Power stage solutions address POL design challenges

15th December 2014

Vishay

Siobhan O'Gorman

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To address design challenges in high-power and high-performance multiphase POL applications, Vishay Intertechnology has released a family of VRPower integrated DrMOS power stage solutions in three PowerPAK package sizes. The SiC789 and the SiC788 are offered in the MLP66-40L package with an Intel 4.0 DrMOS standard (6x6mm) footprint, while the SiC620 and the SiC620R are offered in the 5x5mm MLP55-31L package and the SiC521 is offered in the 4.5x3.5mm MLP4535-22L.

The devices are suitable for on-board DC/DC converters in computing and storage equipment, telecomm switches and routers, graphics cards, and bitcoin mining hardware with high current requirements and limited board space. In designs already using the Intel standard DrMOS 4.0 footprint, the 6x6mm packages of the SiC789 and SiC788 enable easy upgrade to higher output power. The 5x5mm and 4.5x3.5mm footprints of the SiC620, SiC620R and SiC521 are suitable for designs which have a limited board space, and therefore require more compact voltage regulators.

The PowerPAK MLP55-31L and MLP4535-22L also feature a number of design enhancements, which improve package parasitics and thermals of the company’s Gen IV MOSFETs. For example, in typical multiphase buck converter designs, the SiC620R in a dual side cooling MLP55-31L package delivers 70A and 95% efficiency. The package, which cools the device from both the top and bottom, reduces losses by 20% and footprint by 33% compared to the previous-generation package. The SiC521 in the MLP4535-22L package delivers continuous current up to 25A and peak current to 40A in notebook designs and for peripheral rails in servers, telecomm switches, and gaming motherboards.

The VRPower family's gate driver IC is compatible with a wide range of PWM controllers and supports tri-state PWM logic of 5 and 3.3V. To improve light-load efficiency, the driver IC integrates diode emulation mode circuitry. An adaptive dead time control is also integrated, improving efficiency at all load points. Protection features for the devices include under-voltage lockout, shoot-through protection, and a thermal warning feature that alerts the system of an excessive junction temperature.