What is Digital Power?

iWatt Inc
101 Albright Way
Los Gatos, CA 95032
USA

1.0. Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................................2

2.0. Power Feedback and Control ........................................................................................................................................2
3.0. Benets of Digital Power ................................................................................................................................................3

White Paper
What is Digital Power?
1.0 Introduction
Digital power has come out of the realm of R&D lab and into
the main stream. In recent years digital power has made
great strides, offering performance improvements previously
not attainable.
In industry, the term digital power is often loosely dened
with respect to power supplies. Sometimes the term digital
power supply refers to merely a power supply which is
digital, otherwise known as a switching power supply. This
type of supply may utilize either digital or analog methods to
control the on/off time of the power MOSFET.
Also, analog power supply controllers may make use of
digital circuitry for power supply sequencing and tracking,
voltage margining, as well as I2C implementations or reading
back fault conditions such as input/output under voltage and
over voltage, output short circuit, etc. The use of such digital
circuits does not make an analog power IC digital power.
The digital power this paper refers to is when the feedback
and control loop in a power supply is implemented using digital
algorithms. In this paper we will rst explore the difference
between analog and digital power supplies, followed by the
benets derived from digital power supplies.

2.0 Power Feedback and Control

How the power supply ICs feedback and control loop is
implemented determines whether the power supply IC is
an analog or a digital power IC. A power supply converts
a xed or variable input voltage or current to a xed output
voltage or current. For example, to maintain a xed output
voltage (VOUT), a portion of the output voltage is fed back to
the control loop and compared with a set point reference;
the difference in these two parameters is called the error
signal (see Figure 2.1). If any change in the output condition,
such as a step change in the output current, causes VOUT
to deviate from its desired output voltage setting then the
error signal causes the control loop to either increase or
decrease VOUT until it reaches the pre-set output voltage.
The IC accomplishes this by controlling the amount of time
the power transistor is on or off. If VOUT is low then the power
transistor stays on longer until VOUT reaches the pre-set output
voltage; conversely if VOUT is high then the power transistor is
off longer until the output is discharged and VOUT reaches the
pre-set output voltage. The modulation of the drivers pulse
width as described above is called Pulse Width Modulation
(PWM). In an analog power supply, the feedback and control
loop is analog as shown in Figure 2.1.

In the case of a digital power supply, the feedback and

control loop is digital (Figure 2.2). The feedback signal is
rst converted to a digital number which is then compared
to the set point and a digital number is generated which
corresponds to the error term. This error term is then fed into
the digital equivalent of a loop lter. It is the numeric equivalent
of a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) lter (see Figure
2.3). The three terms, P (proportional), I (integral), and D
(derivative) determine the required loop response. The
digital output of the PID lter is further converted to the ON
time for the power transistor. The result of this calculation is
then measured out by a counter, thus controlling the power
delivered to the output capacitor to bring VOUT back to its
pre-set voltage after any perturbation. The operation of a
PID lter is described below:
1. The P path is the gain of the error signal. If the gain is
large, VOUT will return to its pre-set value quickly.
2. The D path is the rate-of-change of the error signal.
As the output voltage gets closer to the pre-set output
voltage, the gain is reduced; thus parameter D reduces
voltage over shoot.
3. The I path is the time integral of past error signals and
it allows the maintenance of constant output of the loop
lter in order to maintain the desired output voltage even
though the error signal is zero.
In this way the P and D parameters work together with the
I term to accomplish loop stability while still maintaining zero
offset error.

Ramp
Generator

VREF

Analog PWM
Controller
VOUT

+
+

Error
Amp
-

Comp

Latch

Driver

Figure 2.1 : Analog Feedback and Control Loop1

Notes:
1. Figure 2.1 and 2.2 are copyrighted materials owned by Ericsson AB and its afliates. They are reproduced by permission with the authorization and
courtesy of Ericsson AB.

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White Paper
What is Digital Power?
Power
Management

Controller
Interface

Digital PWM
Controller

Digital
VREF

+
ADC
L

Digital
PID Filter

VOUT
DPWM

Driver

Figure 2.2 : Digital Feedback and Control Loop1

P
Setpoint

Kp e(t)

Error

Ki e()d

Kd de(t)
dt

Process

Output

Figure 2.3 : Digital PID Filter

3.0 Benets of Digital Power

Digital power ICs are providing benets that were not
previously achievable; moreover, the benets will only keep
improving as the technology matures. Some key benets
are described below:
1. Can Be Tested Under Real World Conditions Prior
to Silicon
Prior to the start of IC design, systems engineers develop
an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) board which
mimics the actual silicon. The FPGA board is used in
an actual power supply system and the power supply
performance and response to real world load conditions
is measured. The algorithm and digital code is veried
to produce the desired results and can be changed as
necessary until the desired results are achieved. The
digital code is then frozen and ported onto the silicon.
This builds customer condence and ensures that when
the silicon comes out, it works right the rst time and
performs to real world conditions as expected. In the
case of analog power ICs, the actual performance to real
world conditions can not be evaluated until the silicon
comes out. This often leads to multiple iterations of the
silicon and increases the development time.
2. Able to Adjust Internal Parameters During
Operation
An important benet of digital power is its ability to adjust
the internal parameters in response to varying line, load

and temperature conditions. For example, the efciency

curve can be made nearly at from full load condition to
low output current by switching between PWM to PFM
(pulse frequency modulation) to DPWM (deep PWM)
to DPFM (deep PFM) modes. In addition, the switching
frequency can also vary in relation to the varying input
line voltage to maximize efciency over variation in
line voltage. Moreover, standby or no-load power
consumption can be signicantly reduced by means of
placing various sections of the IC in sleep-mode, similar
to what is done with CPUs.
3. Can Provide Additional Methods to Reduce EMI
EMI, the bane of all power supply designers can also get a
leg up from digital power. The best way for a power supply
to reduce or eliminate EMI is not to generate it in the rst
place. Traditional techniques such as quasi-resonant
switching and frequency jitter are commonly used in
both digital and analog power supplies. A digital power
IC can also control the turn-on slew rate of the power
MOSFET in response to the output load thus further
reducing EMI. Often, additional proprietary algorithms
and control schemes are used to reduce EMI. The end
result is that higher EMI margin can be achieved which
results in lower EMI ltering cost and/or use of lower cost
components.
4. Able to Eliminate Opto-Coupler
Digital primary feedback (called primary side regulation)
makes it easier to eliminate opto-couplers in low to
medium power isolated power supply applications while
achieving tight 2% output voltage and 3% output
current regulation for 3W to 5W handset wall chargers;
and networking, PC tablet and game console adapters
up to ~40W. Although analog power ICs are available
with primary side regulation at low power; at over 10W
output power, analog power ICs require an opto-coupler
and secondary side control circuit to match the tight
voltage/current regulation performance of digital power
supplies. Furthermore, eliminating an opto-coupler not
only reduces cost but it also eliminates a weak link hence
improving lifetime and reliability.
5. Improve Dimmer Detection for LED Lighting
Digital power is especially benecial in the area of
LED lighting. All the benets described above can be
employed. In addition, algorithm based digital LED drivers
are best suited for detecting a myriad of dimmer types
available worldwide and enabling the design of ickerfree dimmable lamps that allow seamless plug-and-play
retrot lamp replacement for incandescent bulbs.

Notes:
1. Figure 2.1 and 2.2 are copyrighted materials owned by Ericsson AB and its afliates. They are reproduced by permission with the authorization and
courtesy of Ericsson AB.

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White Paper
What is Digital Power?
About iWatt
iWatt Inc. is a fabless semiconductor company that develops intelligent power management ICs for computer, communication,
and consumer markets. The companys patented pulseTrain technology, the industrys rst truly digital approach to power
system regulation, is revolutionizing power supply design.

Trademark Information
2008 iWatt, Inc. All rights reserved. iWatt, EZ-EMI and pulseTrain are trademarks of iWatt, Inc. All other trademarks and
registered trademarks are the property of their respective companies.

Contact Information
Web: http://www.iwatt.com
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: 408-374-4200
Fax: 408-341-0455
iWatt Inc.
101 Albright Way
Los Gatos CA 95032-1827

Disclaimer
iWatt reserves the right to make changes to its products and to discontinue products without notice. The applications
information, schematic diagrams, and other reference information included herein is provided as a design aid only and are
therefore provided as-is. iWatt makes no warranties with respect to this information and disclaims any implied warranties of
merchantability or non-infringement of third-party intellectual property rights.
Certain applications using semiconductor products may involve potential risks of death, personal injury, or severe property
or environmental damage (Critical Applications).
IWATT SEMICONDUCTOR PRODUCTS ARE NOT DESIGNED, INTENDED, AUTHORIZED, OR WARRANTED TO
BE SUITABLE FOR USE IN LIFE-SUPPORT APPLICATIONS, DEVICES OR SYSTEMS, OR OTHER CRITICAL
APPLICATIONS.
Inclusion of iWatt products in critical applications is understood to be fully at the risk of the customer. Questions concerning
potential risk applications should be directed to iWatt, Inc.
iWatt semiconductors are typically used in power supplies in which high voltages are present during operation. High-voltage
safety precautions should be observed in design and operation to minimize the chance of injury.

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