Renesas Electronics Corporation, a leading provider of advanced semiconductor solutions, has unveiled a groundbreaking power management solution in collaboration with AMD for the space-grade Versal adaptive system-on-chip (SoC) XQRVC1902. The new reference design, ISLVERSALDEMO2Z, integrates radiation-hardened components tailored for power management, specifically designed to meet the rigorous demands of space missions.
As FPGAs and ASICs continue to demand lower core voltages and higher currents, ensuring error-free operation has become increasingly challenging, especially in the harsh environment of space with limited power availability and extreme temperatures. To address these challenges, Renesas and AMD have joined forces to create a comprehensive power management solution for the AMD Versal platform.
The Versal Adaptive SoC XQRVC1902 is a state-of-the-art space-grade compute platform renowned for its full radiation tolerance, accelerated AI inference, and high-bandwidth signal processing capabilities. The ISLVERSALDEMO2Z reference design generates power rails essential for the Versal platform, including a low 0.80V core voltage supply capable of sourcing up to an impressive 140 A (amps) of current.
Chris Stephens, Vice President, and General Manager of the HiRel Business Division at Renesas, highlighted the importance of such power solutions in the rapidly increasing satellite and spacecraft launches. He emphasized that the newly engineered reference design with its ultra-compact footprint is an ideal turnkey solution for Versal Adaptive SoC power management.
Minal Sawant, Senior Director of Aerospace & Defense Vertical Market at AMD, expressed the significance of precision, efficiency, and dependability in space missions and emphasized that their radiation-tolerant Versal space-grade SoC, in conjunction with Renesas’ ISLVERSALDEMO2Z power solution, ensures successful execution of space missions.
The ISLVERSALDEMO2Z reference design includes a range of power management devices tested and verified to withstand high levels of radiation, such as Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) controllers, GaN FET half-bridge drivers, point-of-load (POL) regulators, power and enable switches, and power sequencers. The compact design efficiently utilizes board space, taking up just 104 square centimeters, approximately equivalent to two business cards.
Renesas’ new reference design provides customers with all the necessary design files for seamless integration into their systems, including schematics, bill-of-materials, and PCB Gerber files.
Key Features of the Newly Released Products:
- ISL73847SEH Rad-Hard Dual Output PWM Controller:
- Synchronous buck controller
- 4.5V to 19V input voltage range
- Output voltage as low as VREF: 0.6V+/- 0.67%
- Radiation tolerant, LDR (0.01 rad(Si)/s): 75krad(Si)
- Operating range: -55 °C to +125 °C
- ISL73041SEH and ISL71441M: World’s First Dedicated GaN FET Half-Bridge Drivers for Space Applications:
- Interfaces with ISL73847SEH synchronous buck controller
- Programmable gate drive, 4.5V to 5.5V
- Bi-directional communications with ISL73847SEH for start-up synchronization and fault detection
- Best-in-class Single Event Effects (SEE) performance
- Operating range: -55 °C to +125 °C
- ISL73007SEH Rad-Hard POL Regulator:
- 3V to 18V input voltage range
- 1% reference voltage over temperature and radiation
- Efficiency ≥90% from 1A to 3A
- Radiation tolerant, LDR (0.01rad(Si)/s): 75krad(Si)
- Operating range: -55 °C to +125 °C
The Renesas Intersil brand, with over six decades of experience in the space industry, has a notable history in contributing to various satellite, shuttle launches, and deep-space exploration missions. Their rad-hard ICs have proven reliability in mission-critical applications, including data communications transfer, power supplies, telemetry, tracking, and control (TT&C).
