Power Modules Continue to Gain Adoption as Benefits Increase Through Innovation

PublishTime： 2023-05-23 Article Source：RENESAS Blogs

power modules have been a great option for engineers for many years. Their advantages have always included reduced board space, reduced time-to-market, and high first-pass success rates. Today’s engineers are being squeezed on all fronts in terms of both time and space. The development cycle time is reduced and the space available for the power delivery is nonexistent all while the load currents are increasing. These trends are driving significant growth in the power module market. Technological advancements in power module design are increasing their benefits resulting in smaller sizes, ease of use, and more flexibility. Let’s take a closer look at some of the latest innovations in power modules.

Renesas has developed the RAA210130 using BGA-POP technology (see Figure 1 below). The new 12V, 30A digital power module provides the smallest footprint in the industry at these current levels. The patented technology places all the components except the inductor inside an over-molded BGA package. The inductor is mounted on top (Package-On-Package) allowing easy assembly and design flexibility.

The key features of this solution are:

· Significant reduction in board space while achieving world-class efficiency (up to 96%) and transient response with Renesas’ latest digital controller technology.

· The entire power solution is integrated into a BGA-POP package. Hence creating a complete power supply (see Figure 2 below) that simplifies the PCB design and eliminates routing errors. The engineer can focus on other parts of the system design since the solution is predictable and all parasitics have been accounted for inside the module.

· The digital interface (PMBUS) enables a completely configurable power solution while the telemetry helps the system understand all operating and fault conditions. The part also has preprogrammed output voltages in cases where the end-user does not want to program the module.

· The evaluation board helps make prototyping easy and allows the designer to rapidly evaluate the module’s performance using a specific design’s unique operating conditions.

Renesas has also developed Mini Module technology (see Figure 3 below). In this case, an integrated circuit is embedded in a PCB laminate and the inductor is mounted on top. The power solution is encapsulated in an over-molded dual-in-line package enabling ease of manufacturing for the end customer.

The key features of the RAA210040 module are:

· Smallest footprint for a 5V, 4A power module on the market.

· The complete power solution is integrated into a 3x3 DFN package.

· The module is fully protected (OTP, OCP, OVP, etc.) and is supported with an evaluation board for fast prototyping.

In summary, increased space constraints are forcing suppliers to innovate the next generation of power modules. Renesas has developed two new technologies to meet this challenge. We are just beginning to expand the family of next-generation power modules using these and other new manufacturing technologies.

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