Akros Releases Small Footprint PoE Powered Device Family

Akros Silicon, Inc. announced the availability of its AS1100 family of devices offering what the company claims is the smallest footprint and highest integration for Power over Ethernet (PoE) Powered Device (PD) applications. The AS1100 family is intended to enable customers to bring to market higher performance products including VoIP phones, IP security cameras and wireless LAN access points.

The AS1100 family includes the AS1113 device for IEEE® 802.3af-2003 specification power levels and the AS1124 device for either 802.3af or 802.3at pre-standard power levels. The silicon solutions, built on standard HV CMOS technology, include system-level circuitry for lower EMI emissions and robust surge protection in addition to the PD controller functionality.

The AS1113 and AS1124 devices include a series of platform tested circuit capabilities to assist system designers in providing solutions that meet or exceed the current regulatory and extreme environmental usages. The AS1113 for 13W applications includes the current 802.3af PD standard. The AS1124 for 24W applications encompasses the pre-802.3at standard with "two finger classification" and is backward compatible to current 802.3af customer needs.

The AS1100 family combines rectification and protection circuitry with a PD controller and a dc-dc controller. This high level of integration is claimed by the company to provide significant reliability and protection advantages, as well as simplify the PoE PD design. The devices are also said to provide seamless support for local power and over temperature protection. Additionally, the pin compatibility between the AS1113 and AS1124 allows the designer to use the same PCB for higher power applications, often without the need for a complete redesign.

The AS1100 family is also claimed to provide advanced power management through integration of a hot-swap switch and a dc-dc controller that operates from a switched input voltage and includes soft-start and current limiting functions. The dc-dc architecture is a current mode converter, which can be configured with external component changes for either fly-back, forward, or buck topologies to support non-isolated or isolated switching topologies. The dual switch architecture minimizes noise, maximizes efficiency and reduces the switch breakdown requirements for a lower cost solution.

The AS1113 and AS1124 devices are available in a 20-pin QFN Reduction of Hazardous Substance (RoHS) compliant packages. The AS1113 and AS1124 are priced at $1.33 and $1.46 for 1kU quantity respectively.