Nikkei Electronics Asia -- May 2009
Reports
Dialog Steps Up PMIC Configurability Levels

The DA9052, released recently by Dialog Semiconductor, is a power management integrated circuit (PMIC), described by Dialog's director of Marketing, Mark Jacob, as a "platform-PMIC".

"The goal with the DA9052 is to provide a similar level of customer flexibility as comes with a standard product, but with all the benefits of integration and performance that you get from highly integrated application-specific standard products," said Jacob.

The device targets application processors, the "engine" driving all portable multimedia devices such as portable media players, mobile phones, etc. Unlike other PMICs, however, the DA9052 platform-PMIC supports all major families of application and mobile graphics processor, and offers an unprecedented level of user configurability.

"Our experience is that, when we provide a PMIC, customers usually ask us to modify it in some way," said Jacob.

"We consider these requests on a case-by-case basis and generate different variants of the product for specific customers or applications. Previously, we'd have to generate a new maskset, and then go through a qualification loop as well.

"But the DA9052 contains embedded 'one-time programmable' memory, and as such it is highly configurable: it has over 300 configurable functions - usually there are just a handful of functions, controlled by pins." This degree of user software-programmability enables customers to tune the hardware at design time to complement their own customization activity.

The platform provider or end customer can create their own configuration, optimized for their particular processor and peripheral set; they can create their own reconfigured PMIC prototypes within a matter of hours. "When a customer has reconfigured the device, they send us a purchase order with their final requirements. After testing the new configuration on our final production test equipment, we can deliver those devices - tested, reconfigured - within the standard lead time."

Other Key Differentiators

The DA9052 has 4 DC/DC buck converters as well as 10 programmable LDOs integrated on-chip. The LDOs are low-voltage input capable and can be connected to the DC/DC converters to improve system efficiency. Each output can be connected in series or parallel.

Power dissipation of the DA9052 is regulated on-chip. There is a dual-input, power switching DC/USB battery charger.

"The charger can determine the best charging source, thereby minimizing charge time and heat build-up," Jacob said. The USB power inputs are over-voltage protected, and the embedded "powerpath" controller manages energy flow between AC adapter, USB cable and battery, while maintaining USB power specification compliance via the D+/D- data lines.

This powerpath functionality is supported without any processor interaction.

The DA9052 also comes with extensive GPIO support, enabling the offloading of resources from the application processor, expansion of IO control, etc, as a means of further reducing power consumption.

"So the key differentiators of the DA9052 platform-PMIC are the low-voltage input capable (1.5V) LDOs, the dual-input DC/USB battery charger, and the level of configurability and flexibility in integrated system power management," Jacob said.

"No other PMIC on the market offers this level of configurability and this level of integration; it's a very strong value proposition to both platform vendors and end customers, because any late changes can be accommodated. Essentially, provided that the broad feature set fits to the initial requirements, the device is almost as flexible as using an off-the-shelf component."

by James Cook

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