2-to-4-Cell Li-Ion Protection ICs Consume 0.25µA

SII Semiconductor Corporation has introduced the S-8224A/B Series 2-to-4-cell lithium-ion battery second protection ICs. They are characterized by a current consumption of 0.25µA, which is one tenth of that of existing products and the lowest in the industry. The S-8224A/B Series is designed for protecting lithium-ion batteries in laptop computers, power tools and other portable devices.

Lithium-ion batteries require protection from overcharge, overdischarge, overcurrent and short circuits. The use of a secondary protection IC like the S-8224A/B Series is especially critical in cases of overcharge conditions which may result in heating and ignition of the lithium-ion batteries. The S-8224A/B provides the design engineer with another robust layer of safety.

The main features of the newly introduced S-8224A/B Series 2-to-4 cell lithium-ion battery second protection ICs include the industry’s lowest operating current consumption of 0.25μA, which helps prolong the battery operation time; secondly, the industry’s highest accuracy in overcharge detection voltage of ±20mV, which provides for further enhanced safety monitoring of lithium-ion batteries; and thirdly, an ultra-small SNT-8A package measuring 2.5 x 2.0 x 0.5 mm, which leads to a reduction in the size, thickness and weight of portable devices.

In addition, the output control function paves the way for adding a PTC-based temperature protection function. This allows the S-8224A/B Series to detect not only overcharge, but also abnormal temperatures. Moreover, the S-8224B Series has a gate connection terminal of the charge control FET equipped with an output voltage control circuit, meaning that the series is also compatible with a FET with a gate-source withstand voltage of 12 Volts.