The Power Stamp Alliance (PSA), which is creating collaborative solutions for 48V-to-low-voltage on-board DC-DC power converters, announced a new reference design board for high-current ASIC and/or FPGA chipsets supporting the SVID or AVS protocols.
PSA 48V direct conversion DC-DC modules - or ‘power stamps’ - primarily target high-performance computers and servers being used in large data centers, many of which follow the principles of the Open Compute Project (OCP).
The new reference design board makes it easier for design engineers to evaluate the power stamp concept and products from member vendors. It can help to accelerate project development for new server designs and other equipment using ASIC devices in a 48 V source environment. The reference design features connections with e-loads and provides sockets to host load modules to test dynamic transient response and enable developers to simulate realistic loading conditions. The ASIC reference design board joins the first reference design board from the Power Stamp Alliance, which was designed for the Intel VR13 (Intel code named Skylake) processor architecture. The Power Stamp Alliance has a roadmap for future reference design boards, including Intel VR13-HC (Intel code named Ice Lake) and other processor architectures used in high performance computing.
Background Information
By creating and sharing a specification for a standard product footprint and functions, the Power Stamp Alliance has created a multi-vendor ecosystem to assure practical levels of alternate source capability to server and storage system manufacturers, while encouraging a competitive supply chain through differentiation in topology, circuitry, and performance from multiple, independent manufacturers. Formally launched at the Open Compute Project (OCP) Summit in 2018 with the publication of specifications, drawings and pin-out descriptions for main and satellite power stamps, the Alliance has since also published a new Orcad Library and Allegro Footprint Package (Macro) to its website to enable designers to embed Power Stamps into their own schematic, along with the linked Allegro reference footprint for proper layout. Most recently, the Alliance announced the industry’s first graphical user interface (GUI) that developers can use with products from any member company.
PSA reference design boards, power stamps and the GUI are available from PSA member representatives, who can be contacted via the Power Stamp Alliance website http://www.powerstamp.org/contact/.
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