TY - JOUR
T1 - Circuits and magnetics co-design for ultra-thin vertical power delivery
T2 - A snapshot review
AU - Elasser, Youssef
AU - Li, Haoran
AU - Wang, Ping
AU - Baek, Jaeil
AU - Radhakrishnan, Kaladhar
AU - Jiang, Shuai
AU - Gan, Houle
AU - Zhang, Xin
AU - Giuliano, David
AU - Chen, Minjie
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to The Materials Research Society 2023.
PY - 2024/2
Y1 - 2024/2
N2 - This paper presents a comprehensive overview of circuits and magnetics co-design for point-of-load voltage regulator modules (VRMs), which delivers power to microprocessors such as CPUs and GPUs that require low voltages and high currents. We examine the recent shift from the 12-volt to the 48-volt architecture to achieve higher efficiency and power density, and discuss the challenges associated with direct 48-volt power conversion to the point of load below 1 volt. Power delivery architectures for 48-volt VRMs are systematically reviewed and categorized, with emphasis placed the opportunities and challenges of circuits–magnetics co-design for energy efficiency, power density, and control bandwidth. Magnetic components, such as inductors and transformers, are essential components in VRMs, and a discussion on available materials and their limitations is provided. A comprehensive design approach for ultra-thin vertical multiphase coupled magnetics, including modeling magnetic core losses with machine learning, is detailed. This review paper aims to disseminate the progress and challenges in circuit and magnetics co-design, while outlining a vision for future advancements in device technology, magnetic materials, and packaging techniques including hybrid-switched-capacitor and coupled magnetics technologies. Graphical abstract: (Figure presented.)
AB - This paper presents a comprehensive overview of circuits and magnetics co-design for point-of-load voltage regulator modules (VRMs), which delivers power to microprocessors such as CPUs and GPUs that require low voltages and high currents. We examine the recent shift from the 12-volt to the 48-volt architecture to achieve higher efficiency and power density, and discuss the challenges associated with direct 48-volt power conversion to the point of load below 1 volt. Power delivery architectures for 48-volt VRMs are systematically reviewed and categorized, with emphasis placed the opportunities and challenges of circuits–magnetics co-design for energy efficiency, power density, and control bandwidth. Magnetic components, such as inductors and transformers, are essential components in VRMs, and a discussion on available materials and their limitations is provided. A comprehensive design approach for ultra-thin vertical multiphase coupled magnetics, including modeling magnetic core losses with machine learning, is detailed. This review paper aims to disseminate the progress and challenges in circuit and magnetics co-design, while outlining a vision for future advancements in device technology, magnetic materials, and packaging techniques including hybrid-switched-capacitor and coupled magnetics technologies. Graphical abstract: (Figure presented.)
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U2 - 10.1557/s43580-023-00724-w
DO - 10.1557/s43580-023-00724-w
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85180180349
SN - 2059-8521
VL - 9
SP - 12
EP - 24
JO - MRS Advances
JF - MRS Advances
IS - 1
ER -