AUSTIN, Texas, Jun 23, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Silicon
Laboratories Inc. (NASDAQ: SLAB), a leader in high-performance,
analog-intensive, mixed-signal ICs, today introduced a line of 5 kV
digital isolators designed to replace traditional optocouplers in harsh
application environments and systems powered from universal mains
supplies. Silicon Labs' new 5 kV Si84xx digital isolators provide a
smaller, faster and more reliable isolation solution than optocouplers
without the wear-out mechanisms, aging effects or temperature
dependencies that plague optocoupler-based designs. They also offer
best-in-class electromagnetic immunity among digital isolation solutions.
The 5 kV Si84xx digital isolators target industrial automation and
drives, motor control and medical device applications that require
robust operation and high levels of protection. The Si84xx digital
isolators are also ideal for systems powered from 220 V mains supplies
such as isolated ac-dc and dc-dc power supplies, solar power inverters,
lighting systems, data communications, and test and measurement
equipment.
Leveraging Silicon Labs' patented architecture, the Si84xx digital
isolators are designed to minimize data errors while enabling lower
emissions than transformer-based isolation designs. In addition to
offering superior performance versus optocouplers, the Si84xx family's
robust RF architecture also outperforms competing digital isolator
products, providing better electrostatic discharge (ESD) immunity,
higher tolerance to electromagnetic noise, reduced jitter and more
precise overall timing characteristics.
"With industry-leading electromagnetic field immunity and best-in-class
RF emissions, the Si84xx digital isolators offer bullet-proof
performance in the harshest operating environments," said Mark Thompson,
vice president of Embedded Mixed-Signal products at Silicon Labs. "The
new 5 kV devices enable customers to replace their optocoupler-based
designs with a more reliable, high-performance digital isolation
solution."
As the industry's highest performance isolators, the Si84xx family
offers the following advantages:
-
Highest data rate: The Si84xx isolators offer the industry's highest
data rate at 150 Mbps across the widest temperature range (-40 to +125
°C), making them suitable to replace optocouplers in a wide variety of
industrial applications.
-
Ultra-low power: Optimized for "green" applications, the Si84xx
isolators combine best-in-class power consumption with high data rates.
-
Lowest jitter: Si84xx devices offer 2x better jitter performance than
competing devices, minimizing data transmission errors and
bit-error-rates (BERs).
-
Highest ESD reliability: Exceptional ESD performance enables the
highest reliability in harsh application environments: 4 kV human body
model (HBM), 2 kV charged device model (CDM) and 400 V machine model
(MM).
-
Best transient immunity: The Si84xx devices offer more than 25
kV/microsecond of common mode transient immunity (CMTI) - a 50 to 100
percent improvement over the CMTI performance of optocouplers.
-
Strongest RF immunity: Si84xx isolators are a significant upgrade over
competing digital isolator solutions in demanding industrial
applications, delivering immunity against electric fields up to 300
V/m and magnetic fields up to 1000 A/m.
-
Lowest RF emissions: The Si84xx devices' RF emissions are up to 20 dB
lower than other digital isolators.
Silicon Labs' Si84xx digital isolator family provides greater
flexibility and more design options for system developers. In addition
to offering new 5 kV devices, the Si84xx family includes 2-channel
options with industry-standard pin-outs that are compatible with other
widely used digital isolator products, enabling easy drop-in replacement
and dual sourcing for critical power system applications.
The Si84xx digital isolators also can be combined with Silicon Labs' Si82xx
ISOdrivers, Si85xx
AC current sensors, Si3226
Dual ProSLIC single-chip SLIC/codec ICs and mixed-signal
MCUs to provide comprehensive isolation solutions.
Silicon Labs has shipped more than 75 million digital isolator channels
to date, and its market-proven RF isolation architecture has been
validated in numerous industrial, energy management, communications and
broadcast applications. The use of proven CMOS manufacturing technology
enables an aggressive digital isolator product roadmap and higher levels
of integration to meet the future isolation challenges of system
manufacturers.
Pricing and Availability
Samples and production quantities of the 5kV Si84xx digital isolators
are available now. Pricing in 10,000-unit quantities for 5 kV Si84xx
devices in wide-body SOIC-16 packages begins at $0.86 (USD).
To accelerate application development, Silicon Labs offers the
Si84xxISO-KIT evaluation kit to support basic functional testing and
engineering validation of 5 kV isolation products. The Si84xxCOM-RD
communications reference design showcases isolated RS-232, RS-485, CAN
and USB interfaces with 2.5 and 5 kV isolators. The Si84xxISO-KIT and
Si84xxCOM-KIT are both available for $40 (USD).
For additional information about Silicon Labs' Si84xx digital isolators
and to purchase samples and development tools, please visit www.silabs.com/pr/isolation.
Silicon Laboratories Inc.
Silicon Laboratories is an industry leader in the innovation of
high-performance, analog-intensive, mixed-signal ICs. Developed by a
world-class engineering team with unsurpassed expertise in mixed-signal
design, Silicon Labs' diverse portfolio of highly-integrated,
easy-to-use products offers customers significant advantages in
performance, size and power consumption. These patented solutions serve
a broad set of markets and applications including consumer,
communications, computing, industrial and automotive.
Headquartered in Austin, TX, Silicon Labs is a global enterprise with
operations, sales and design activities worldwide. The company is
committed to contributing to our customers' success by recruiting the
highest quality talent to create industry-changing innovations. For more
information about Silicon Labs, please visit www.silabs.com.
Cautionary Language
This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on
Silicon Laboratories' current expectations. These forward-looking
statements involve risks and uncertainties. A number of important
factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in
the forward-looking statements. For a discussion of factors that could
impact Silicon Laboratories' financial results and cause actual results
to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements,
please refer to Silicon Laboratories' filings with the SEC. Silicon
Laboratories disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise
any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
Note to editors: Silicon Laboratories, Silicon Labs, the "S" symbol, the
Silicon Labs logo and ISOdriver are trademarks of Silicon Laboratories
Inc. All other product names noted herein may be trademarks of their
respective holders.
Follow Silicon Labs on Twitter at http://twitter.com/silabs.
SOURCE: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
Silicon Laboratories Inc.
Dale Weisman, +1-512-532-5871
dale.weisman@silabs.com
Copyright Business Wire 2010