Underlying Trends Driving Dc-Dc Brick Market

by Linnea Brush
Senior Research Analyst
Darnell Group Inc.

August 31, 2008

Once considered the “cutting edge” converter technology, isolated dc-dc converters are becoming the workhorse of the overall dc-dc converter market. Many of the more recent developments, such as eighth bricks, have become mainstream, and the whole dc-dc module segment is being challenged by on-board power IC solutions. So where are innovations taking place?

Many of the trends underlying the dc-dc brick market can be found in the overall power supply market. The worldwide total available ac-dc power supply and dc-dc converter unit market is set to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 10.5% between 2008 and 2013. This includes external and embedded ac-dc power supplies, along with isolated and non-isolated dc-dc converters.

The portion of this market that will employ digital loop control, for example, is expected to grow at 44.7% over this period, which is almost five times faster than the overall market. By 2013, the digital loop control market is projected to exceed 1.4 billion units. This is still less than half the total available power supply market, however, so digital control will continue to grow over the next five years.

Power supply companies are taking note. Ericsson Power Modules recently introduced a series of quarter-brick dc-dc converters that use a digital control platform contained within the modules themselves. The company claims that this is the first quarter brick converter that can handle digital management and that, for the first time, it is possible to actually “see” inside the module when using a GUI and track what is happening in the converter.

Although the intermediate bus architecture (IBA) is well-established, many new isolated converters are still being targeted at this market. Recent product introductions from Vicor, FDK and Ericsson are designed for IBAs. Being highlighted, however, are the thermal management features of these converters.

Dissipating heat from a dc-dc converter module has always been a challenge, and with more power expected from smaller designs, thermal management is taking center stage. Vicor’s new bus converter offers “improved thermal management”; FDK’s isolated converter claims “best-in-class thermal performance”; Ericsson’s new eighth brick is said to offer “outstanding thermal performance. ” This is likely to be an ongoing issue as power system-on-chip packaging comes on the scene.

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