Technical Features

May 2017
High-Density Power Modules Simplify and Downsize EV Power System Design

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Figure 1: Replacing conventional, discrete power conversion with power modules throughout the vehicle provides significant cost and weight savings in EVs

­The electrification of the automobile is presenting new challenges for power system designers in achieving the highest power density at the lowest weight possible, eliminating compromises in vehicle range and overall performance. Designers of power delivery networks (PDNs) are also tasked with designing safe, effici
Date:
10/31/2024
Designing Batteryless Devices for Industrial and IoT Applications

Batteryless EPD (Source: Toppan Printing)

The IoT has a battery problem. IoT implementations require large numbers of small devices deployed in areas without easy access to mains power. These devices therefore need to be low power and battery powered. But battery-powered devices present challenges. Batteries need to be recharged or replaced regularly, an
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Date:
05/03/2017
Balancing energy efficiency and ease-of-use in a world of high power demands

Schematic drawing of conventional HV planar MOSFET and SJ MOSFET

We are surrounded by electrically powered devices. The mobile phones in our pockets, the laptop computers we use on the job, the television in our living rooms, the servers powering the Internet, or even the EV car in our garage - all require electricity to operate and drive the demand for power supplies which ar
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Date:
05/02/2017
Power quality monitoring technology - helping industrial equipment stay healthy

See the different sources of power quality problems in the United States (left) and Europe (right). Source: Melhorn et al., 2005, McNulty et al., 2002, Manson & Targosz, 2008

According to a recent study published by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), large industrial facilities in the US lose over $100 billion every year due to power problems including power supply variations and voltage disturbances.  When the lights flicker at home, it’s an annoyance. But when po
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Date:
05/02/2017
Avoiding Voltage Rail Blind Spots

LTC3886 Schematic Converting 48VIN to 5V/15A & 12V/15A

Knowing the condition and operating status of a voltage regulator is perhaps the last remaining blind spots in today’s modern electronic systems since they do not normally have the means for directly configuring or remotely monitoring key operating parameters. It’s usually critical for reliable operation wh
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Date:
05/02/2017
Unleashing SiC MOSFETs to Extract their Maximum Performance in Power Converter Designs

Dynamic characterization platform

Silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs switch up to five to ten times faster than silicon (Si) IGBTs and can operate at higher junction temperatures. Because they can switch on and off so quickly, they enable higher switching frequencies and therefore allow those designing inverters and other power converters to shrink th
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Date:
05/02/2017
A Single-Chip FPGA-based Platform for Integrated Power and Motion Control

A new motor control platform designed by Intel & their partner D3

Motor control applications using small fast-spinning motors such as e-turbos, UAVs, surgical instruments and high-speed pumps, and the advent of SiC and GaN switching transistors, are driving a need for compact drives with high-frequency control loop updates. This paper describes a multi-axis motor and power co
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Date:
05/02/2017
The inexorable drive towards automation and motorized tasks has progressed from the realm of large factories with huge capital investments to the low budget realm of disk drives, robotic toys, scanners and printers in mundane situations. As this drive has occurred, the constant move has been toward nearly exclusive us
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Date:
05/02/2017
Small Leadless-SMD Packages Replacing Large Modules for High Power GaN and SiC Products

μMaxPak Smart Single-Switch Cross-Section

Power WBG Package Requirements The power Wide Band Gap (WBG) market is ramping with SiC and GaN devices replacing Si FETs and IGBTs for higher power and higher voltage products. These WBG materials will not only provide far superior performance and speed, but provide higher power densities, efficiency, rel
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Date:
05/02/2017
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