ams Expands Family of Power Management ICs for Nvidia Tegra and Other Multi-Core ARM Processors
December 15 2014 - 3:03AM
Business Wire
New AS3722 PMIC and AS3728 power stages supply new Tegra K1
mobile processor SoC in Nvidia’s ‘Jetson’ reference design kit
ams AG (SIX: AMS), a leading provider of high performance
sensors and analog ICs, today added to its family of power
management ICs (PMICs) for mobile multi-core ARM processors with
the AS3722, which provides a complete power-control solution for
Nvidia’s Tegra K1 mobile system-on-chip (SoC).
ams is also releasing today the AS3728, an 8A high-voltage power
stage to complement the AS3722’s high-current DC-DC controllers.
The AS3728 provides for a streamlined power architecture in
embedded systems, since it can supply the high current required by
processor cores directly from a 12V power rail. The AS3722 PMIC and
multiple AS3728 devices power the Tegra K1 processor in Nvidia’s
Jetson TK1 reference design board. The Tegra K1, Nvidia’s latest
mobile SoC, features a quad-core ARM® Cortex®-A15 CPU and 192 CUDA®
graphics processing cores.
Together, the AS3722 and the AS3728 power stage provide a
space-saving and thermally efficient power solution for advanced
multi-core ARM processors. This makes them ideal for use in compact
mobile devices such as tablets and notebooks, and in industrial
applications such as security cameras and fanless (sealed housing)
computers, in which the system designer must carefully manage the
temperature of circuit boards carrying multiple high-power
components. This is because the AS3722 enables a board layout
optimized for thermal performance. Thanks to a patented design
innovation by ams, the feedback interface to the AS3722 only
requires two wires (one control signal, one temperature signal)
instead of the four or five wires typically required by other
PMICs.
With fewer traces connecting the PMIC to the processor, the two
devices can be placed far apart in the board layouts of
space-constrained devices. This dramatically reduces the size and
intensity of the hotspot around the processor compared to
conventional power architectures in which the processor and PMIC,
both handling high currents simultaneously, must be located
side-by-side.
The AS3722 also helps reduce board space requirements,
integrating all the power rails required by a sophisticated
processor such as the Tegra K1. The AS3722 includes four step-down
DC-DC regulators operating at up to 4MHz, three step-down DC-DC
controllers, 11 universal LDOs, a real-time clock with a 1µA total
current requirement, and a control interface accessed via an I2C or
serial peripheral interface.
The AS3728 power stage has a highly thermally efficient design
and supports two phases, each of 4A (maximum), with an independent
control input for each. The device incorporates separate low- and
high-side N-channel MOSFETs for each phase.
The AS3722’s three DC-DC controllers may each control the two
phases of an AS3728, to provide a maximum 24A power output. The
3MHz switching frequency of the DC-DC controllers provides for a
fast response to load transients and keeps the size of the external
components to a minimum. The DC-DC controllers also implement
automatic phase selection, ensuring that the circuit switches
between single- and multiple-phase modes depending on the output
current, to optimize energy efficiency while maintaining instant
full-load capability when required in the event of a load
transient.
‘The latest ARM processors for mobile devices are packed with
high-performance cores, and so require a complex power circuit that
can supply high currents in a tiny space without the risk of
overheating the components,’ said Don Travers, Product Line Manager
of ams. ‘The AS3722 meets the need for sophisticated power control
in the Tegra K1 and similar devices, integrating a huge number of
supply rails while providing for ample physical separation between
the hot processor and the PMIC.’
The AS3722 is housed in a 124-pin CTBGA package (8x 8x0.5mm) or
a 108-pin CSP (4.8x 3.6x 0.4mm). The AS3728 is housed in a 2.4x
1.6x 0.4mm package which can be assembled on a standard 4mil PCB
without the need for vias.
Both the AS3722 PMIC and the AS3728 power stage are available
for volume production today. The AS3722 is priced at $4.12 each in
1,000-unit quantities. The AS3728 is $0.54. An evaluation kit, the
AS3722-CT-00_EK_ST AS3728, is available online from ams.
For more information or to request samples, visit:
-
www.ams.com/Power-Management-Units/AS3722
-
www.ams.com/Power-Management-Units/AS3728
Download press picture and block diagram at
http://www.ams.com/eng/Press/Press-Releases/
ams AGPatricia MoosburgerMedia Relationsphone: +43 (0) 3136 500
31235press@ams.comwww.ams.com
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