Press Releases
Intersil Develops New Current Sharing Technology for Next Generation Computer Microprocessors

— Technology will be offered without charge to assist rapid development

PALM BAY, FL — May 9, 2000 - Intersil Holding Corporation (NASDAQ: ISIL), a leading supplier of specialized circuits for integrated communications applications, today announced the development of breakthrough current sharing technology that will revolutionize the power environment for the next generation of Intel processors. This advanced current sharing solution will be available free of charge to any voltage regulator module (VRM) manufacturer, and keeps Intersil at the forefront of innovative power management technology.

Although high-performance dual microprocessor-based systems require highly regulated power levels, the next generation microprocessor system architecture lacks the ability to deliver a balanced current load because each microprocessor uses an independently controlled VRM. Each VRM works independently, which can cause current imbalances resulting in increased component temperature, decreased system reliability and increased downtime.

The Intersil current sharing circuit solves this problem by configuring multiple VRMs so that they share, approximately equally, the total current demand of the processors.

"This is an industry first," said Rick Furtney, vice president of Intersil’s Power Management products. "Up until now, VRMs have been proprietary solutions. The single current sharing design that Intersil has developed allows VRMs to be interchangeable, and gives computer manufacturers greater flexibility in selecting sources without being concerned with the compatibility issues."

The Intersil current sharing technology equalizes the load on the VRMs, resulting in higher reliability due to the reduced peak thermal demands. This also allows multiple VRMs to respond to dynamic demands from either microprocessor, resulting in enhanced performance.

Artesyn Technologies, Inc., headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla., is the first adopter of the Intersil current sharing solution. Artesyn is a leading provider of power conversion equipment, real-time systems and logistics management for the communications industry.

"The Intersil current sharing solution enables us to better serve our customers," said Mark Jutras, Vice President of Engineering for Artesyn. "The leading computer manufacturers have been asking for interoperability between power modules so we are pleased to endorse the Intersil approach which we believe meets the design objectives of both the power industry and the OEM community.7quot;

The technology is offered to manufacturers of either packaged modules or discrete on-board solutions as an answer to common design objectives in high-performance PCs, workstations and server motherboards employing Intel’s next generation of microprocessors.

The technical brief "Current Sharing Technique for VRMs " explains the inexpensive and effective current sharing technique that enhances the performance and flexibility of voltage regulator modules (VRMs) that are intended for VRM 9.0 applications. The technical brief is available on the Internet at http://www.intersil.com/data/tb/tb3/tb385 and http://www.artesyn.com/html/whatsnew.html.

About Intersil
Intersil uses its semiconductor expertise to enable highly integrated voice, data and video communications. Intersil's integrated communications portfolio includes PRISM^{® Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) chip sets that enable mobile connectivity products for the home and office; analog, mixed-signal and digital integrated circuits for broadband access to wireless and wired Wide Area Networks (WANs); and power management products that enable 24x7 reliability in network servers, next generation PCs and information appliances. For more information about Intersil, visit the company's Internet homepage at www.intersil.com.}

PRISM is a registered trademark of Intersil Corporation,
Intel is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation.
This press release contains information relating to certain projections and business trends, that are forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from these forward-looking statements as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to global and market conditions as well as other risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in Intersil's filings with the Securities Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this press release and Intersil undertakes no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Specific risk factors can be found in Intersil’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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