The nPM2100 PMIC has been developed to prolong the operating time per battery for primary (non-rechargeable) battery applications by managing energy resources using an ultra-efficient boost regulator and a wide range of energy-saving features.
Application examples include wireless mice and keyboards, consumer asset tracking, remote controls, and body-worn medical devices.
Billions of primary batteries are being discarded each year because inefficient power management is wasting a substantial part of the stored energy, resulting in many batteries being thrown away before they are fully depleted.
The nPM2100 has a boost regulator and unique energy-saving features - including primary-cell fuel gauging – that look to address these power management inefficiencies while also ensuring that all the battery’s stored energy is used before the cell is thrown away.
“Not all IoT products can rely on rechargeable batteries or energy harvesting to operate. This means that primary batteries aren’t going away any time soon,” says Geir Kjosavik, Product Director - PMICs, at Nordic Semiconductor. “However, by using the nPM2100, designers will be able to access much more of the energy stored in those primary cells, making products last longer between battery changes or allowing the use of smaller batteries for the same battery life - resulting in more compact, lighter, and less expensive products.”
The nPM2100 targets primarily battery applications. Examples of supported batteries are one or two AA/AAA/LRxx batteries (in series), or one 3 V LiMnO2 cell. Single- or dual-cell silver oxide and zinc-air coin-cell batteries are also supported, plus any other primary battery that operates within the nPM2100’s input voltage range.
The nPM2100 features a boost regulator with an output range of 1.8 to 3.3 V, powered from an input range of 0.7 to 3.4 V. The regulator can deliver up to 150 mA maximum current. The regulator also powers a Load Switch/LDO supplying up to 50 mA across an output range of 0.8 to 3.0 V. It features a quiescent current (IQ) of 150 nA and delivers up to 95 percent power conversion efficiency at 50 mA and 90.5 percent efficiency at 10 µA, making it one of the most efficient contemporary boost regulators currently on the market.
The nPM2100 PMIC features a low current ship mode that enables products to be transported with the battery inserted. This mode supports a 35 nA sleep current with multiple wakeup options, including a patent-pending ‘break-to-wake’ function. It also features an ultra-low power wakeup timer that can run concurrently with ship mode to allow timed wakeups. The timer can be used for a deeper sleep setting than the power-off of a SoC or MCU can provide. The nPM2100’s total current draw in hibernate mode is less than 200 nA.
A voltage and temperature-based fuel gauge running on the host microprocessor also enables more accurate battery level measurements and enables users to access all the energy in the battery.
Samples of the nPM2100 are now available in a compact 1.9 by 1.9 mm WLCSP and a versatile 4 by 4 mm QFN package and the nPM2100 is expected to be in full volume production during the first half of 2025.
