Rad-hard buck controller integrates gate drive
Infineon Technologies AG claims the industry’s first radiation-hardened (rad-hard) buck controller with an integrated gate drive. The RIC70847 buck controller targets point-of-load power rails in commercial space systems and other extreme environments. Applications include distributed satellite power systems and digital processing payloads, including FPGA and ASIC systems.
The RIC70847 comprises a 17.1-V buck controller with a 5-V (output) half-bridge gate drive, suited for applications with a power input range of 4.75 V to 15 V and power output range of 0.6 V to 5.25 V. The device meets the MIL spec temperature range of -55°C to 125°C and applications that require a total ionizing dose rating of up to 100 krad (Si) and single event effects characterized up to a linear energy transfer of 81.9 MeV·cm²/mg.
The rad-hard buck controller incorporates load line regulation and fixed-frequency peak current mode control, which is reported to deliver exceptional transient response while reducing the number of output capacitors required. In addition, the high step-down voltage ratios, combined with the 5-V half-bridge gate driver, simplify the design process and minimize component count for a more compact and efficient power management design.
The high level of integration also improves system reliability and reduces the risk of component failure, Infineon said.
The RIC70847 buck controller is housed in a hermetically-sealed 24-lead flatpack or die form, and works seamlessly with logic-level transistors, such as Infineon’s rad-hard R8 power FET. It is available now, along with the RIC70847EVAL1 DC/DC buck controller evaluation board. The eval board features an integrated dynamic load step circuit for transient testing and supports a range of output capacitance and inductor configurations.
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