Stacked power supply topologies and inductor devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11716026-B2
Application number	US-202117307486-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 4, 2021
Priority date	Oct 17, 2019
Publication date	Aug 1, 2023
Grant date	Aug 1, 2023

Abstract

According to one configuration, an inductor device comprises: core material and one or more electrically conductive paths. The core material is magnetically permeable and surrounds (envelops) the one or more electrically conductive paths. Each of the electrically conductive paths extends through the core material of the inductor device from a first end of the inductor device to a second end of the inductor device. The magnetically permeable core material is operative to confine (guide, carry, convey, localize, etc.) respective magnetic flux generated from current flowing through a respective electrically conductive path. The core material stores the magnetic flux energy (i.e., first magnetic flux) generated from the current flowing through the first electrically conductive path. One configuration herein includes a power converter assembly comprising a stack of components including the inductor device as previously described as well as a first power interface, a second power interface, and one or more switches.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a stack of components including:
a first power interface disposed at a base of the stack;
multiple switches coupled to the first power interface to receive power;
an inductor device electrically connected to the multiple switches, the inductor device operable to produce an output current based on the received power;
a second power interface operable to receive and output the output current; and
wherein the inductor device includes a layer of magnetic permeable material disposed in the stack between the multiple switches and the second power interface.

2. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the first power interface includes first contact elements operable to connect the first power interface at the base of the stack to a host substrate; and
wherein the second power interface of the stack includes second contact elements operable to couple a dynamic load to the second power interface of the stack.

3. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the first power interface includes contacts to couple the multiple switches to an input voltage node and a reference voltage node.

4. The apparatus as in claim 3 , wherein the multiple switches are vertical field effect transistors disposed at a level of the stack between the first power interface and the inductor device.

5. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the multiple switches in the stack are operable to switch between coupling an input voltage and a ground reference voltage received through the first power interface to an inductive path of the inductor device, the inductive path extending from the multiple switches in the stack to the second power interface in the stack.

6. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the stack of components is a power converter operable to convert an input voltage received at the first power interface into the output current outputted from the second power interface; and
wherein the inductor device includes multiple inductive paths disposed in the stack between the multiple switches and the second power interface.

7. The apparatus as in claim 6 , wherein the multiple inductive paths include a first inductive path and a second inductive path extending through the magnetic permeable material of the inductor device, the first inductive path disposed in a first phase of the power converter, the second inductive path disposed in a second phase of the power converter, a combination of the first phase and the second phase disposed in parallel to produce the output current.

8. The apparatus as in claim 6 , wherein the multiple inductive paths in the inductor device include a first inductive path and a second inductive path, the first inductive path disposed in a power converter phase of the power converter, the second inductive path magnetically coupled to the first inductive path, a combination of the power converter phase and the second inductive path operable to produce the output current.

9. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the inductor device includes an inductive path, the inductive path being a non-winding path extending from a first layer in the stack including the multiple switches to a second layer in the stack including the second power interface.

10. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the inductor device includes a first inductive path and a second inductive path, the first inductive path being a first non-winding path extending from a first layer in the stack including the multiple switches to a second layer in the stack including the second power interface, the second inductive path being a second non-winding path extending from the first layer in the stack including the multiple switches to the second layer in the stack including the second power interface.

11. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the inductor device comprises:
a first electrically conductive path extending through the magnetic permeable material from a first end of the inductor device to a second end of the inductor device, presence of the magnetic permeable material rendering the first electrically conductive path to be a first inductive path.

12. The apparatus as in claim 11 , wherein the inductor device comprises:
a second electrically conductive path extending through the magnetic permeable material from the first end of the inductor device to the second end of the inductor device, presence of the core material rendering the second electrically conductive path to be a second inductive path.

13. The apparatus as in claim 12 , wherein the first inductive path and the second inductive path are connected in parallel.

14. The apparatus as in claim 1 further comprising:
a first electrically conductive path extending from a first layer of the stack including the first power interface and a second layer of the stack including the second power interface, the first electrically conductive path coupled to a reference voltage node.

15. The apparatus as in claim 14 , wherein the first electrically conductive path provides perimeter shielding to the inductor device.

16. The apparatus as in claim 15 further comprising:
a second electrically conductive path disposed in the first layer of the stack, the second electrically conductive path coupled to an input voltage node; and
a first capacitor, the first capacitor coupled between the first electrically conductive path and the second electrically conductive path.

17. The apparatus as in claim 16 further comprising:
a third electrically conductive path disposed in the second layer of the stack including the second power interface, the third electrically conductive path conveying the output current; and
a second capacitor disposed in the third layer, the second capacitor coupled between the third electrically conductive path and the first electrically conductive path.

18. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the multiple switches include a first switch and a second switch;
wherein a source node of the first switch is coupled to a reference voltage node of the first power interface, a drain node of the first switch being coupled to an inductive path of the inductor device; and
wherein a drain node of the second switch is coupled to an input voltage node of the first power interface, a source node of the second switch being coupled to the inductive path of the inductor device.

19. A system comprising:
a circuit board;
the stack of components as in claim 1 , the base of the stack coupled to the circuit board; and
a load, the load powered by the output current.

20. The apparatus as in claim 1 , wherein the inductor device includes an electrically conductive path extending through the magnetic permeable material from a first axial end of the inductor device to a second axial end of the inductor device.

21. The apparatus as in claim 20 , wherein the electrically conductive path is a non-winding path extending between the first axial end of the inductor device and the second axial end of the inductor device.

22. The apparatus as in claim 20 , wherein the first power interface is disposed in a first layer of the stack, the first layer being a bottom layer of the stack;
wherein the multiple switches are disposed in a second layer of the stack above the first layer;
wherein the layer of magnetic permeable material is disposed in a third layer of the stack above the second layer; and
wherein the second power interface is disposed in a fourth layer of the stack above the third layer.

23. The

Assignees

• Infineon Technologies Austria Ag

Inventors

• Leong Kennith K
• Kasper Matthias J
• Peluso Luca
• Deboy Gerald

Classifications

• H10W44/501

  Inductive arrangements (H10W44/20 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H10W72/877

  Bump connectors and die-attach connectors · CPC title

• H10W72/944

  Dispositions of multiple bond pads · CPC title

• H10W90/00

  Package configurations · CPC title

• H10W90/728

  between a chip and a stacked discrete passive device, e.g. resistors, capacitors or inductors · CPC title