Spansion Expands Power Management Family with New 3-Channel DC-to-DC PMIC in Single-Chip Solution

SUNNYVALE, Calif., July 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Spansion Inc. (NYSE: CODE), a global leader in embedded systems, today started shipping samples of the Spansion® S6AP412A series of multi-channel DC-to-DC power management ICs (PMICs).

The S6AP412A series—an expansion of the Spansion MB39C031 family of DC-to-DC buck-converter, programmable PMICs—supplies three channels of power on a single chip to cutting-edge system-on-chip (SoC) products, memory and peripheral products that make up the core of office automation equipment and network devices with advanced image and voice processing functions.

Systems equipped with the latest SoCs require control of a 3-channel power supply sequence when starting up or disconnecting the power supply.  The Spansion S6AP412A uses software to enable flexible and precise power supply sequence control. In addition, by enabling 3-channel power supply within a single chip, the BOM for the power supply block can be reduced and the board surface area can be reduced by approximately 30 percent compared to conventional products. The new product also uses the common Inter-Integrated Circuit (I²C) communication interface to enable switching to an optimum voltage according to the SoC operation mode and process conditions while maintaining the output, and is thus able to support both Dynamic Voltage Scaling (DVS) and Advanced Supply Voltage (ASV⁾ technologies. The S6AP412A series also supports reduced power consumption by systems through precision control of the voltage used by cutting-edge SoCs.

"This new PMIC expands our power management portfolio, providing the freedom to design with software, and delivers high performance and a lower power consumption and BOM than previously required to support high-end graphics and voice functions of large-scale systems in office automation systems," said Tom Sparkman, senior VP and GM, Spansion Analog and Mixed Signal Business. "The multi-channel power supply eliminates the need for dedicated power supply lines to each component and aids in the trend of miniaturization in system design."

Additional Features and Benefits of the Spansion S6AP412A Series

Flexible support: The Spansion S6AP412A series freely supports advanced power supply sequence control, and therefore complex power supply startup and disconnect sequences of systems with various part architectures can also be flexibly supported with software.

Easy preparation of startup and disconnect sequence for the power supply line: The latest systems require optimal control of the 3-channel power supply sequence when starting up and disconnecting, and this product can freely and flexibly control various sequences through software control. In addition, a method to step-up and step-down the voltage is adopted for the channel used for peripheral devices, and a stable output can be achieved even with a single cell lithium-ion battery and a 3.3V input. By adopting this product, systems that require different sequences can be supported while maintaining the same hardware, the need to prepare new hardware when expanding a derived family can be eliminated, additional investments can be reduced, design resources can be effectively utilized, and added value can be easily provided to the user.

Supports DSV and ASV control using an I²C interface: High-performance processing is realized by dynamically controlling the power-supply voltage of the latest SoC that use advanced processes, thereby enabling a reduction in system power consumption.

Other features and specifications include:

1. 0.7 to 1.32V for SoCs (with an electric current supply of up to 4Amps); 1.2 to 1.95V for memory and 2.8~3.5V for peripheral devices with a single chip.
2. Built-in passive components (output voltage setting resistance, phase assurance circuit) reducing the BOM necessary to configure the power-supply block and reducing the surface-mount area by approximately 30 percent.

The Spansion S6AP413A series also is available with dual-system output support: A 2-system voltage output option is also available to enable support of systems equipped with dual SoC (with a maximum of 2-Amps output for each system with a supply voltage range of 0.7 to 1.32V). This series can also supply power with a single chip to systems equipped with two CPUs. In addition, a lineup of preset values for output voltages tailored to the main SoC voltages is available.

Availability and Pricing

Spansion S6AP412A series samples are shipping now and production volumes will be available in September starting at $3.60 per unit for minimum volumes of 1,500 units.

Spansion Resources:

• Spansion S6AP412A Datasheet: http://www.spansion.com/downloads/S6AP412A_DS405-00018-E.pdf
• Spansion S6AP413A Datasheet: http://www.spansion.com/downloads/S6AP413A_DS405-00019-E.pdf
• Spansion newsroom: http://news.spansion.com 
• Spansion blog: http://core.spansion.com/blog  
• Spansion on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Spansion
• Spansion on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Spansion 

About Spansion
Spansion (NYSE: CODE) is a global leader in Flash memory-based embedded systems solutions. Spansion's Flash memory, microcontrollers, analog and mixed-signal products drive the development of faster, intelligent, secure and energy efficient electronics. Spansion is at the heart of electronics systems, connecting, controlling, storing and powering everything from automotive electronics and industrial systems to the highly interactive and immersive consumer devices that are enriching people's daily lives. For more information, visit http://www.spansion.com

Spansion(R), the Spansion logo, and combinations thereof, are trademarks and registered trademarks of Spansion LLC in the United States and other countries. Other names used are for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20060118/SFW077LOGO          

SOURCE Spansion Inc.