TI Introduces Ultra-Small Boost Power Module for Smartphones and Tablets

Texas Instruments Inc. (TI) introduced what it says is the industry’s smallest integrated step-up (boost) dc-dc power module for smartphones, tablets and other portable electronics. The new, efficient TPS81256 MicroSiP™ converter integrates the inductor and input/output capacitors to achieve a solution less than 9mm² and sub-1mm height, simplifying design and saving up to 50-percent more board space versus competing solutions.

Smartphone and tablet designers continue to require smaller point-of-load converters, while maintaining long battery run-time with high power conversion efficiency. The 4-MHz, 600mA TPS81256 module supports a 5V output with a power density of 400 mW/mm³. The device extends battery life by reducing the supply current to 43µA during light load operation. The TPS81256 also achieves power efficiency of greater than 90 percent from an input voltage of 2.5 to 5.5V, enabling it to efficiently manage 3W over a full Li-Ion battery voltage range.

The TPS81256 is available now in a 9-bump, 2.6 x 2.9 x 1mm MicroSiP package suited for automated assembly by standard surface mount equipment, and is priced at $1.70 in quantities of 1,000. Designers can order the new TPS81256EVM-121 evaluation module to help speed time to market.