materials specialists decide to 

become members of our ECPE family. In the 

framework of ECPE research work, materials 

suppliers together with other specialists 

for engineered materials can help power 

module developers hit their targets, not simply 

to provide “green” materials. New doped 

or alloyed wires, solder or sinter pastes, 

adhesives, layer materials and deposition 

techniques, as well as completely engineered 

base plates, substrates and housing 

materials will play a big role in the future, as 

we progress to more cost efficient and more 

reliable power modules. Thus, materials science 

will be the enabler for energy efficiency. 

Hopefully, this movement of power electronics 

development towards materials science 

will make our profession even more attractive 

to young talents. We can offer many 

challenges for physicists, chemists and 

materials scientists, to augment mechanical 

and electrical engineering in our research 

and development departments. We envision 

new multidisciplinary teams for joint development 

projects and new breakthroughs that 

will continue our record of progress in the 

development of power modules. 

siliconpower.danfoss.com 


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power is our knowledge 

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semi-info@fujielectric.de

MARKET 

ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY DIGEST 

By Aubrey Dunford, Europartners 

GENERAL 

To overcome the global economic crisis, 

stimulus programs of around $ 2.7 trillion 

globally have been announced, so Siemens. 

Around one third of this total – or almost $1 

trillion - is slated for investment in infrastructure 

projects. The remainder is accounted for 

example by tax cuts for private households. 

The total volume of planned infrastructure 

expenditures relevant for Siemens comes to 

about $ 210 billion globally. At slightly more 

than $ 120 billion, the share of the U.S. stimulus 

program's portion relevant for Siemens 

represents the largest share of the worldwide 

total. China is in second place with a 

Siemens-relevant share of approximately $ 

35 billion, followed by Germany with a share 

of around $ 7 billion. Major parts of these 

amounts are earmarked for green technologies. 

SEMICONDUCTORS 

Worldwide semiconductor revenue in the first 

quarter declined to $ 44.3 billion, down 18.8 

percent from the fourth quarter, so iSuppli. 

On a sequential basis, revenue will rise by 

7.1 percent in the second quarter, by 10.4 

percent in the third quarter and by 4.9 percent 

in the fourth quarter. Of the 130+ semiconductor 

suppliers tracked by iSuppli, only 

six managed to expand their revenue in the 

first quarter compared to the fourth quarter 

of 2008. 

The Korean company LS Industrial Systems 

and Infineon Technologies announced the 

establishment of the joint venture LS Power 

Semitech, which will focus on the development, 

production and marketing of moulded 

power modules for white good applications. 

LS Industrial Systems holds 54 percent and 

Infineon 46 percent of the joint venture. 

Centrosolar has announced a new investment 

partner for the building of a new solar 

PV manufacturing plant in Portugal. 

Microsemi, a manufacturer of analog mixed 

signal integrated circuits has executed an 

asset purchase agreement with Nexsem, a 

small designer of high voltage DC to DC 

conversion devices. 

RF Micro Devices has formed a gallium 

nitride (GaN) foundry services business unit 

to supply GaN semiconductor technology 

into multiple RF power markets. 

OPTOELECTRONICS 

The TFT-LCD panel market has entered into 

definite recovery phase, so Displaybank. 

May 2009 large-area TFT-LCD panel shipments 

indicate all time record-high shipments 

with 43.73 million units which 

increased 5.4 percent Y/Y. The LCD TV 

panel shipments increased 13.7 percent M/M 

and 41.6 percent from Y/Y. The LCD TV 

shipments are about 28 percent of the total 

large-area panel shipments and 56 percent 

of the total revenue. 

PASSIVE COMPONENTS 

The new edition of the worldwide passive & 

interconnection component markets database 

from Decision is available. The worldwide 

passives market in 2013 should be 

equivalent to 2008 level as growth is expected 

to come back in 2011, after a 10 percent 

decline in 2009. 


Digital Power Supply Workshop based on TI's F28x family. 

For more information and your free drill hole stencil please visit 


OTHER COMPONENTS 

Elcoteq sells the majority of the machinery, 

equipment and materials of its Tallinn manufacturing 

operations to Ericsson. Elcoteq currently 

employs approximately 1,600 persons 

in Tallinn, of which approximately 1,200 will 

be transferred to Ericsson. Elcoteq will retain 

specialized manufacturing capacity in Estonia 

to serve its other customers. 

DISTRIBUTION 

Advanced Power Components (APC), the 

UK specialist distributor and manufacturers' 

representative of electronic components, has 

signed a distribution agreement with AVX to 

distribute its established range of high reliability 

capacitors including tantalum, ceramic 

and other advanced devices. The products 

will be distributed through the APC Hi-Rel 

unit. 

ZF Electronics, formerly Cherry Electrical 

Products, has appointed Futura Electronics 

as a franchised distributor for its brand-leading 

range of switches, controls and sensors 

in Ireland. 

UK-based distributor Anglia has signed a 

franchise agreement with Intersil, a supplier 

in analog and power IC solutions. The 

agreement allows Anglia to sell and support 

Intersil’s entire portfolio of standard analog 

ICs across the UK and Ireland. 

This is the comprehensive power related 

extract from the « Electronics Industry Digest 

», the successor of The Lennox Report. For 

a full subscription of the report contact: 

eid@europartners.eu.com or by 

fax 44/1494 563503. 

www.europartners.eu.com 


MARKET 

Advances in DC Powered Facilities 

By Richard Ruiz Jr. Research Analyst, Darnell Group 

The past several years have been relatively good for emerging technologies 

that have implications for power, with applications ranging 

from photovoltaics and wind power to fuel cell installations. Despite 

this good fortune, the conventional wisdom is that there hasn’t really 

been a substantial new development in the industry with the potential 

to create a whole new market for power supplies – at least at the 

application level. This may be about to change. The recent Green 

Building Power Forum (GBPF), held in Anaheim, California was 

organized to discuss dc power distribution in general – both high voltage 

and low voltage. The conference identified a number of DC powered 

solutions designed for both residential and commercial buildings. 

These dc powered projects of the future won’t be limited to just 

new construction; in fact, most of the opportunities are expected to 

be found in retrofits. 

However, as with many “new” technologies, the opportunities have to 

emerge in the right areas at the right time. The concept of dc powered 

buildings is not new, the concept of high voltage dc in data centers 

has been around for years and is making inroads, but not at an 

exceptional pace and there is a reason for that, as explained in a 

presentation by NTT Facilities. NTT Facilities presented a typical ac 

and dc power system model in data centers. The two models were 

virtually identical in their architectures: utility grid power, mechanical 

switches, ac-dc power supply, battery and information and communication 

technology (ICT) equipment load. The model using dc power 

simply removes the UPS and static switch, with the dc power plant 

supplying power directly to dc-powered ICT equipment. In effect, all 

that is being done in this model is substituting the ac products with dc 

products, with the end results being some energy savings and reliability. 

The system is a tough sell when ac power works perfectly well. 

One of the “success factors” that Darnell looks for in any emerging 

technology is the investment by large, industry-leading companies. 

Although many companies have looked into dc power distribution 

over the years, much of this was focused at the high-voltage end, 

particularly in data centers. This has been a longer evolution, but 

support from companies like Google has provided renewed interest. 

Energy efficiency has played a huge role in this evolution. The lowvoltage 

interest is relatively new, but it has gotten immediate traction 

with the push from industry leaders like Armstrong World Industries, 

Osram Sylvania, Johnson Controls and Southern California Edison of 

the EMerge Alliance. New markets don’t just appear out of nowhere, 

and the backing of large, major companies goes a long way in opening 

up a killer app. Combined with standards in both the high-voltage 

and low-voltage spaces, dc power distribution could be poised to take 

off in a relatively short period of time. 

One of the areas showing more promise is low-voltage (e.g. sub- 

24vdc) dc distribution aimed at residential and commercial buildings. 

This architecture removes the ac-dc conversion stage, with only lowpower 

dc-dc conversion required. As an example, for an all-dc system 

supplied by photovoltaics, the removal of the inverter stage 

saves up to 15% of the array’s energy, followed by a further saving 

from the energy lost in the ac-dc power supply in the load. This is an 

entirely new approach to powering a building, and it requires both 

new products and a new method of installation. Unlike data centers, 

you can’t just bring in the same installers and have them put in dc 

power supplies instead of ac power supplies. Low-voltage dc power 

in residences and commercial buildings includes power for lighting 

fixtures, sensors and other electrical devices, as well as appliances 

in homes. 

Retrofits, as opposed to new construction, are being targeted 

because of the costs saved by not changing the infrastructure, including 

installation, reconfiguration, upgrading and fixed assets. Buildings 

last a long time, and new construction projects can’t compete with 

existing building retrofits. In addition, energy efficiency can be 

improved in other areas in the system, using other types of emerging 

technologies such as individual, addressable wireless controls. The 

continued development and advancement of this technology could 

present a number of opportunities for the manufacturers of power 

supplies. One possibility presented at GBPF was a new class of intelligent 

universal power transformer (IUT) technology. An IUT for a residence 

would take input power at 13.8kVac from the grid and provide 

48Vdc for the home wiring. This is an entirely new way of looking at a 

general IUT concept for a power electronic replacement for today’s 

conventional distribution transformers. Such a product could provide 

a cornerstone for advanced distributed automation of the electric grid. 

In contrast to digital power and energy harvesting, which have both 

emerged onto the power electronics scene with much fanfare, lowvoltage 

dc distribution provides power supply manufacturers with an 

opportunity to develop an entirely new architecture. Although providing 

companies with substantial revenue potential, digital control of 

power supplies is more an evolution of power supply design and 

functionality – akin to the gradual introduction of switch-mode power 

supplies, while energy harvesting is an opportunistic technology that 

is being implemented in niche segments that have “environmental” 

challenges. It is similar to digital power in that it has broad application, 

making it more a solution than an enabler. Low-voltage dc distribution, 

on the other hand, is an actual change in how buildings are 

powered, and that is where the opportunity will be. 

According to a number of discussions at GBPF, the feasibility of a dcpowered 

data center is still under debate. However, the consensus is 

that the economics of dc power distribution are now what could propel 

it into commercial viability, and the power architecture shift is 

what could make this technology very interesting to power supply 

manufacturers. However, further work must be done to address a 

number of technical issues, such as cabling, energy losses, and the 

advantage of using dc appliances as opposed to ac appliances (like 

servers, the systems have to be designed to work with dc power). In 

fact, the manufacture of dc appliances is essential to increasing 

economies of scale. All of this will require further industry coordination 

and cooperation. 

www.darnell.com 

www.powerpulse.net 


VIP INTERVIEW 

Interview with Bernd Pfeil, 

Vice President Sales & Marketing 

Central Europe from 

EBV Elektronik on Power Electronics Support 

Bodo Arlt: What influence does the growing alternative energy market 

have on the distribution channels for power semiconductors at 

EBV? 

Bernd Pfeil: The alternative energy market has been growing strongly 

for years. Due to climate change and higher commodity prices, 

growth rates have increased even more in recent years and will continue 

to rise disproportionately in the coming years. As a consequence, 

new companies will enter the market and establish themselves 

alongside existing manufacturers. The efficiency of current 

systems must increase and our company, together with our manufacturers, 

are well positioned to address this issue specifically and satisfy 

the demands of the market end-to-end. In the power semiconductor 

segment we offer both discrete components as well as modules 

and our product portfolio extends through to the kV-and kA ranges. In 

this area our line card includes Fairchild, Infineon, National, NXP, 

ON, ST, Texas, Toshiba and Vishay. For power management solutions 

we have Atmel, Freescale, Fujitsu and Intersil, as well. 

Bodo Arlt: What challenges do you see in the alternative energy 

market? 

Bernd Pfeil: In the future, systems will grow in terms power production 

and energy efficiency will play an important role. Our challenge 

will be to develop new technologies and trends in both applications 

and components in very close cooperation with both customers and 

semiconductor manufacturers. 

Bodo Arlt: Which tools and solutions does EBV offer to stay ahead 

in these markets? 

Bernd Pfeil: For years we have been propagating the full solution 

philosophy. We support our customers in all stages of the valueadded 

chain starting with comprehensive application support and 

design know-how to value-added services and on to complete logistics 

solutions. 120 FAEs throughout EMEA spend four weeks per 

year in advanced training courses to ensure the best technical support 

possible. Additionally, we have many specialized field application 

engineers who are able to provide our customers with expert product 

and application know-how in many segments such as, for example, 

analog and power technology. Also, a design partner network of engineering 

companies is at our customers’ disposal for additional services. 

In addition th this we also have a team of 240 very well technical 

edujated FSEs who support our customers together with our FAEs. 

In late 2006 we began providing our own reference designs to help 

customers save costs and development time. As a means of additional 

support we also distribute our semi-annual MIP (Marketing Innova- 

By Bodo Arlt, Editor BPS 

tive Products) brochure where we present the newest and most innovative 

products and technologies. All articles are written by our own 

field application engineers. At the end of 2007 we launched a new 

scientific journal “The Quintessence” with each edition dedicated 

exclusively to a specific topic of current interest. In previous issues 

we covered LED technology, ECOdesign, RFID technology, Renewable 

Energie and the next one which will be launched in Ocober will 

cover Building Automation. 

Bodo Arlt: What semiconductor products are targeting developments 

in alternative energy? 

Bernd Pfeil: As I mentioned, we practice a full solution philosophy 

which means we don’t solely on semiconductor products. To do justice 

to this philosophy, we offer not only discrete power products but 

also modules by Fairchild, Infineon, STMicroelectronics and Vishay. 

Green energy is an extremely important topic for EBV. In April of last 

year we kicked-of a number of initiatives under the motto “ECOmise 

it.” These include our white paper, a carbon footprint calculator and 

internal codes of conduct for employees as well as EBV-BAT (Best 

Accessible Product) product certification and EMEA-wide seminars 

for the EuP (Energy using Products) directive of the European 

Union. For EBV Elektronik, protection of the environment is not only 

ecological awareness but also a competitive advantage: only those 

who set new ecological standards will be economically successful! In 

that respect we really do have a lot to offer. Just visit 

www.ebv.com/ecomiseit - it is worth it! 

Bodo Arlt: What sets EBV apart from other distributors? 

Bernd Pfeil: EBV has been involved in semiconductor distribution 

for 40 years and focuses exclusively on semiconductors. We have 

long-term customer relationships and manufacturer partnerships. We 

are number one in the network of most of our manufacturers. Everything 

we do is with our customer in mind and to provide them with 

best possible service we employ 240 Field Sales Engineers and 120 

Field Application Engineers. Our excellent purchasing organization 

ensures that we offer market-oriented prices and, finally, customers 

appreciate our very effective logistics and value-added services. 

Bodo Arlt: How much is EBV involved in the end customer’s wind 

power or solar applications? 

Bernd Pfeil: We have known and worked closely these customers 

for years. In this strong-growth market we continually welcome new 

customers in the fields of wind and solar energy. 


Bodo Arlt: To what extent is EBV involved in applications for electric 

hybrid vehicles? 

Bernd Pfeil: This market is still very young. In addition to the automotive 

marketplace, we are also actively watching the CAV (Commercial 

& Agricultural Vehicle) and working with customers in both 

areas. This area is constantly expanding as more and more companies 

get involved. 

Bodo Arlt: How do you see the future in distribution considering that 

a number of semiconductor manufacturers have begun selling direct 

on the web? 

Bernd Pfeil: Our customers appreciate our services and either do 

not want to or simply cannot do without. We see website distribution 

as an add-on for small quantity orders and sampling. This is where it 

makes sense. Our manufacturers agree and rely on us as a partner 

for their customers. 

Bodo Arlt: What value does EBV place on the design process? 

Bernd Pfeil: Many of our manufacturers are downsizing their sales 

departments with a dramatic effect on technological resources and 

this is where our customers need our support the most. We were the 

first distributor to realize this and act accordingly. Apart from our 

FAEs, most of our field sales engineers are academic engineers as 

well. This underlines our full solution philosophy. 

Bodo Arlt: How do you see catalogue distributors in the market who 

sell just components without any support? 

Bernd Pfeil: Catalog distributors usually cater to customers who 

require small quantities and no in depth technical commercial or 

logistics support. Since most customers, however, appreciate support 

and the personal contact, catalogue distributors will only be able to 

cover a limited segment of the market. 

Bodo Arlt: Mr. Bernd Pfeil, thank you very much for your time. We 

look forward to a bright future for power modules in wind power and 

solar applications. 

www.bodospower.com 

Bernd Pfeil, 49, 

EBV Vice President Sales & Marketing 

Central Europe. 

Since 1990 Area Sales Engineer at EBV, 

later on Regional Sales Manager Baden- 

Württemberg. Since 2007 Vice President 

Sales & Marketing Central Europe. 

www.ebv.com 

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COVER STORY 

2500A/1200V Dual IGBT Module 

The chip layout has been designed for increasing cooling capacity 

using liquid cooling 

A 2500A/1200V dual IGBT module for industrial use is reported. A small inductance 

internal wiring structure from the P to N terminals has been developed for this large current 

device. Semiconductor chips are arranged for the purpose of increasing the cooling 

capability of the module and an aluminium base plate with a direct bonded insulation 

substrate is used for the purpose of increasing the thermal cycling capability. To achieve 

a better thermal contact between the base plate and the cooling fin for such a large base 

area device, the base plate is separated into several sections. The 2500A/1200V dual 

IGBT module package has also applied to a 1800A/1700V dual IGBT module. 

Our conventional IGBT module series, 

named MPD (Mega Power Dual), which 

includes a 1400A/1200V dual device, was 

developed to allow for the better design of 

larger industrial power equipment. However, 

with the recent expansion of renewable 

energy generation systems like wind power 

and photovoltaic, there is a demand for larger 

overall system power. To realize this higher 

power market demand in a simple form 

factor, a new 2500A/1200V dual IGBT module 

has been developed. 

Terminal layout 

The outline of this module is shown in Figure 

1. The package length is about twice that of 

the width. The main P and N terminals are 

located to one side, and the AC terminal is 

located at the opposite side of the package 

for convenient inverter stack design. The signal 

terminals are located in the middle area 

of the package and so allow for simple 

mounting of the gate driver board directly on 

top of the module. This terminal design also 

allows for simple wiring when the driver 

board is located separately to the module. 

Structure of base plate 

As the base plate area gets larger, it 

becomes difficult to get a good fit between 

the base plate and the cooling fin. To solve 

this problem, separated base plate sections 

are used for this module. The module case 

consists of two parts in the direction of 

height to sustain the bending stress caused 

by the separated base plate sections. This 

By Ayumi Maruta, Mitsuharu Tabata, Power Device Works, 

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Japan 

structure allows for independent screening 

tests for each base plate section. In this 

respect, existing test equipment normally for 

testing smaller devices can be utilised. 

Figure 1: Outline of module 

Figure 2: Image of to fit cooling fin 

Figure 3: Structure of separated base plate 

The total power loss in such large module 

can be more than 5kW at maximum power in 

an inverter application. For such high power 

loss it is normal to use liquid cooling and a 

value of 5000[W/m 2 K] is what one might typically 

need for liquid cooling in such an application. 

In liquid cooling systems the case 

temperature changes faster than for aircooled 

systems and so thermal cycle capability 

and thermal radiation ability is important. 

A module will require about 400[cm 2 ] 

@ΔTc=25K of liquid cooling fin under the 

5000[W/m 2 K] condition. The chosen base 

plate size of our new 2500A/1200V dual 

module is sufficient for this thermal radiation 

ability. However, liquid cooling causes a 

large change in case temperature and so it 

is necessary to increase the thermal cycling 

capability of the module. To be able to 

achieve this, an aluminium base plate with a 

directly bonded insulation substrate is used 

(Figure 5). This base plate structure allows 

for the removal of the solder layer between 

the base plate and the isolation ceramic, a 

well known weak point in the structure of a 

conventional module after thermal cycling 

has taken place (Figure 4). This solder layer 

is subjected to degradation by temperature 

cycling stress resulting in an increasing thermal 

resistance Rth(j-c) over the lifetime of 

the module. The thermal resistance of conventional 

copper base plate structure and 

aluminium base plate structure is compared 

by simulation. The cross sections of a cop- 


per base plate structure and an aluminium 

base plate structure are shown in Figure 4 

and Figure 5. 

Figure 4: Cross-section of copper base plate 

structure 

Figure 5: Cross-section of aluminium base 

plate structure 

Figure 6 and Figure 7 show thermal resistance 

simulation results of the copper base 

plate structure and of the aluminium base 

plate structure respectively. The thermal 

resistance values of both types are almost 

the same even though the thermal conduc- 

Figure 6: Thermal distribution of chip surface 

(aluminium base plate) 

Figure 7: Thermal distribution of chip surface 

(copper base plate) 

tivity of aluminium is inferior to that of copper. 

This is a direct result of the elimination 

of the small conductivity solder layer. 

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COVER STORY 

Chip layout 

The chip layout has been designed for the 

purpose of increasing the cooling capacity 

when using liquid cooling. The distance 

required between one chip and another in 

order to suppress the chip’s mutual thermal 

interference has been verified by simulation. 

Figure 8: Structure for simulation 

Figure 9: Internal chip distance versus water 

flow 

Figure 8 shows the structure for this simulation. 

Figure 9 shows the result of simulation 

of temperature difference between chip and 

www.bodospower.com August 2009 Bodo´s Power Systems ® 


25

COVER STORY 

water at 200[W/chip]. The distance between 

chips of this module is about 30mm. The 

result illustrates, that this distance is enough 

for liquid cooling. 

For best cooling performance the liquid cooling 

pipe should be located just under the 

chips. For this purpose the position of base 

plate mounting holes was chosen to avoid 

any interference between pipe and mounting 

hole, see Figure 10. 

Figure 10: Image of chip layout 

Structure of terminal 

A smaller internal package inductance is 

required when increasing the rated module 

current. However, in order to necessitate a 

higher current rating the package becomes 

larger and so the wiring length tends to get 

longer, thus causing an increase of the internal 

package inductance. Therefore, there is 

a trade-off. One way to reduce the inductance 

per length is to increase the width of 

the laminated bus inside the module, but this 

width is limited by the physical space within 

the module. In order to achieve a small 

inductance bus bar, a four layer laminated 

bus has been selected. This structure allows 

the concentration of current density in bus 

bar to be reduced and it reduces the separation 

ratio of the current density to each terminal 

contact. The inductance value is confirmed 

by simulation. For adequacy of inductance 

simulation software against theory, the 

simulation value is compared to a calculated 

value, which is calculated by theory equation 

of a simple structure. Figure 11 shows the 

simple structure. 

Figure 11: Simulated value versus calculated 

value 

μr x μ 0 x (d/W) x L 

• μr = 1 

• μ 0 = 4Π x 10 -7 

• d: gap of parallel plate (distance) 

• W: Direct direction distance of pathway 

(Width) 

• L: Parallel direction distance of current 

pathway (Length) 

The two results are similar. This simulation is 

therefore a good method for the examination 

of structure. In order to achieve a small internal 

inductance bus bar, a four layer laminated 

bus is used in this package. Figure 12 

shows a bus bar structure. 

Figure 12: Structure of bus bar 

The target inductance of laminated bus part 

is chosen as 3nH or less. To realize this 

value, two plate structures of width 50mm or 

more are needed. The case height needs to 

be 50mm or less when taking into account 

the case strength of transformation. Therefore, 

two plate structures cannot be utilised. 

In our simulation, the best structure of a parallel 

plate bar is modelled. The simulation 

value of four parallel plate structures is 

2.59nH at 1MHz. This result means that a 

four parallel plate structure is the most suitable 

solution for this module. 

Figure 13: Simulation structure 

Figure 14: Image of terminal inductance 

The reduction of the module’s internal inductance 

will also improve the balance of how 

the total current is shared between each 

chip. As L2 is small when compared with L1 

and L3, then the difference between the gate 

voltage at each chip is small, and so as a 

result the current balance between chips is 

expected to be improved. 

Figure 15: Structure of inductance simulation 

for module 

Inductance of this module 

Figure 15 shows the structure of the inductance 

simulation for module. To reject the 

influence of any outside wiring, a wide laminated 

bus is connected to the terminals as a 

source and sink. The sink and source is set 

to the side of the laminated bus to reduce 

the influence of the unpractical net surface 

area. 

Figure 16: Measurement wave (Vcc = 150V 

turn-off) 

Figure 17: Test circuit 


The simulation result of the total inductance 

inside the module is 5.18nH from P to N at 

1MHz. This result is less than the initial target 

value. Figure 17 shows the test circuit for 

confirming the internal package inductance. 

The switching device (CM1400DU-24NF) is 

switching under the condition of 1500A as a 

di/dt generator. The DUT (Device Under 

Test) is connected in series and the voltage 

peak caused by the impressed di/dt is measured 

between P and N terminals of DUT. 

The package inductance of DUT is calculated 

by using the waveforms shown in Figure 

16. 

The package inductance inside this module 

is obtained by the following calculations: 

di/dt: 9.375 [A/ns] 

V pn (the generated voltage between P and 

N): 52 [V] 

V CE(sat): 1.37 [V] @ I c=500A 

(V pn-V CE(sat)x2) / (di/dt) = 5.25nH 

The same result is obtained as with the simulation, 

and the targeted value is achieved. 

Characteristic of 6 th generation chip 

(1200V) 

Fine pitch and retrograde profile CS-layer 

CSTBT is developed as a 6 th generation 

IGBT. Figure 18 shows the cross-sectional 

view of the 6 th generation IGBT and the 5th 

generation IGBT. 

Figure 18: The cross-sectional view of the 

6th generation IGBT and 5th generation 

IGBT 

Figure 19: Loss simulation comparison with 

conventional IGBT module series 

The trade off between VCE(sat) - E off for our 

6th generation IGBT is reduced by 0.7V 

compared to our 5th generation IGBT at the 

same E off-level. Figure 19 shows a comparison 

of the result of one example of calculation 

loss for the same dv/dt condition. This 

shows that the total loss in an inverter operation 

for our 6th generation IGBT is calculated 

to be 25% lower than that for our 5 th generation 

IGBT module at a fixed dv/dt condition. 

Characteristic of 6 th generation chip 

(1700V) 

The same module package has also been 

applied to the newly developed 

1800A/1700V dual IGBT module. Therefore, 

we briefly introduce the characteristics of our 

6th generation 1700V IGBT. Figure 20 

shows the trade off of V CE(sat) - E off. The 

trade off between V CE(sat) - E off is reduced by 

about 0.35V compared to our 5 th generation 

at same E off-level. Figure 21 shows turn-on 

speed control. The turn-on loss is improved 

by about 25% compared to our 5 th generation 

at the same dv/dt (10kV/μs). 

Figure 20: V CE(sat) - E off trade off 

Figure 21: Turn-on loss versus dv/dt 

Conclusion 

A new 2500A/1200V dual IGBT module for 

industrial use has been presented. An 

extremely low internal package inductance 

has been achieved by using an internal 4layer 

main terminal bus. The chip layout too 

has been optimized for liquid cooling. For 

improved thermal contact resistance to the 

heat sink the base plate consists of several 

separated sections. Direct bonding between 

the ceramic insulation substrate and the aluminium 

base plate is used for an improved 

thermal cycling capability. Improved loss per- 

COVER STORY 

formance is obtained by using the latest 6th 

generation IGBT and FWDi chips. The same 

package has also been applied to the 

1800A/1700V dual IGBT module and so 

other module ratings are now under consideration, 

utilising the same standardized base 

plate section, allowing for a good cost to performance 

ratio. 

Literature 

[1] Junji Yamada: Next Generation High 

Power Dual IGBT Module with CSTBT Chip 

and New Package Concept, PCIM 2002 

[2] Tetsuo Takashi: CSTB TM (III) as the next 

generation IGBT, ISPSD2008-May, pp. 72-75 

[3] Katsumi Satoh: New chip design technology 

for next generation power module, PCIM 

08 

www.mitsubishichips.com 

Biricha Digital Power 

offering 

Digital Power Supply Workshop 

based on TI's F28x family. 

For more information and your free 

drill hole stencil please visit 





27

IGBT MODULES 

IGBT Power Modules 

Utilizing 650V IGBT3 and 

Emitter Controlled Diode3 

Up to now setting up a three level phase leg has only been possible 

by applying discrete devices or combining at least three modules. By 

integrating a three level phase leg into a single module, adapting chip 

technology for slightly higher breakdown voltage and providing a simple 

solution for driving this topology becomes more appealing for new 

projects. 

Operation principles of 3-level NPC topology 

The three level phase leg in NPC topology consists of four IGBTs 

with its associated anti-parallel diodes, all arranged in series, and two 

additional diodes DH and DL connecting intermediate nodes to the 

neutral point of the DC-link. All power semiconductors used exhibit 

the same blocking voltage. Depending on sign of output voltage and 

current, four different commutation loops are in operation during one 

period of the output base frequency. With voltage and current in positive 

direction T 1 and D H operate like a buck chopper whereas T 2 just 

conducts the output current without switching as shown in Fig. 1a). 

For voltage and current being both negative T 4 and D B operate like a 

boost chopper with T3 just conducting the current. For these conditions 

only two devices are within the commutation loop and this will 

Achieving a Three Level Converter 

Recently the three level Neutral-Point-Clamped topology (NPC) known from high power 

applications is also applied in low and medium power applications to exploit specific 

advantages in system level design. Applications requiring filters, like UPS systems or PV 

inverters benefit from improved spectral performance and lower specific switching loss of 

lower voltage class devices. 

By Xi Zhang, Uwe Jansen and Holger Rüthing, 

Infineon Technologies AG, Germany 

Figure 1: Commutation loops in a three level phase leg. a) short commutation; 

b) long commutation 

be referred to as short commutation. But with the output current 

being negative combined with positive voltage, current flowing 

through T3 and D B has to commutate to D 2 and D 1 as shown in Fig. 

1b). This commutation involves four devices and will be designated 

as long commutation. For the remaining case another path of long 

commutation exists. Managing stray inductances and over voltages 

for the long commutation is one of the demanding tasks when 

designing three-level converters. 

New IGBT modules dedicated for 3-level NPC topology with 

650 V iGBT3 and emitter controlled 3 diode chips 

While integrating in total four IGBTs and six diodes is not an option 

for high power applications, this is feasible in the low power and 

medium power range as far as number of available power and control 

pins does permit the use of a standard package. 

For the low power range, the EasyPACK 2B package as shown in 

Fig. 2 offers sufficient DBC area to integrate a complete 150 A three 

level phase leg. Due to the facts that pins can be placed freely within 

the given grid and the pins can be assigned to provide either a power 

or a control function, suitable interconnection means are provided. 

There are auxiliary emitter terminals available to enable fast switching. 

For power terminals up to eight pins are used in parallel to 

achieve the required current rating as well as to minimize stray inductance 

and PCB heating. 

Figure 2: 

EasyPACK 2B 

package 


For the medium power range, the newly introduced EconoPACK 4 

package is an optimal choice for integrating all the power devices. 

The three terminals are used to enable a low inductance connection 

to a split DC-link as it is needed for three level converters, whereas 

the two terminals on the opposing side are used in parallel as phase 

output terminals. A driver PCB can be connected directly to the control 

terminals visible at the edge of the module frame. This package 

is intended to be used for three level phase legs with chip currents 

up to 300 A. 

Integrating all devices of a three level phase leg into one module is 

very promising in regard to minimizing stray inductance, but with only 

600 V of blocking voltage it is still very difficult to meet typical application 

requirements due to 

• Non-perfect balance of DC-link voltages 

• Faster switching of 600 V devices 

Call for Papers 

Figure 3: 

EconoPACK 4 

package 

Join a stellar list of international engineers from industry, research and 

academia to discuss, debate and learn about recent developments and 

future trends in this important and fast changing area. 

In 2010 the conference is expanding its focus to embrace the challenges 

and solutions of the applications and systems in which power 

electronics, motor and drive technologies play a critical part. 

Attendees at PEMD 2010, established as a major forum to showcase the 

latest advances in power technology, will gain valuable insights into the 

technology roadmaps of the materials and components that are integral 

to driving innovation. 

Supported by: Exhibitors: Media Partners: 

IGBT MODULES 

To ease the design and give customer larger margin, these modules 

are equipped with enhanced IGBT and diode chips which can block 

650 V. These new chips have exactly the same conduction and 

switching characteristic as the well known 600 V iGBT3 devices. Also 

the softness and robustness of both devices (SOA, RBSOA, SCSOA) 

stay unchanged. This is enabled by the development of new termination 

structures for IGBT and diode, the ultra thin thickness of 

70 μm is not changed. Therefore V CESat of the 650 V IGBT stays at 

its excellent value of 1.45V (1.70V) at 25°C (150°C) [1] with low 

switching losses that contribute only one third of the total inverter 

losses for switching frequencies of 16 kHz. Also the IGBT still has its 

smooth current tail that even at critical conditions shows no snap-off 

[2]. The diode also stays at the optimized VF-Qrr trade-off at 1.55V 

(1.45V) at 25°C (150°C) [1] and keeps its soft switching behavior. 

Challenge of IGBT Driver design for 3-level topology 

The application of three level NPC topology in low and medium 

power applications creates some specific driver requirements that 

have to be considered for optimum system performance. 

Arising from high switching frequency 

• Due to switching frequencies covering a range form 16 kHz to 30 

kHz the driver has to provide small and consistent propagation 

delay so that the deadtime can be minimized. Considering the fast 

switching times of 650 V devices the main contribution to deadtime 

requirement arises from variation in driver propagation delay [3]. If 

deadtime is too large compared to the period of the switching frequency 

this will lead to nonlinear behavior of the inverter stage creating 

new challenges in control algorithms [4], [5]. 

The 5 th IET International Conference on 

Power Electronics, Machines and Drives 

PEMD 2010 

19-21 April 2010 | Thistle Hotel | Brighton | UK 

Conference Themes: 

� More/All Electric Transport 

� Generation, Transmission and Distribution 

� Machines and Drives 

� Power Electronics 

� Renewable Energy Systems 

Key Deadlines 

18 September 2009 Abstract Submission 

27 November 2009 Notification of Acceptance 

29 January 2010 Submission of Final Papers 

19-21 April 2010 Date of Conference 

For a full list of topics and to submit 

your paper, please visit the web site 

www.theiet.org/pemd 


29

IGBT MODULES 

Arising from topology 

• Although the devices used only have a blocking voltage of 600 V 

or 650 V the isolation requirements for the driver are similar to a 

1200 V application 

• Since the number of driver circuits doubles, it is mandatory to use 

a design for the driver and its power supply with low part count and 

low board space requirement. 

• Protection features like short circuit detection and under voltage 

lockout have to match with three level NPC topology. Turning off 

an inner IGBT first (T2, T3 in Fig. 1) would expose this device to 

the full DC-link voltage and lead to immediate device failure due to 

SCSOA or RBSOA violation. 

With the new integrated IGBT drivers of the EiceDRIVER family 

these requirements can be met without big effort [6], [7]: 

• The integrated microtransformer provides basic isolation up to a 

repetitive isolation voltage of 1420 V peak. 

• With the integrated Active Miller Clamp feature this driver can be 

used with a single supply at high switching speed without the risk 

of parasitic turn on [8]. 

• Compared to typical opto-coupler based drivers tolerances and 

variation of propagation delay are significantly reduced by the 

microtransformer technology. 

• The integrated Vcesat-protection may be used for the outer switches 

but has to be disabled for the inner IGBTs. 

Laboratory test and results 

In the following section, switching waveforms of an EasyPACK 2B 3level 

module will be shown. The tests have been done using 

1ED020I12-F IGBT gate driver for IGBTs. The current has been 

measured with current transducer either at DC+ or DC-. 

Short commutation 

Figure 4 shows the switching waveforms of a short commutation at 

nominal current, a DC voltage of 400V and 25°C junction temperature. 

With a peak value of 550 V the voltage stays well within limits. 

Figure 4: Switching waveforms of a short commutation 

Long Commutation 

Figure 5 shows the switching waveforms of a long commutation at 

the same conditions. 

With a voltage peak of 580 V this voltage is only about 30 V higher 

than for the short commutation and still fairly below the 650 V breakdown 

voltage. 

Figure 5: Switching waveforms of a long commutation 

First measurement results show that due to integration of a complete 

three-level phase leg into a single module switching behavior nearly 

similar to the short commutation can be achieved for the long commutation. 

However, to achieve enough headroom to switch at higher 

currents a further reduction of circuit stray inductance would be necessary. 

This can be achieved easily by using several capacitors in 

parallel and using a multilayer board reducing the spacing between 

the coplanar power layers connecting module and capacitors. Furthermore, 

it has to be considered that a real application circuit would 

not contain current transformers within the DC-link connections. The 

current transformers used here contribute to stray inductance with 

15 nH, increasing the overvoltage by 45 V. 

Conclusion 

With integrating a complete phase leg into one single module, 

increasing blocking voltage from 600 V to 650 V and providing a 

highly integrated driver solution the three level inverter proofs to be 

an attractive candidate for low and medium power low voltage applications 

requiring high switching frequency, filtering and high efficiency 

like double conversion UPS and PV inverters. 

References 

[1] Datasheet of FS6R06VE3_B2, available at www.infineon.com 

[2] Kanschat, P.; Rüthing, H.; Umbach, F.; Hille F.: 600 V IGBT³: A 

detalied analysis of outstanding static and dynamic properties, 

Proceedings of ISPSD 

[3] Infineon Technologies AG: AN 2007-04, How to calculate and minimize 

dead time requirement for IGBTs properly, May 2007 

[4] Holmes G.; Lipo, T.: Pulse width modulation for power converters, 

IEEE Press, Piscataway, 2003 

[5] Kalker, T.; Ackva A.; Jansen, U.: Novel digital controller for induction 

machines considering the inverter swicthing times and a fluctuating 

DC-link voltage, EPE 1991, Vol. 2, p. 58-62 

[6] Strzalkowski, B; Jansen, U.; Schwarzer, U: High performance 

IGBT-driver in microtransformer technology providing outstanding 

insulation capability, PCIM 2007 

[7] Infineon Technologies AG: Datasheet 1ED020I12-F, Oktober 

2008, available at www.infineon.com 

[8] Infineon Technologies AG: AN 2006-01, Driving IGBTs with unipolar 

gate voltage, Dec. 2005, available at www.infineon.com 

www.infineon.com/highpower 


SPS/IPC/DRIVES/ 

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Mesago Messemanagement GmbH, Postfach 10 32 61, 70028 Stuttgart, sps@mesago.com, Tel. +49 711 61946-828

DIGITAL POWER 

Control Law Accelerator Boosts 

Digital Power Performance 

Platform of cost sensitive, high performance switching regulators 

While adoption of digital control techniques for switched power supplies may never be 

universal, interest has been steadily growing in the subject and commercial digital microcontrollers 

are now beginning to appear with features optimised for power supply control. 

This short article describes a new feature which significantly reduces control loop latency 

and extends the performance of the digital controller in power supply applications. 

Richard Poley, Field Applications Engineer, Texas Instruments 

In digitally controlled switched mode regulators, the control law is 

normally required to execute at the switching frequency. For example, 

a buck regulator switching at 200kHz would require a digital controller 

to sample and convert an output voltage, compute a digital 

control law, and deliver an updated PWM duty cycle every 5ìs. This 

imposes a limit on the amount of time available for the controller to 

process each incoming analogue sample. As switching frequencies 

increase, the available processing time for each sample becomes 

smaller and the performance of the digital controller becomes more 

critical. 

Figure 1: block diagram of a typical buck regulator 

Figure 1 shows a block diagram of a typical buck regulator with a digital 

3-pole, 3-zero control law. Signal flow through the digital controller 

– from analogue input to PWM output – involves three integrated 

components: an analogue-to-digital converter (ADC), the Central Processing 

Unit (CPU) “core” which computes the control law, and a 

PWM pattern generator. In this article, we will focus on the influence 

of the controller core on regulator performance. 

Controller cores are often characterised by execution speed 

expressed in MHz or MIPS, but this can be very misleading. CPU 

performance is strongly affected by both the architecture of the core 

and the type of code being executed: some cores are designed for 

general purpose programs, while others are optimised for specific 

types of algorithm, such as image or speech processing, or real-time 

control. Whatever the architecture, the CPU will take a finite time to 

collect the ADC sample, compute the control law, and deliver the 

result to the PWM generator. This computational delay effectively limits 

the duty cycle range and can significantly degrade regulator performance 

or even cause instability. 

Figure 2 shows a timing diagram for one possible switching strategy 

for the buck regulator using trailing edge modulation. The output voltage 

is sampled during the low part of the PWM signal (indicated by 

the red arrow) and converted into a numerical value by the ADC. The 

CPU then computes a control law based on this sample and writes a 

modified duty cycle at the point indicated by the blue arrow in the timing 

diagram. The update delay, comprising ADC conversion time and 

computation of the 3P3Z algorithm, is shown by the time interval 

marked t d in the diagram. In many systems it is important for the new 

PWM duty cycle to appear during the same period in which the output 

is sampled. Failure to do so adds a complete PWM cycle to the 

update delay, adding phase lag to the open loop response which 

erodes phase margin. 


To allow for very small duty cycle values, the update point must occur 

before the next low-to-high transition of the PWM. This means the 

sample point must be placed at least td in advance of the next rising 

edge, restricting the maximum duty cycle (D max) which can be supported 

by this strategy. In cases where sample takes place in the 

high portion of the PWM, the minimum achievable duty cycle is 

restricted in a similar way. It is therefore important to minimise update 

delay as far as possible, both by using a fast ADC and by optimising 

computation of the control law. 

Figure 2: Timing diagram for one possible switching strategy for the 

buck regulator 

Rapid computation of the control law becomes even more critical if 

multiple loops are to be controlled or when additional functions such 

as power factor correction must be supported by the same device, 

since more computational “work” has to be done in the same time. 

Furthermore, the digital controller often performs a range of background 

tasks, such as communications, fault monitoring, and data 

logging, which add to the computational burden on the controller and 

limit performance still further. 

Figure 3: Block diagram of the CLA concept 

A novel approach to the problem of computational delay has recently 

been implemented on a low cost digital controller. The 

TMS320F28035 from Texas Instruments incorporates a “Control Law 

Accelerator” (CLA) which takes the form of a separate CPU core opti- 


Digital Power Supply Workshop based on 

TI's F28x family. 

For more information and your free drill 

hole stencil please visit 


DIGITAL POWER 

mised to compute the control law. The CLA executes time critical 

control algorithms in parallel with the main controller core which, with 

no real-time deadlines to meet, is free to perform supervisory and 

management tasks unhindered, increasing the range and complexity 

of background functions which can be supported. 

A block diagram of the CLA concept is shown in Figure 3. The CLA is 

based on a 32-bit floating-point DSP core which uses the IEEE 754 

numeric format. User code is loaded into shared RAM memory during 

device initialisation, from where it executes at the full device 

speed of 60 MHz. Programming the CLA can either be done manually 

or using a library of pre-written modules supplied with the device. 

Communication with the main core is achieved using blocks of 

shared RAM, allowing the main core to modify compensator parameters 

and data without disturbing the control loop. 

In contrast with the main core, the CLA does not use interrupt service 

routines (ISRs) to achieve synchronisation with hardware. Program 

execution is divided into a number of software “tasks”, each mapped 

to a user defined hardware event such as a timer event or an ADC 

conversion result becoming available for processing. Up to eight separate 

tasks can be scheduled to run on the CLA, allowing multiple 

independent control loops or phases to be supported at the same 

time. 

Some digital power supply controllers use parallel hard-wired compensators 

to compute the control law in parallel with a modest performance 

CPU. However, a major benefit of the CLA used on the 

F28035 is that it is fully programmable, allowing the user to freely 

define the compensator structure. 

In our buck controller example, the 3-pole 3-zero control law code 

would be loaded into fast internal RAM memory from where it can be 

executed at the full device speed of 60MHz. A timer, phase locked 

with the PWM waveform, triggers the ADC to sample and convert the 

output voltage. As soon as the result becomes available, the CLA 

begins computing the control law and writes a new duty cycle into the 

PWM pattern generator. On completion of the control law, the CLA 

enters a “sleep” mode, consuming negligible current from the processor 

supply until triggered by the next conversion cycle. An enhancement 

which further reduces update delay is a “just in time” feature, 

which allows the CLA to capture the latest conversion result during 

the same clock cycle it becomes available from the ADC. Compared 

with traditional interrupt based schemes, the CLA approach greatly 

reduces sample-to-output delay and jitter. 

In addition to the CLA, the F28035 also contains a powerful high-resolution 

PWM generator, capable of modulating pulse width, frequency 

and phase with a nominal edge resolution of 150ps. The modular 

PWM generator design enables complex switching patterns to be 

constructed to support practically any power supply topology. The 

device also includes high speed 12-bit ADC with sophisticated event 

trigger structure, making it the perfect platform for development of 

cost sensitive, high performance switching regulators. 

Detailed information on the TMSF28035 device and Control Law 

Accelerator can be found at: 

www.ti.com/piccolo 



33

RENEWABLE ENERGY 

Higher efficiency by controlling the speed 

of the wind turbine generator 

Today different wind turbine configurations 

do exist for extracting energy from the wind. 

Normally the generator of small wind turbines 

is linked via a conventional DC-AC 

converter or a back to back converter to the 

main. For the highest efficiency of the wind 

power station it is necessary to control the 

speed of the generator. To control the speed, 

some effort must be done with more sophisticated 

control strategies and algorithms. 

Despite the extra cost, the life-cycle cost is 

lower. 

Figure 1 shows the power vs. speed curve of 

a typical wind turbine. For example the wind 

velocity is v1 the maximum power is at the 

generator speed ω2. If the wind speed now 

changes to the velocity v2, the output power 

changes to point B, which is not the optimum 

power point. More power can be extracted 

by raising the speed to ω3. This shows that 

if the wind speed changes, the generator 

speed must be adjusted to extract the maximum 

power from the wind turbine. 

Inverter Topologies 

Different converter types exist to control the 

Inverter for Small 

Wind Power Stations 

Control strategies and inverter topologies for maximum efficiency 

Electrical energy generated from wind power plays an ever increasing role for our 

carbon free future. For small wind turbines, with output power of several kilo watts, 

different inverter topologies to control the wind turbine exist. This article explains the 

different control strategies and the operating principle of 3-Phase AC-AC converter for 

small wind power stations. 

By Tobias Hofer and Ralf Negele, Negal Engineering GmbH Switzerland 

Figure 1: Wind turbine power vs. speed 

speed of the wind turbine generator. One of 

them (shown in Figure 2) is the conventional 

DC-AC converter. For maximum power 

transfer at all wind speeds, the DC-AC 

inverter from figure 2 should have buckboost 

voltage characteristics. In a first step 

the 3-phase voltage from the generator is 

rectified. In a second step the rectified voltage 

is boosted to a constant voltage level. 

The last stage is the inverter, which converts 

the DC voltage in a fixed 50Hz voltage with 

fixed amplitude (buck characteristic). A second 

inverter type is the back to back converter 

(figure 3). This converter basically 

consists of two 3-phase voltage source 

inverter linked together. 

Figure 2: Scheme of small wind turbine with 

conventional DC-AC Converter 

Figure 3: Scheme of small wind turbine with 

Back to Back Converter 

Speed control with the DC-AC Converter 

The speed of the generator can be varied by 

increasing or decreasing the load. To find the 

optimal operating point the speed of the generator 

must be known. The rectified voltage 

is a function of the generator speed. The 

measured voltage is the input to a software 

look up table (LUT). The output of the LUT is 

the estimated maximum power at the actual 

generator speed (figure 1). This is the target 

value to the PI power controller. With this 

control strategy it is not always possible to 

find the maximum power point. The advantage 

of this topology is its relative simplicity. 

It is also possible to control DC or synchronous 

generators. 

Speed control with the Back to Back Converter 

The back to back converter (BBC) is a fully 

4-quadrant controller. Field oriented control 

is used to adjust the speed of the generator. 

The control strategy to find the maximum 

power point can be the same as described 

above. A more advanced control strategy is 

to use a maximum power point tracker algorithm. 

With the BBC it’s not possible to control 

a DC generator. However the significance 

of DC generators in wind turbines with 

higher output power (several kilo watts) is 

small. 

Generator Efficiency 

Generally permanent magnet synchronous 

generators (PMSG) are used for small wind 

turbines. Therefore we consider only this 

type of generator for further discussion. 

Figure 4 shows the current wave form 

obtained by using the DC-AC converter from 

figure 2. The distorted wave form is the 

result of the 3-phase input rectifier and the 

Figure 4: Input current wave form of DC-AC 

converter with bulk input capacitor 


following bulky capacitor. The distorted waveform can be overcome if 

a PFC input stage is used. If we apply a Fourier analysis to this signal 

we would see a lot of harmonic components. 

For example the harmonic content related to the fundamental wave is 

20%, the apparent power is calculated as follows: 

P 

VA 

= PW 

+ PVAR 

P W = Active Power [W] 

P VA = Apparent Power [VA] 

P VAR = Reactive Power [VAR] 

1 

0. 

2 

This results in a 2% lower efficiency of the generator. These extra 

losses are produced from the higher current in the copper of the generator. 

Beside the copper losses there are also iron losses which are 

affected by higher order harmonics. 

To control the PMSG normally sinusoidal commutation or field oriented 

control is used. The former has limited gain and frequency 

response. The time-variant perturbations to the current control loop 

cause phase lag in the motor current. This results in less torque off 

the generator. Therefore more current is required to maintain the 

Figure 5: Power stage 

Figure 6: Controller part 

Figure 7: Voltage and current waveform 

= 

2 

+ 

2 

= 1. 

019 

RENEWABLE ENERGY 

same torque. To solve this problem filed oriented control is used. The 

current space vector is fixed in direction with respect to the rotor, 

independent of rotation. The resulting flux is controlled for optimal 

torque with minimal phase lag. Due to this reason, more active power 

and less apparent power is transferred from the generator to the 

inverter which leads to a higher efficiency. 

Feeding power into the public grid 

The next step is now to feed the power into the public grid. For the 

highest efficiency of the whole system the operating principle of the 

line inverter should be understand and optimized. 

To show the operating principle the simulation model in figure 5 and 

6 is used. The controller part is based on sinusoidal commutation. 

The inverter topology is a single phase voltage source inverter. 

To feed energy into the public grid, normally a DC-AC converter with 

buck capability is used. The current feed to the public grid should 

have, for low emission and high efficiency, a sinusoidal shape. With 

the appropriate control algorithm it is possible to minimize the reactive 

power. Nearly a power factor of -1 can be obtained. Figure 7 

shows the simulated wave form feed into the public grid. The disadvantage 

of the above buck converter is the need of the line inductors 

and some bulky capacitors. The size of the inductors is determined 

by the switching frequency of the power stage and the operation 

mode (continuous or discontinuous). The result of a lower inductance 

value (same switching frequency) is a smaller size. But a lower 

inductance value leads to a higher ripple current which affects the 

EMC behaviour. 

All these aspects should be considered during the design phase to 

get an optimised solution. 

The future 

As mentioned above when working with the back to back converter 

there are two main disadvantages. 

The line side needs power inductors. Normally the switching frequency 

of line inverters is in the range between 5-20 kHz. Therefore, the 

buck inductors are relatively large. 

The BBC needs electrolytic capacitors on the DC side. The capacitors 

are large in their volume and are reducing the life time of the 

inverter. 

To reduce cost and volume and increase lifetime it could be considered 

to develop a generator inverter combination. Therefore, the 

inverter is a part of the generator housing. This is only possible with 

a very compact inverter without the need of bulky capacitors and 

inductors. This is possible with the use of a matrix converter. We calculated 

that it would be possible to design a 20kW matrix converter 

with a volume of only 3.3dm3 (including EMI Filter). 

Conclusion 

In summary, understanding of the different parts (generator, inverter 

and control part) of small wind power stations can lead to better 

designs. Better designs are more reliable and the most important 

point, they have a higher overall efficiency. Several points and strategies 

are described and must be considered during the design phase 

of inverters for small wind power stations in the kilo watt range to 

reach the highest overall performance. 

Abbreviation used in the text 

PMSG Permanent magnet synchronous generator 

BBC Back to Back converter 

LUT Look up table 

www.negal.ch 




35

36 

TRANSFORMER 

Power Planar Magnetics and 

Hybrid Electric Vehicles 

The HEVs are here – and more are coming 

The electronic circuits in a hybrid electric vehicle must operate in an extreme temperature 

environment with significant weight and size restrictions. The real advantages to using 

power planar magnetics in the electronic circuits of hybrid electric vehicles are described 

and quantified. 

By: Jim Marinos - Executive VP Marketing & Engineering, Payton America Inc. 

A recent count (www.hybridcars.com) shows 16 hybrid electric vehicles 

available (HEV) now, 8 in 2009, 7 in 2010, and 1 in 2011. In 

addition there are 4 plug-in hybrids scheduled for 2009 and 2010 and 

11 concept cars. The available models have combined MPGs 

between 46 and 19. Their price range covers $22K to $104K. 

HEVs have an internal combustion engine and an electric motor and 

battery pack (www.transportation.ani.gov). A common element of 

these vehicles is electronics – the electronics between the 

motor/generator and the battery pack - which must be small, lightweight, 

efficient, and provide value for cost. 

The environment is standard automotive – an extreme temperature 

range under the hood and varying shock and vibration levels. 

Many of the active power components for the electronics are available 

and are being designed in. The passive power components are 

another story. The power magnetic components must be small, lightweight, 

and meet the environmental requirements. Magnetic components 

are made of wire or are wire-free. The automotive requirements 

can be met by the wire-free magnetic components – power 

planar magnetics – and Payton Planar Magnetics is working with the 

design centers to address the design issues being raised. 

What are the design requirements an Engineer looks for? 

First is efficiency. 

Power planar magnetics are 99.0% efficient at converting the input 

energy to the output energy. In comparison, wired magnetic components 

have a conversion efficiency of 90%. The high efficiency with 

the combination of conduction cooling reduces the internal temperature 

of the power box, dramatically improving the MTBF of the system. 

Second is size. 

Unlike wired magnetic components that are usually restricted to sizes 

- particularly the height - power planar magnetics can be “squashed” 

to reduce their height with an increase of their base area, for optimum 

cooling, so the magnetics fits into the space provided on the 

vehicle. 

Third is temperature. 

Power Planar magnetics operate in the temperature range from -55 

degC to + 150 degC. In addition the conduction cooling offered by 

the inherent mechanical characteristics of the planar construction can 

offer thermal impedance as low as 0.5°/W. 

Fourth is weight. 

Power Planar Magnetics can reach a weigh of approximately 10g per 

100W. 

Fifth is power. 

Power Planar Magnetics supply 5W to 20,000W in one unit. Payton 

has the technology and the know how to provide a typical hybrid 

power transformer for a full bridge ZVT application, at 100khz and 

7KW output power, in a 2.2”x2.2”x.62” package at less than 200 

grams. The same type of transformer using a conventional wired type 

will take 9 times the volume and 5 times the weight. 

Sixth is repeatability. 

With pre-tooled windings and well defined geometry, electrical 

parameters are predictable and repeatable. An engineer does not 

have to be concerned any more if the leakage inductance or the 

winding capacitance will change with time or if it will vary significantly 

PARAMETER PLANAR MAGNETICS WIRED MAGNEICS 

EFFICIENCY 99% 90% 

Table 1: Comparison of parameters 

Bodo´s Power Systems ® August 2009 www.bodospower.com 

SIZE 

TEMPERATURE 

HEIGHT CAN BE REDUCED WITH 

INCREASE IN BASE AREA FOR OPTIMUM 

COOLING HEIGHT LIMITATION 

-55 degC TO +150 degC 

CONDUCTION COOLING 

THERMAL IMPEDANC AS LOW AS 0.5 deg/W 

FULL POWER OPERATION WILL BE 

LIMITED BY THE COOLING METHOD. 

THERMAL IMPEDANCE WILL BE LIMITED 

BY THE COOLING METHOD AND WILL BE 

ABOUT 10 deg/W FOR AN AIR FLOW 

SYSTEM 

WEIGHT 200 grams per 7,000 W 1,000 grams per 7,000 W 

POWER 5W TO 20,000W IN ONE UNIT 

REPEATABILITY 

ELECTRICAL PARAMETERS ARE 

REPEATABLE AND PREDICTABLE BASED 

ON PRE-TOOLED WINDINGS AND WELL 

DEFINED GEOMETRY 

POWER CAN BE LIMITED BY THE 

AVAILABILITY OF COOLING METHOD 

THE WINDING CAN GREATLY VARY FOR 

OPERATOR TO OPERATOR AND THE 

RESULT WILL BE A VARIATION IN THE 

LEAKAGE AND CAPACITANCE 

PARASITICS

from lot to lot. Experience with wired magnetic components has 

shown that many of the parasitic characteristics change from lot to lot 

and with time, and these changes will have an effect on the common 

mode noise and EMI. 

With these characteristics and advantages, more designers are looking 

to power planar magnetics for their designs in hybrid electric 

vehicles. Payton is committed to helping designers use power Planar 

Magnetics to achieve these improvements. 

The Planar Magnetics can be qualified to AEC (Automotive Electronics 

Council)-Q200 for automotive use. 

Figure 1: 36kVA power Planar transformer application 

Custom designs as this example of a 36kVA power Planar application 

with 600Amps rms primary current and 230Amps secondary current 

in a 140mm(L)x90mm(W)x40mm(H) thermal package with 0.66ºC/W 

thermal impedance designed specifically for a cool plate high vibration 

environment. With 120watts of dissipation this design has an efficiency 

of 99.67%. The switching frequency is 60khz and the topology 

is push-pull. 

1. Generic Type : T1000AC-4-4—4C 

2. Total output power : 36 KVA (60V/600 Adc); 

3. Operating frequency of transformer: 60 kHz 

4. Input voltage of transformer : 250 to 390 Vpeak 

5. Topology : Full Bridge, resonant. 

6. Operating duty cycle, max : 0.96. 

7. Volt-second product : 1200 V-μsec. 

8. Pri. to Half Sec. ratio : 2 : 1. (424 Amps sec current) 

9. Primary current, max : 330 Apeak (230 Arms) 

10. Dielectric strength : 3750Vrms. 

11. Ambient temperature range : -40 to 50°C. 

12. Estimated power losses : 120W. 

13. Estimated hot spot temperature : 140°C. 

14. Mechanical dimensions : Length – 140 mm. 

: Width – 90 mm. 

: Height – 40 mm. 

An example of a Filter Planar Inductor using flat magnet wire, Ferrite 

Planar cores and an aluminum clasp for mechanical mounting and 

best thermal performance. 

1. Generic Type : I250-100μH/20A. 

2. Operating frequency : 250 kHz. 

3. Inductor application : Filter 

4. Inductance : 100μH +10%/-17%. 

5. Peak current of ripple : 1Apeak-to-peak, max. 

6. Peak of total current : 20.5 Apeak, max. 

7. Dielectric strength : 500 Vdc. 

8. Ambient temperature range : -40 ¸ + 140°C. 

Figure 2: Example of a Filter Planar Inductor 

TRANSFORMER 

9. Estimated power losses : 16W. 

10. Estimated temperature rise : 30°C. 

(with external heatsink attached) 

11. Estimated weight : 280gr.( with clasp ). 

12. Mechanical dimensions : Length – 52 mm 

: Width – 65 mm. 

: Height – 32 mm. 

Planar Magnetic components have advantages compared to wired 

magnetic components, and designers should note these advantages 

when evaluating the technology for future designs. 

www.paytongroup.com 



37

PORTABLE POWER 

Saving Energy in 

Portable Electronics 

Ambient Light Sensor Background 

Ambient light sensors are also called illuminance or illumination sensors, 

optical sensors, brightness sensors or simply light sensors. One 

very important application for ALS technology is cell phones. In a cell 

phone, the ALS enables automatic control of display backlight brightness 

over a wide range of illumination conditions from a dark environment 

to direct sunlight. With the ALS input, a microcontroller 

(MCU) or baseband processor increases or decreases the display 

brightness depending on the environment. This control improves visibility 

and dramatically reduces power consumption since LCD backlighting 

can draw as much as 51% of the power in the input standby 

mode. In addition, the ALS signal can be used to instruct the keypad 

LED driver to minimize keypad backlighting by reducing up to 30% of 

the power in the input standby power mode. In a bright environment, 

the LED keypad brightness is reduced for minimal power consumption. 

Photo ICs, also referred to ALS ICs, are the newest technology, 

developed to address the shortcomings of discrete devices including 

photoelectric cells, photodiodes and phototransistors. In addition to 

increased functions possible with integration including amplification, 

logic control, and shutdown capability, the photodiode sensing has a 

relatively low dispersion. Low dispersion is one of the key criteria for 

selecting an ALS with detected wavelengths limited to the 380 to 780 

nm range and visible essentially to the human eye. Both analog and 

digital photo ICs are available, each having advantages depending 

on the application. The photo IC has integrated functionality which 

eliminates the need for additional circuitry that takes up more board 

space and adds cost. As a result, many designers are making the 

transition to photo ICs from discrete devices. 

Topology of ALS ICs 

Analog and digital ALS devices are silicon monolithic circuits with an 

integrated light-sensitive semiconductor photodiode—a PN junction 

which converts light into an electrical signal. Both technologies are 

available in small surface mount technology packages. For example, 

ROHM offers both analog and digital ambient light sensor ICs in 

compact, surface-mount packages — the WSOF5 package (1.6 x 1.6 

x 0.55 mm) as well as the WSOF6 package (3.0 x 1.6 x 0.7 mm). 

Using Ambient Light Sensors (ALS) 

In portable electronic products, reducing the power consumption to provide the user with 

increased battery life is one of today’s critical design considerations. The liquid crystal 

display (LCD) and its associated backlighting are among the more (and frequently the 

most) power-hungry loads in portable products. As a result, the use of an ambient light 

sensor (ALS) to optimize the operation of the backlight LEDs under a variety of environmental 

lighting situations is increasing while, at the same time, the preferred technology 

choices available to designers for sensing have shifted towards more integrated solutions. 

By Steve Chutka, Field Application Engineer, ROHM Semiconductor 

Understanding the difference between analog and digital photo ICs is 

essential to selecting the proper ALS solution. 

The analog ambient light sensor IC has an analog current output proportional 

to the incident light level. As shown in Figure 1, the IC combines 

the photodiode, signal amplification and control logic. The current 

source output is typically converted to a voltage by means of a 

simple load resistor. This voltage output is typically applied to either 

the input of an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) interface on an MCU 

or directly as an input to an LED driver IC equipped with auto-luminous 

control (Figure 2). 

Fundamental design advantages for the analog ALS include an output 

current that is proportional to the brightness of the environment 

and spectrum sensitivity similar to the human eye. 

Figure 1: The output of the analog ALS provides the control input to 

the system MCU. The processor, in turn, controls the LED brightness 

based on the lighting environment. The ROHM analog ALS, illustrated 

here, has two gain control inputs allowing selection of shutdown 

mode or high, medium or low gain. 

The typical digital output ambient light sensor (Figure 3) has a 16-bit 

digital I 2 C output. In addition to amplification for the photodiode, the 

IC’s integrated ADC converts the photosensor’s output to an I 2 C signal 

for direct connection to the I 2 C communication bus of an MCU or 

baseband processor. The I 2 C interface simplifies the circuitry in an 

application by removing the need for an external ADC. The digital 

ALS includes more integration than an analog ALS and can result in 

an overall cost and space savings on the printed circuit board (PCB). 


Figure 2: When used in combination with an LED driver with auto 

luminous control, the analog ALS output provides direct light level 

control. 

In terms of power consumption, a digital ALS will likely draw more 

power in both the active mode (for example, 190 μA for the ROHM 

Semiconductor BH1750FVI) and power down mode (1.0 μA for the 

same digital ALS) due to the integration of the ADC when compared 

just to an analog ALS (97 μA and 0.4 μA, respectively, for the ROHM 

Semiconductor BH1620FVC). However, the total power consumption 

may be comparable when a separate ADC + MCU or broadband controller 

is taken into account. In either case, these values are quite low 

when compared to the power savings achieved by their ability to control 

the LED power consumption. Examples of specific analog and 

digital ALS applications/products can further help in the decision 

process. 

Figure 3: In a digital ALS application, the controller communicates 

directly with both the ALS and LED driver using an I 2 C interface. 

Analog ALS Solutions 

As an example of analog ALS capability, ROHM Semiconductor ALS 

ICs have an output current proportional to light (current sourcing) 

with a measurement range of 0 to 100,000+ lux (lx). These ICs have 

light sensing accuracy of ±15% based on a unique laser trimming 

technology that also ensures high output sensitivity. Each of these 

devices features an input voltage supply range of 2.4 to ~5.5V. A 

resistor connected to the output current (Iout) pin converts the current 

output to a linear voltage from 0V up to the supply voltage level for 

highly efficient component operation. 

Figure 4 shows the relative spectral response of the analog ALS and 

luminosity versus output current. Since wavelengths outside of the 

range of human vision, such as ultraviolet and infrared, may cause 

inaccurate light sensor readings, it is important to choose a light sensor 

that has spectral sensitivity similar to the human eye. While the 

data in Figure 4 (a) is specifically for an analog ALS, this same performance 

is inherent in the digital designs as well. In addition to an 

Iout proportional to the luminosity in lux, ROHM’s analog ALS products 

have selectable high-gain and low-gain modes, a proprietary 

function. These gain control modes allow for direct control of the 

internal amplifier gain via the GC1 and GC2 input pins, providing 

designers even greater design options for trading off performance 

versus power consumption. 

POWER SUPPLY 

Figure 4: Spectral sensitivity (a) and Luminosity vs. Iout (b) for the 

BH1603FVC demonstrate performance advantages that design engineers 

should consider when selecting an ALS. 

Digital ALS Solutions 

Digital ALS ICs, such as ROHM’s BH1715, measure brightness and 

provide a 16-bit digital signal output over an I 2 C bus interface that 

supports both FAST mode (400 KHz) and 1.8V logic interface. The 

digital ALS ICs can detect a wide range of intensities (0 to ~65,535 

lx). A unique internal shutdown function enables low current consumption. 

Several other features allow digital photosensor ICs to provide 

applications advantages as described below. 

In the operating environment, it is important for a light sensor to generate 

a consistent output regardless of the light source. A stable output 

avoids generating different values depending on the light source, 

which could cause the system to turn on the backlighting when it is 

not needed. The stable output improves the battery life and also 

improves the end user’s experience. 

The ability to operate in different spectral response or luminosity 

modes, depending on the required serial data, has a direct impact on 

the sensor’s performance. A comparison of a ROHM digital ALS with 

two resolution modes for improved lighting control is shown in Table 

1. Note that in contrast to the analog ALS, different operating modes 

do not impact the power consumption in digital units. 

Table 1: In a digital ALS, switching from one operating mode to 

another depending on the required measuring time can be used for 

optimal performance. 

Conclusion 

Based on their ability to provide extended battery life, Ambient Light 

Sensors are an important tool for enhancing performance in LEDbacklighted 

LCD displays. Depending on the application, either analog 

and/or digital units can provide an acceptable solution. Since ALS 

performance can provide a significant difference for portable and 

many other applications, characteristics such as spectral sensitivity, 

stability, selectable gain or data mode, and other factors should be 

reviewed carefully before making a final technology decision. 

www.rohmsemiconductor.com 



39

POWER SUPPLY 

Power Conversion Standard 

Sets Direction for Suppliers 

and OEMs 

By Tom Newton, IPC Director of PCB Programs, Standards and Technology 

Power conversion devices (PCDs) are used 

throughout the computer and telecommunications 

industries; however, until now, there 

was no defined standard for these devices. 

A standard was needed to improve field performance 

of power conversion devices, 

reduce the overall qualification interval for 

these devices and provide customer requirements 

for consumer and telecommunications 

grade PCDs. As a result, IPC — Association 

Connecting Electronics Industries® published 

the first-ever power conversion standard, 

IPC-9592, Requirements for Power 

Conversion Devices for the Computer and 

Telecommunications Industries, in September 

2008. 

The standard was developed by the Power 

Conversion Devices Standard Subcommittee 

(9-82) of the IPC OEM Management Council 

Steering Committee (9-80). It comprises representatives 

from leading original equipment 

manufacturers (OEMs) and power conversion 

equipment suppliers, such as Alcatel- 

Lucent, Cisco Systems, Dell Inc., Emerson 

Network Power, Hewlett-Packard Co., IBM, 

Lineage Power, and Murata Power Solutions. 

IPC-9592 details what is required as far as 

the mechanical, electrical, environmental, 

quality- and reliability-assurance, and regulatory 

aspects of power conversion are concerned. 

For mechanical, that includes form and size, 

connector and wiring configurations, and 

cooling needs. The electrical standards 

focus on interface specifics, including power 

source, input voltage, frequency and current 

needs, output voltage and, when applicable, 

logic controls. The environmental standards 

identify operating and shipping temperatures, 

humidity, shock and vibration limits. 

The quality/reliability standards include definitions 

and requirements for the design and 

testing of power conversion devices, and the 

regulatory portions of the document spell out 

international standards for safety, electronic 

interference and environmental impact of 

power-conversion devices. 

The standard refers to three categories of 

power conversion devices (PCDs): 

Category 1: dc output power supplies to be 

embedded in equipment, whether the input 

power is acac or dc. 

Category 2: Board mounted dc-to-dc converters 

including both isolated and non-isolated 

converters 

Category 3: ac-to-dc power supplies used 

as adapters and chargers that are external 

to the equipment being powered. 

Product specifications and documentation 

requirements should follow a specific set of 

guidelines and appear in a delineated format. 

Such documentation includes the theory 

of operation; applicable schematics; qualification 

test plan; reports for electromagnetic 

compatibility (EMC), sample qualification 

tests, design verification testing (DVT), highly 

accelerated life testing (HALT), SMT 

power module solder attachment reliability, 

and derating; reliability data and calculation; 

design checklist; failure mode and effect 

analysis (FMEA) for custom products; bill of 

materials (BOM); approved supplier list for 

all components; PCB artwork; component 

drawings, including magnetic; manufacturing 

drawings; regulatory reports (if applicable); 

change history; and mechanical dimension 

measurements. 

The data sheet should provide complete 

specifications of form, fit and function, 

including electrical specifications and 

whether it is a Class 1, general or standard 

PCD, or Class 2, enhanced or dedicated 

service PCD. The date and revision level 

should be marked at the bottom of the 

sheets. Items to be addressed are input 

power logic, indicator, control, and output 

specifications; reliability, safety, and regulatory 

factors; physical dimensions and electrical 

specifications and requirements; and 

material control and labeling. In addition, the 

PCD supplier needs to implement a documented, 

capable material control system for 

all incoming, in-process, and outgoing materials 

and make available documentation of a 

material control plan. 

Design for reliability means that industry best 

practices to specify, design, and document 

PCD performance and reliability are in place. 

Expected reliability of a PCD and the conditions 

under which the reliability is specified 

should be defined by the supplier and the 

user’s operating specifications provided. A 

documented process must be in place to 

select all components for product designs 

including information on all components and 

all component suppliers. IPC-9592 defines 

the factors that should be incorporated into 

the component selection process. 

An important part of IPC-9592 involves derating 

documentation requirements and setting 

derating guidelines. To provide a reliable 

power conversion product, the standard document 

sets forth a method of component 

derating to use in all electrical designs. It 

provides details on the derating methods, 

conditions and results. Derating is a technique 

used to ensure that component ratings 

are not exceeded, either under steady state 

or transient conditions. The intent of component 

derating is to improve reliability of electrical 

components in electronic products by 

compensating for many variables inherent in 

a design. Proper component derating will 

lower failure rates through reduced stresses; 

reduce the impact of material, manufacturing, 

and operational variability; and enable 

continued circuit operation with long-term 

part parameter shifts. 

When there is a custom PCD design on new 

topologies or architectures with no previous 

design failure modes and effects analysis 

(DFMEA), or in cases where there are new 

technology components, the supplier should 

provide a DFMEA to the customer with 

results of the analysis and of any corrective 

actions. DFMEA is to be performed early in 

the power supply development cycle. 

DFMEA activities are designed with three 

aims: to recognize and evaluate the potential 

failure modes of each component in a product 

and its effects on the product, to identify 

actions that could eliminate or reduce the 

chance of the potential failure occurring and 


to document the process for improvement of 

future designs. 

Design and qualification testing is a central 

and detailed focus of IPC-9592. The testing 

described has two main purposes. First, 

design verification testing and electromagnetic 

susceptibility testing, including electromagnetic 

interference (EMI) and electrostatic 

discharge (ESD) testing, are intended to provide 

assurance that the device will function 

according to its specification. Second, environmental 

stress testing, including HALT, is 

intended to provide a measure of assurance 

(not proof) that the device is robust enough 

to operate in its intended environment without 

damage or degradation that would affect 

its operation. 

There was such urgency for the document’s 

original release in September 2008, as its 

core features were just in place, that work on 

its revision A was in progress even before 

the original standard was in print. Under the 

leadership of the 9-82 Subcommittee’s new 

chair, Neil J. Witkowski of Alcatel-Lucent, the 

committee expects the new revision to be 

published by the end of 2009. The revision 

will include significant additions to the document’s 

portions dealing with corrosion of a 

2010 

February 21–25, 2010 

Palm Springs Convention Center, 

Palm Springs, CA 

CALL FOR PAPERS! 

deadline for submission, 

July 17, 2009, go to web for details: 

www.apec-conf.org 

SPONSORED BY 

THE PREMIER 

GLOBAL EVENT 

IN POWER 

ELECTRONICS TM 

ELECTRONICS TM 

POWER SUPPLY 

power conversion/power supply unit in the 

field, more definitive information of highly 

accelerated life testing (HALT), moisture 

sensitivity levels (MSL) of the devices and 

components and proper preconditioning of 

the devices or modules for testing. 

Copies of IPC-9592 can be purchased 

through www.ipc.org/onlinestore. Call IPC 

customer service for more information at +1 

847-597-2862. 

www.ipc.com 



41

POWER SUPPLY 

Simple High Voltage Conversion 

Solutions for Security Control 

Internal clamp protect the external MOSFET 

A RFID system is a wireless technology that stores and retrieves data remotely on devices 

called RFID tags. This type of system can be used in several applications from clothing 

tags to warehouse storage and inventory monitoring. The components of a RFID system 

consist of a tag reader and database. 

By Bruce Haug, Product Marketing Engineer, Linear Technology 

In a typical system, individual objects are equipped with a small, 

inexpensive tag that contains a transponder with a digital memory 

chip and a unique electronic product code. The tag reader consists of 

a transceiver and decoder that emits a signal activating the tag so it 

can read and write to the tag. The transceiver normally requires a 

voltage up to 700V to transmit information properly, while a high voltage 

is also necessary to deactivate certain types of tags. 

Designing a high voltage power supply or capacitor charger for this 

type of application up to 1,000 volts is not a trivial task. A discrete 

solution using a general purpose flyback PWM controller with an 

optocoupler, monitoring, status, and protection features normally 

requires lots of circuitry and has a high degree of design complexity. 

It is essential to avoid an input over current fold back condition which 

can occur during turn-on due to the capacitive load looking like a 

short circuit. As a result, care must be taken to make sure that this 

type of converter turns on only when the input voltage is within a specific 

safe operating range in order to ensure its long term reliability. It 

is also convenient to determine when the high voltage output capacitor 

is fully charged without a physical sense connection to its high 

voltage, which eliminates the need for another part crossing the isolation 

barrier. Depending on the application, the user might also want 

to have the ability to select a suitable gate drive voltage. Reliability, 

cost, safety, size, and performance are the major design obstacles 

that a high-voltage power supply designer must contend with. However, 

Linear Technology recently introduced the LT3751 to simplify 

the design task. 

The LT3751 is full-featured flyback controller designed to rapidly 

charge large capacitors to voltages as high as 1000V and is an 

improved, second generation version of the LT3750 with the addition 

of features that include the ability to sense the output voltage from 

the primary- or secondary-side of the transformer, accept a higher 

input voltage, all while having more programmability and protection 

features. The LT3751 drives an external N-Channel MOSFET and 

can charge a 1000uF capacitor to 500V in less than 1 second. Furthermore, 

it can be configured for primary-side output voltage sensing 

without the need for an optocoupler. For lower noise and tighter 

output regulation applications, a resistor divider network from the output 

voltage can be used to regulate the output, making it well suited 

for high voltage power supply requirements. The transformers turns 

ratio and two external resistors easily programs the output voltage. In 

addition, the LT3751 has an internal 60V shunt regulator that is pow- 

ered through a series resistor and can operate from input voltages 

ranging from 4.75V up to 400V. This allows the end user to accommodate 

an extremely wide range of input power sources, previously 

not available in a single package until now. Its VCC input accepts 

voltages ranging from 5V to 24V. 

The circuit in Figure 1 shows the LT3751 operating with the output 

voltage being sensed via the primary-side winding off the transformer. 

This method of primary-side output voltage sensing maintains 

isolation with only one part, the power transformer crossing the isolation 

barrier and is a very simple circuit. The output voltage is sensed 

through the RVOUT pin and is programmed by the selection of R8, 

R9, and the transformer turns ratio. This isolated circuit charges a 

capacitor to 450V from a 12V to 24V input using the on-board differential 

discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) comparator. The transformer 

(T1) part number 75031040 is available off-the-shelf from 

Wurth Electronics. 

Figure 1 – LT3751 Applications Circuit with Primary-Side Output Voltage 

Sense 

The LT3751 operates in boundary-mode, which is between continuous 

conduction mode (CCM) and DCM. Boundary mode control minimizes 

transition losses, reduces transformer size and configures the 

part to easily ramp up without going into current limit when powering 

a capacitive load. Another advantage of boundary mode is that it 

reduces large signal stability issues that can arise from using a volt- 


age-mode or PWM technique, and can deliver up to 88% efficiency 

along with providing a fast transient response. Output voltage regulation 

is achieved by dual over-lapping modulation using both peak primary 

current modulation and duty-cycle modulation. 

The differential operation of the DCM comparator allows the LT3751 

to accurately operate from high-voltage inputs of up to 400V, and 

higher. Furthermore, the VOUT comparator and DCM comparator are 

needed for lower input voltages down to 4.75V, with the use of a 

logic-level external MOSFET. This permits the user to accommodate 

an extremely wide range of power sources. Only five external resistors 

are needed to operate the LT3751 as a capacitor charger. The 

output voltage trip point (VOUT) can be adjusted from 50V to 450V 

by using the following equation: 

R9 = 

0.98 x N______ 

� � 

VOUT + VDIODES 

where N is the turns ratio of the transformer and VDIODES is the 

voltage drop across D1 and D2. 

The LT3751 stops charging the output capacitor once the programmed 

output voltage trip point is reached. The charge cycle is 

repeated by toggling the CHARGE pin. The maximum charge/discharge 

rate in the output capacitor is limited by the temperature rise 

in the transformer and power dissipation in the external MOSFET. 

Limiting the transformer surface temperature in figure 1 to 40?C rise 

above the ambient temperature with no air flow requires the average 

output power to be less than or equal to 40W, as given by: 

PAVE = ½ • COUT • freq • ( 2 • VOUT • VRIPPLE - V 2 RIPPLE ) � 40W 

Where VOUT is the output trip voltage, VRIPPLE is the output ripple 

voltage, and freq is the charge/discharge frequency. The maximum 

available output power can be increased by making the transformer 

larger and providing force air cooling. For output voltages higher than 

450V, the transformer in Figure 1 must be replaced with one having a 

higher turns ratio and higher primary inductance. Figure 2 shows the 

charging waveform and average input current for a 100?F output 

capacitor charged to 400V in less than 100ms. 

Figure 2 – Charging Waveform of Figure 1 Circuit 

X R8 

Another useful capability for the LT3751 is to transform a low voltage 

supply to a high-voltage supply in a non-isolated application. This is 

accomplished by placing a resistor divider network from the output 

voltage to the FB pin and ground, which makes the LT3751 operate 

POWER SUPPLY 

Ultra-reliable 

transformer solutions 

. . . reduce premature 

power control system failure! 

Bicron Electronics specializes in the design 

and manufacture of custom high frequency 

transformers for critical-use applications 

with frequencies up to 1 Mhz. 

Rail/marine drive controls 

Wind power & solar power controls 

Large motor drive controls 

High Isolation 

Switchmode 

Load Leveling 

Gate Drives 

Signal Conditioning 

Pulse 

as a voltage regulator. This method provides tighter output voltage 

regulation and lower output ripple voltage. This circuit can be converted 

to an isolated flyback with direct output voltage sensing by 

using an optocoupler to close the feedback loop. Figure 3 shows the 

LT3751 as a non-isolated converter and its associated efficiency/regulation 

curve. The efficiency ramps up to 88% at full load and it maintains 

a 0.25% load regulation from 5mA to 100mA. 

Safety and Reliability Features 

Large capacitors charged to high voltages can deliver a lethal 

amount of energy if handled improperly. It is particularly important to 

observe appropriate safety measures when designing with the 

LT3751 in any application. The designer must create a discharge circuit 

that allows for the safe discharge of the output capacitor. In addition, 

adequate space is needed between high voltage nodes from 

adjacent traces to satisfy printed circuit board voltage breakdown 

requirements. For more information, refer to the printed circuit board 

design standards in IPC-2221 (www.ipc.org) and the Underwriters 

Laboratory Standard UL60950-1 2nd edition. 

The LT3751 has safety and reliability features that include two sets of 

under-voltage lockouts (UVLO) and over-voltage lockouts (OVLO) for 

the VTRANS and VCC inputs. This allows the user to prevent the 

power supply from turning on when the input voltages are in an unsafe 

operating range. The FAULT pin goes active when the input voltages 

are not within the user programmable safe operating range. In 

addition, the LT3751 has over temperature latch off protection and 

goes into Burst mode operation during a no load condition. The 




� � 

� 

Bicron offers the following transformer types: 

� 

� 

� 

� 

� 

� 

When failure is not an option, choose Bicron. 

BICRON 

Electronics 

www.bicron-magnetics.us 

+45.9858.1022 � 1.860.824.5125 

43

POWER SUPPLY 

LT3751 has the feedback loop internally compensated in the regulation 

configuration that simplifies stability compensation and has an 

on-board DONE pin that goes active when the output capacitor 

charge voltage is reached. Furthermore, the CHARGE pin initiates a 

new charge cycle or enables the part in voltage regulation mode. A 

Figure 3a: Typical Applications Circuit 

Figure 3b: Efficiency Curve with Secondary-Side Output Sense 

low 106mV differential current sense threshold accurately limits peak 

switch current and allows the use of a low power primary side current 

sense resistor. The LT3751 is packaged in a thermally enhanced 

4mm x 5mm QFN-20 package, and is offered in extended and industrial 

temperature ranges from -40°C to 125°C. 

Gate Driver & Internal Clamp 

There are four main concerns when using a gate driver; output current 

drive capability, peak output voltage, power consumption and 

propagation delay. The LT3751 is equipped with a 1.5A push-pull 

main driver, enough to power large 80nC gates. 

Most discrete MOSFET’s have a gate to source limit of 20V. And so 

driving a MOSFET higher than 20V can cause a short in the internal 

gate oxide, causing permanent damage. To alleviate this issue, the 

LT3751 has an internal selectable 5.6V or 10.5V gate driver clamp. 

No external components are needed, not even a capacitor. Simply tie 

the CLAMP pin to ground for 10.5V operation or tie it to VCC for 5.6V 

operation. Not only does the internal clamp protect the external 

MOSFET from damage, it also reduces the amount of energy injected 

into the gate. This increases the overall efficiency and reduces the 

power consumption in the gate driver circuit. 

High Input Supply Voltage, Isolated Capacitor Charger 

As already stated, the differential DCM and VOUT comparators allow 

the LT3751 to accurately work from high input voltages. A full wave 

bridge rectified off-line capacitor charger is shown in figure 4. The 

transformer provides primary to secondary isolation and the output 

Figure 4 – 100V to 400V Input, 500V Output Capacitor Charger 

voltage is sensed from the primary side transformer winding. Input 

voltages of greater than 80V require the use of resistor dividers on 

the DCM and VOUT comparators. Thus the circuit in figure 4 operates 

from a 100V to 400VDC input voltage. 

Note that R14, R15, and Q1 are added to protect the external M1 

MOSFET from exceeding the maximum pulse rating. Under normal 

conditions, this MOSFET must discharge the total equivalent capacitance 

present on the MOSFET drain node. Since this node can initially 

be charged to over 400V, significant current spikes occur when 

the MOSFET is first turned on, which can permanently damage the 

MOSFET. Inserting R14 sets the maximum current spike to: 

ISPIKE = 0.7____ = 3.6A 

R13 + R14 

Conclusion 

The LT3751 allows an easy path for the design of a high voltage 

power supply and capacitor charger over a wide input voltage. Having 

the ability of knowing when the output capacitor is fully charged 

without a physical connection to the high output voltage minimizes 

the number of parts crossing the isolation barrier. The protection, status 

and selectable gate drive voltage of the LT3751 minimizes additional 

external components required for reliable operation. Boundary 

mode control prevents the converter from going into an over current 

condition at start-up when powering a capacitive load and allows for 

a smaller transformer enabling a design that takes up less PCB 

space. Also, a LT3751-based design can achieve efficiency greater 

than 85% and can significantly simplify the design. 

www.linear.com 


EPE 2009 

�� Barcelona, Spain 

13th European Conference 

on Power Electronics 

and Applications 

www.epe2009.com 

Receipt of synopses: 

Monday 3 November 2008 

Receipt of full papers: 

Monday 11 May 2009

NEW PRODUCTS 

SMT DC Switching Regulator is Highly Efficient 

V-Infinity, a division of CUI Europe, 

announces the release of the V78XX-500- 

SMT series, a surface mount version of its 

0.5 A V78XX-500 dc switching regulator. 

The V78XX-500-SMT offers efficiencies of 

up to 96% and is designed to be a high performance 

alternative to linear regulators. 

Unlike linear regulators, the V78XX-500- 

SMT series does not require a heat sink, 

making it ideal for applications where board 

space is at a premium and energy efficiency 

is a concern. 

The V78XX-500-SMT series is compact, 

measuring 15.24 x 8.50 x 7.00 mm. A wide 

input range is available from 4.5 to 28 Vdc 

and regulated output voltages of 3.3, 5, 12, 

and 15 Vdc are offered. Output current is 

500 mA with an operating temperature range 

of -40 to +71°C at 100% load, derating to 

60% load at 85°C. The converters offer 

short circuit protection, thermal shutdown, 

very low ripple and noise (10 mV p-p typical), 

and an MTBF of 2 million hours. The 

V78XX-500-SMT series switching regulators 

are available now through Digi-Key and start 

at €5.93 for 1 piece. Please contact CUI 

Europe directly for OEM quantities. 

Contact: 

mnordstrom@cui.com 

Precision Low-Voltage Digitally Controlled Potentiometer 

Intersil introduced the first low-voltage digitally 

controlled potentiometer (DCP) with < 1 

percent typical resistor tolerance, the 

ISL22317. The ultra-low tolerance allows the 

ISL22317 to be used as a true variable 

resistor, enabling users to set standard and 

non-standard resistor values for open-loop 

applications. 

The ISL22317 is an excellent choice for 

designs that require specific current and 

resistor values such as test and measurement 

circuits, medical devices, backlight 

controls, or adjusting specific resistances in 

analog circuits. The patent-pending architec- 

Following on from the successful launch of 

the iHG Series of half brick DC-DC converters, 

TDK-Lambda has added new devices 

offering a wide input range (36-75V) with 

nominal outputs from 2.5V/80A (200W), 

3.3V/30A (99W), 3.3V/70A (231W), 5V/10A 

(50W) and 5V/60A (300W). Providing exceptional 

thermal performance, using the industry 

standard DOSA half-brick footprint, the 

iHG Series is ideal for engineers designing 

low air flow, high temperature, 48V power 

architectures, for telecom, wireless and 

industrial applications. The open frame, sin- 

ture of the ISL22317 allows it to track an 

external resistor within 10ppm/oC, improving 

overall system accuracy for temperatures up 

to 125oC. 

DOSA Half Brick footprint DC-DC Converters 

gle board construction, with up to 92.5% efficiency, 

provides a very high level of useable 

The device reduces programming time and 

development costs by letting users select 

accurate pre-determined resistor values, and 

use calculated resistor values in schematics. 

In addition, it allows one to use the known 

value of one system to calibrate other systems. 

The device employs an easy-to-use 

I2C interface to program accurate resistor 

settings >1 million times in the integrated 

EEPROM memory. It also features a zerocompensated 

wiper resistance in rheostat 

mode. 

www.intersil.com 

power in convection cooled environments 

with very low levels of airflow. Furthermore, 

the innovative control circuitry brings considerable 

component count reduction, thereby 

improving reliability and lowering component 

and placement costs, as well as reducing its 

overall weight significantly. This makes the 

iHG family well-suited as replacements or 

upgrades in legacy applications, as well as 

new designs. 

www.emea.tdk-lambda.com 

PWM Control IC for Energy-Efficient High Performance DC-DC 

International Rectifier has introduced the 

IR3640M PWM control IC for high performance 

synchronous DC-DC buck applications 

including servers, storage, netcom, game 

consoles and general-purpose DC-DC converters. 

The IR3640M is a single phase synchronous 

buck PWM controller with integrated MOS- 

FET drivers and bootstrap diode. The 

device’s single loop voltage mode architecture 

simplifies design while delivering pre- 

cise output voltage regulation and fast transient 

response. 

When paired with IR’s DirectFET® MOS- 

FETs this feature-rich controller delivers a 

highly flexible, efficient solution and, 

because of its wide input and output voltage 

range can be used in a variety of high performance 

point-of-load applications. 

www.irf.com 


Panel Mount Controller in 1/8 DIN Size 

Watlow, a designer and manufacturer of 

electric heaters, controllers and temperature 

sensors, introduces the EZ-ZONE® PM 

panel mount controller in a new 1/8 DIN 

size. This new controller is available with 

choice of horizontal or vertical configuration 

allowing it to fit variable cabinet profiles. 

The new EZ-ZONE PM 1/8 DIN features 

larger characters and buttons improving 

usability. The product’s new case slots make 

it easier to remove the control hardware 

from the front pluggable DIN chassis by simply 

utilizing a screwdriver. The EZ-ZONE PM 

1/8 DIN offers advanced functionality not 

available with the 1/16 and 1/32 DIN controllers 

such as dual channel PID control, 

cascade control, square-root linearization, 

wet bulb/dry bulb capability, ratio and pressure 

to altitude compensation curves. The 

EZ-ZONE 1/8 DIN also has the ability to run 

NEW PRODUCTS 

a single profile ramp-soak program on dual 

channels simultaneously. 

The EZ-ZONE controller product line is comprised 

of integrated thermal loop controllers. 

The EZ-ZONE PM 1/8 DIN is a new member 

of the EZ-ZONE family and allows for integration 

of a high amperage power controller 

with a high-performance PID controller and 

an over/under limit controller in one space 

saving, panel mount package. A number of 

serial communications options are also available 

to support connectivity needs. 

www.watlow.com 

High Power Rectifiers for Rail, Traction and Marine Drive Applications 

IXYS Corporation announced that its wholly 

owned UK subsidiary, Westcode Semiconductors 

Limited, expanded the 50mm pole 

rectifier product range with improved power 

density and efficiency. The introduction of 

four new devices expands the voltage range 

to include products from 300V to 6kV. These 

new additions offer maximum performance 

within the confines of an industry standard 

footprint thereby minimizing size and weight 

while maximizing power. 

The average current rating represents a 50% 

increase over present products of the same 

voltage and overall package size. Improved 

performance is achieved by maximizing the 

active silicon area and an improved vertical 

structure. The pole rectifier design allows for 

double sided cooling thus offering best in 

class thermal and electrical efficiencies. In 

addition to the increased average current 

rating, the device also offers enhanced 

surge ratings and can be supplied to special 

3-Watt Miniature High Brightness LEDs 

Avago Technologies announced one of the industry's smallest high-brightness 3-Watt LEDs 

for use in a wide range of solid-state lighting applications. With dimensions of 5 mm by 4 mm 

by 1.85 mm thick, Avago's new compact 3-Watt (3W) ASMT-Jx3x is packaged in a small outline 

package (SOP) and capable of being driven to up to 700 mA to provide high flux output 

performance. Additionally, this compact LED emitter provides a wide viewing angle, has 

moisture sensitivity level-one (MSL 1) capability, and is very reliable. This competitively 

priced 3W LED emitter is ideal for use in lighting applications where space is constrained. 

Typical applications include portable lighting appliances, street lighting, architectural facade 

lighting, retail display lighting, backlighting and a wide range of specialty lighting applications. 

www.avagotechlighting.com 

Smallest 6-A, 17-V Step-DEown DC/DC Converter 

Extending its family of easy-to-use SWIFT 

power management integrated circuits (ICs), 

Texas Instruments (TI) (NYSE: TXN) today 

introduced the industry’s smallest singlechip, 

6-A, 17-V step-down synchronous 

switcher with integrated FETs. The high-performance 

TPS54620 is 60 percent smaller 

than today’s multi-chip converters, resulting 

in a complete 6-A power solution less than 

195 mm2 -- one-fourth the size of a postage 

stamp. The 1.6-MHz monolithic DC/DC converter 

supports input voltages from 4.5 to 17 

V, allowing it to manage space-constrained 

5-V and 12-V point-of-load designs, such as 

a wireless base station or high-density server. 

See: www.ti.com/tps54620-pr. 

order in an extended case rupture current 

housing for advanced system safety. The 

new introductions are available in four voltage 

classes; 300V to 600V, 1.2kV to 1.5kV, 

1.8kV to 2.2kV and 5.2kV – complementing 

the five devices already introduced. 

www.westcode.com 

In addition to size improvements, the 

TPS54620 offers a high degree of performance 

and reliability, such as a highly accurate 

voltage reference with +/- one percent 

accuracy over temperature. Achieving a 95percent 

power conversion efficiency and a 

25 percent lower Rds(on) than previous 6-A 

SWIFT devices, the converter easily powers 

deep sub-micron TI digital signal processors 

(DSPs) and other embedded processors, 

such as FPGAs and ASICs. 

www.ti.com/swift-pr 


47

NEW PRODUCTS 

Offline VI Brick BCMTM Array with Vertical Mount Heatsink 

The Brick Business Unit of Vicor Corporation 

has announced the introduction of the VI 

Brick BCM ArrayTM. This is a high-efficiency 

(typically 95%), high power (up to 650W), 

vertically mounted BCM array, that provides 

isolation and conversion from 380V to 12 or 

48V for low voltage distribution near the 

Point-of-Load (POL). It incorporates the 

superior technical attributes of V•I ChipTM 

technology in a robust package that facilitates 

thermal management. 

The combination of a high voltage bus converter 

with an integrated heatsink that simplifies 

thermal management and minimises 

board space is unique and has already been 

RF Power DC-DC Converter 

Fairchild Semiconductor provides the industry’s 

smallest power management solution 

for the designers of 3G handsets and wireless 

datacards. The FAN5902, RF Power 

DC-to-DC converter, is packaged in a 12 

bump, 0.5mm pitch CSP package and operates 

at 6MHz with a reduced size 0.5uH chip 

inductor, saving space and component costs. 

This converter helps to extend talk-time by 

up to 40 minutes in 3G handsets by adapting 

Summit Microelectronics has introduced two 

more members of its third-generation programmable 

battery charger integrated circuit 

(IC) family. The SMB136 and SMB137B 

employ CurrentPath technology, providing 

dual input source (USB or AC/DC) with arbitration, 

dual output for system and battery 

and system operation with a dead or missing 

battery. Both products support all battery 

charging standards: USB 2.0 Specification, 

USB On-The-Go Supplement, USB Battery 

Charging Specification 1.0, IEEE1725 Standard, 

Chinese USB Charging Specification, 

and others. Furthermore, the SMB136 and 

SMB137B are the only battery charger ICs 

with CurrentPath to detect the input source 

type (USB host/hub, AC/DC, etc.) and auto- 

ABB semi C3 

APEC 2010 41 

Bicron 44 

Biricha 12,18,27,33 

CT-Concepts C2+15 

CUI 7 

Danfoss 23 

epe 45 

adopted by major customers. The VI Brick 

BCM Array is ideal for PFC front-end applications, 

providing the capability of a high 

voltage bus with minimal distribution losses. 

the voltage supply level of the 3G RF power 

amplifier according to the RF power sent 

through the antennae, enabling higher power 

efficiency for a wide range of antenna power 

levels. This results in up to 100mA of battery 

current consumption savings in data-centric 

and smart phones especially in suburban 

and poor coverage areas. This feature 

enables 20 to 30 percent more power, dramatically 

extending connection time and 

USB/AC Switch-mode Battery Chargers 

matically optimize operation for the fastest 

and safest battery charging. 

The SMB136 and SMB137B are based on a 

3MHz, switch-mode architecture, with minimal 

external components, which allows for 

very efficient power delivery and extremely 

ADVERTISING INDEX 

Fuji electric 17 

Infineon 3 

Intersil 5 

IR C4 

ITPR 25 

LEM 1 

Mitsubishi 11 

PEMD 2010 29 

This is a highly efficient solution for applications 

using POL and is available with 384V 

and 352V nominal input voltages, and output 

voltages of 11, 12, 44 and 48VDC. The efficiency 

and compact size of these modules 

yields power density up to 290W/in3 and fast 

transient response. Models with output 

power up to 650W in a board space of less 

than 2in2 will also be available, in a 1U high 

package. The vertical package orientation 

also provides better exposure of the heatsink 

to system airflow. 

www.vicorpower.com 

allowing 3G handsets to run more processor 

applications. In addition, the FAN5902 offers 

up to 800mA rms current output capability to 

service excessive RF PA current resulting 

from strong antenna mismatch and a 50 milliohm 

on resistance bypass FET, enabling 

operation down to 2.7 volts. 

www.fairchildsemi.com 

compact solution size. High-efficiency operation 

enables fast charging due to higher output/charge 

currents, while reduced thermal 

dissipation improves user comfort, system 

reliability and Green operation (www.summitmicro.com/MobileGreen). 

Furthermore, Summit’s 

proprietary TurboCharge patentpending 

technology enables high charge 

current, even from relatively low-power 

sources (example: up to 750mA output from 

500mA USB source). As consumer devices 

continue to employ larger batteries, the 

SMB136 and SMB137B reduce charge time 

for consumer convenience. 

www.summitmicro.com 

PE Moscow 19 

Pemuk 37 

Powersem 9 

Productronica 13 

Semicon 21 

SPS/ICP/DRIVES 31 

Würth Elektronik 7 


Reliable 

with HiPak modules 

from ABB 

ABB Switzerland Ltd 

Semiconductors 

Tel: +41 58 586 1419 

www.abb.com/semiconductors 

Lean on me 

Power and productivity 

for a better world

Part Number 

Lowest R DS(on) in TO-247 Package * 

N-Channel MOSFETs 

B VDSS 

(V) 

R DS(on) 

(mΩ) 

I D @ 25˚C 

(A) 

Qg typ 

(nC) 

IRFP4004PBF 40 1.7 195** 220 

IRFP4368PBF 75 1.85 195** 380 

IRFP4468PBF 100 2.6 195** 360 

IRFP4568PBF 150 5.9 171 151 

IRFP4668PBF 200 9.7 130 161 

IRFP4768PBF 250 17 93 180 

* Based on data compiled October 2008 

** Package limited 

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

or visit us at www.irf.com 

With performance improvement of up to 50% 

over competing devices, the new TO-247 

MOSFETs from International Rectifier can 

help extend battery life in motor applications, 

improve efficiency in solar inverter systems, 

and deliver the wattage required for high 

power Class D audio systems. 

Applications 

• High Power Synchronous Rectifi cation 

• Active O’Ring 

• High Power DC Motors 

• DC to AC Inverters 

• High Power Class D 


• 40V to 250V in TO-247AC Package 

• Industrial grade, MSL1 

• RoHS compliant 

Your FIRST CHOICE 

for Performance 

THE POWER MANAGEMENT LEADER

Features - Bodo's Power

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