The holidays now feel well behind us and more and more people are getting back into the office with restrictions being lifted in many places around the world as the COVID-19 epidemic seems to have gotten less dangerous, if not less contagious.
One of the things that working from home caused was a massive build up of data being transferred due primarily to the number of video calls required for the day-to-day communications and meetings required to keep industry running. It is estimated that the amount of Internet traffic grew by 35% in 2020, a huge increase. Even though we are heading back to our offices, the amount of data that is generated and transmitted is expected to keep increasing as IoT technologies are gaining more traction in the industry. Big data requires big processors and big processors require a lot of power – not just straight up quantity of power, but large amounts of power delivered at the right time and the right rate. Some of today’s advanced processors require up to 450W of power for operation, and graphics cards can be even more demanding with power budgets of up to 600W. To address the challenges of powering processing devices like these will need a new type of PMIC in terms of transient response, dynamic voltage scaling (DVS) and end-to-end integration.
The delivery of power with complex demands is the subject of our Special Report this month. Our first article comes from Empower Semiconductor, and looks at the solutions to power the processors mentioned above. In the article, Empower’s CTO & SVP Engineering, Trey Roessig describes the company’s integrated voltage regulator (IVR). IVRs monolithically integrate the voltage regulator semiconductor and all of the necessary discrete components into a single device. Trey claims that the degree of integration simplifies the design and implementation of voltage regulation circuitry, improves efficiency by eliminating connection losses, reduces susceptibility to EMI, minimizes the bill of materials, enhances overall reliability and reduces PCB footprint.
The second article in this month’s special report comes from TDK-Lambda. In the article, Chris Maidment, TDK Lambda’s Technical Marketing Manager looks at ways of increasing the hold-up time of a power supply. The hold-up time for these devices is pretty important, especially in industrial, medical and mission-critical applications as the application needs to shut sown correctly. Using the simple techniques detailed in the article to increase the hold-up time gives the application the opportunity to shut down safely and retain critical data.
As well as the articles in the Special Report, this month’s magazine also contains general power articles in our Tech Focus section and a variety of news stories and comment pieces. I hope you enjoy the issue.
Best Regards,
Ally Winning
European Editor, PSD
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