In 2004, the booming semiconductor market drove the power supply and power management device market to another peak. iSuppli, a market research company, predicted in September this year that the total sales of global power management devices in 2004 would reach US$20.1 billion, a 24.3% increase over 2003, and also predicted that sales in 2008 would rise to US$29.5 billion.
The future demand is obvious. First, China will issue 3G licenses in 2005. Once the market opens, there will be a huge demand for basic network equipment, wireless base stations, and portable multimedia terminals such as 3G mobile phones, which will inevitably drive the substantial growth of the power management market. At the same time, the steady development of the notebook computer market will promote the sales of power management devices. In addition, the increase in electronic systems in cars also requires more and more management and control of power flow.
However, these strong demands also pose severe challenges to power management, driving the continuous innovation and progress of power supply and management technology. In general, the current power management technology presents the following four development trends.
The first is the integration trend. Whether it is a portable device, PC or network communication equipment, multiple voltage rails are usually required to power different functional devices or board modules, but the board space for these applications is very limited. To solve this contradiction, power IC suppliers have begun to integrate multi-channel voltage conversion into a single chip package, and some have integrated multiple switching converters and LDOs in the power management unit (PMU).
Another driving force behind the integration trend is cost and design simplification. Combining multiple devices together enables precise power control with minimal external components and the lowest cost. However, the integration trend does not exclude discrete power semiconductor devices in independent packages. Due to product maturity, application flexibility and price advantages, discrete power semiconductor devices still have a place to use.
Secondly, in order to strengthen the management of multiple voltages and dynamically control the transfer of power, the concept of digital control is introduced. Usually, this method controls multiple power conversion modules and external components through a digital core and an embedded communication interface (usually I2C). For example, the power ASSP launched by some companies for portable applications can flexibly and programmably control multiple voltage regulators to optimize the power management of the system. Previously, this method was often used in the field of low-current portable devices, but now it is extending to high-current applications. But the challenges are also arduous, and the most important task to be solved is the standardization of embedded communication buses or interfaces.
Third, the efficiency and accuracy of voltage conversion and regulation are getting higher and higher. Especially under the requirements of multiple voltages, how to effectively and accurately power each semiconductor device or module has become a huge challenge for power supply and power management IC suppliers. The low voltage trend of integrated circuits will make voltage regulation more difficult, and power management ICs must also adapt to new changes by generating lower and more accurate reference voltages.
Fourth, the package size is more optimized. Power management technology suppliers are constantly improving packaging technology, not only trying to reduce the footprint, but also focusing on improving heat dissipation and reducing costs.
Only by grasping the latest trends in the power supply market and technology can we improve power supply design in a timely manner and find more optimized solutions. This is also the fundamental purpose of our re-launching of the "Power Supply Technology Special Issue" this year, hoping to help you with your work.
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