News & Events
Intersil Unveils Optimized Power Solution for Mobile Pentium® 4 Processors

-- Intersil’s PC power experience and expertise delivers high-efficiency mobile power solution

IRVINE, CA, January 23, 2001 – Intersil Corporation (NASDAQ: ISIL), a leading provider of power management solutions for PCs, file servers and portable information appliances, today announced a new highly efficient power management solution for future Mobile Intel® Pentium® 4 Processors used in notebooks, handheld data terminals and point-of-sale terminals. The solution includes Intersil’s new ISL6215 multiphase PWM controller and ISL6205 MOSFET driver ICs. The ISL6215 is optimized to provide power-saving modes for Mobile Pentium 4 Processor power management.

“The power solution for the Mobile Intel Pentium 4 Processor was derived from Intersil’s experience and expertise in the desktop PC arena and conforms precisely to Intel mobile specifications,” said Dean Henderson, Intersil’s director of Portable Power Solutions. “The highly efficient combination of the ISL6215 and ISL6205 has been optimized for the Mobile Intel Pentium 4 Processor and is based on Intersil’s existing Pentium 4 processor power controller architecture that is currently running in millions of PCs worldwide.”

“The ISL6215, ISL6205 and the portable power solutions they enable demonstrate that Intersil is moving rapidly and methodically into the portable power arena for notebooks and other mobile handheld devices,” said Rick Furtney, vice president and general manager of Intersil’s Analog Business Unit. “Intersil’s portable product roadmaps to the future include innovations in power and battery management for notebooks and handheld devices. We are committed to leveraging our industry-leading experience and expertise to bring our customers the power control they need for next and future generation mobile products.”

The Optimized ISL6215 & ISL6205 Mobile Solution
Intersil’s power solution for the Mobile Pentium 4 Processor comprises an ISL6215 multiphase PWM controller operating two or three ISL6205 MOSFET drivers for modular power partitioning. This architecture simplifies component placement, regulates channel current and offers efficient heat distribution. The designer has the option of configuring the solution for two or three phases. A three-phase solution provides higher efficiency, better heat management and a reduction in the number of high-cost filter capacitors.

The ISL6215 controller offers many features optimized to power the mobile processor. Automatic single channel operation in low-power states maximizes efficiency. Loss-less current sensing improves efficiency while eliminating the need for a current-sense resistor. Low power consumption and low leakage current extend battery run time for the end user. Voltage accuracy is maintained at 1% over the entire temperature range.

The ISL6205 MOSFET driver ICs work with the ISL6215 controller to provide enhanced over-voltage, under-voltage and over-current protection. Each ISL6205 IC drives both the high and low side N-channel MOSFETs required in the synchronous-buck converter. High switching frequency allows the use of smaller filter components. Adaptive shoot-through protection provides for circuit optimization. Patented three-state PWM inputs significantly reduce negative transients on the output voltage when it is being shut down, thus eliminating the need for an additional Schottky diode to protect the CPU from negative voltages. The ISL6205 handles phase voltages over a range of -5 to +25 V.

To investigate this and other solutions further, visit these Intersil Web sites:
Notebook PC Power: http://www.intersil.com/notebook
Portable PC Power: http://www.intersil.com/design/powermanagement/pwrmanagement.asp

Intersil Power Management Technology
The Intersil Endura product family consists of leading power management solutions for desktop and mobile PCs, workstations, Internet appliances, I/O cards, RAID systems and high-availability servers. The Endura family includes high-efficiency solutions that are used in portable PCs and mobile information appliances as well as residential gateway products. Intersil’s leadership position has grown, capturing over 50 percent of the AMD Athlon™ and IntelÒ PentiumÒ 4 processors and providing power management solutions for next generation desktop, portable and wireless communications devices. The company is the first to introduce a complete cost effective power solution for new and next generation PCs that uses a multiphase power configuration to achieve unparalleled precision and efficiency. Learn more about Intersil’s Endura products at: http://www.intersil.com/endura. About Intersil
Intersil is a global leader in designing innovative wireless networking and high performance analog solutions that enable wireless access to video, data and voice in homes, offices and public places. Creating advanced power management products, Intersil provides reliable solutions for file servers, portable information appliances and over half of all computer microprocessors manufactured today. With a rich high performance analog and mixed signal portfolio, Intersil brings added value in providing complete silicon, software and reference design solutions to new products that bring portable connectivity to people wherever they live, work or travel. Headquartered in Irvine, California, Intersil has offices in cities throughout the US, Europe and Asia. For more information about Intersil or to find out how to become a member of our winning team, visit the company's Web site and career page at: www.intersil.com.

Endura is a trademark of Intersil Americas Inc.
Intel and Pentium are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation.
Athlon and Duron are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices.
All other trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.
The ISL6215 is manufactured under a license from Intel Corporation. However, this product has neither been approved nor certified by Intel.