For evaluation purposes the 16th brick power module is mounted on the EPC9531 test fixture, including the recommended 47µF of input capacitance and 220 µF of output capacitance, easy access to voltage sense test points as well as power and data connectors. The Microchip dsPIC33CK controller can be programmed using the in-circuit serial programming port (ICSP) available on the RJ-11 programming interface as well as the 5-pin header provided by the EPC9531 test fixture. These interfaces support all of Microchip’s in-circuit programmers/debuggers, such as MPLAB® ICD4, MPLAB® REAL ICE or MPLAB® PICkit4 and previous derivatives.
Brick DC-DC converters are widely used in data center, telecommunication and automotive applications, converting a nominal 48 V to different output nominal voltages such as 5 V, 9 V or 12 V. The standard dimension of the 1/16th brick converter is 33 x 22.9 mm (1.3 x 0.9 inch). The EPC9143 1/16th brick power module reference design, developed in collaboration with Efficient Power Conversion Corp. EPC, is designed for 48 V to 12 V DC/DC applications. It features the EPC2053 enhancement mode (eGaN®) field effect transistors (FETs), as well as a Microchip dsPIC33CK32MP102 16-bit digital signal controller (DSC). The height limit for this design is set to 10 mm (0.4 inch)
In DC/DC brick power module application, there is a continuous push towards higher power density given a fixed form factor. This reference design supports up to 300 W max. output power with 25 A output current at output voltages of 12 V, peak efficiency of >95%, and maximum power density of 730 W/in3 and demonstrates how dsPIC33C® DSCs are used to fully exploit the high performance of GaN FETs in fast switching Intermediate Bus Converter (IBC) applications.
The reference design firmware includes two modes of operation:
For more information on hardware-related documentation, design files and purchasing information, please visit the reference design page.