Out in Front: January 4, 1996

Joining the list of companies eager to provide Pentium Pro (P6) support products, Linfinity Microelectronics, formerly Silicon General Semiconductors, has announced the LXM1600 voltage-regulator module. The module also indicates a secondary market thrust for the long-time linear-IC manufacturer: selling turnkey modules to system-design engineers.

The recent debut of the Pentium Pro caused a rash of activity in the voltage-regulator market due to both the need for a variable-voltage output from 2.1 to 3.5V and the need for 12A of current. (See "IC pair provides auto-level-set Pentium Pro power," EDN, Nov 9, 1995, pg 22 and "Auto-adjustable regulators power Pentium Pro," EDN, Dec 7, 1995, pg 30.) The LXM1600 meets Intel’s specs for slewing 0.5 to 11.2A load current in 350 nsec and the mechanical spec that stipulates that the module must measure 3.1×1.5×1 in.

Linfinity claims that its regulator-controller design allows it to use less-expensive capacitors than those of its competitors, thereby lowering the price of the module. The company is shipping a pair of 85%-efficient modules that can operate from a 5 or 12V input for $28 and $27 (1000), respectively. Moreover, the company believes that it can integrate the controller circuitry into two ICs by the fourth quarter and lower prices even further and boosting efficiency to 95%.
-- by Maury Wright

Linfinity Microelectronics Inc, Garden Grove, CA. (714) 898-8121