LTRIM's DC-DC Converter IP Now Available at SMIC

High Efficiency, Low Power DC-DC Converters Designed to Extend Battery Life Available in 0.18-Micron Technology

MONTREAL, January 27, 2006 – Responding to the strong consumer electronics market demands for longer battery life in single/dual battery powered portable applications, LTRIM Technologies, a leading provider of high-performance CMOS analog intellectual property (IP), today announced the availability of four of the company’s IP blocks in component libraries from SMIC (Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, New York Stock Exchange symbol: SMI), one of the world’s leading semiconductor foundries. The new LTR2100-1.8S18, LTR2250-3.3S18, LTR2251-1.8S18, and the LTR2251-3.3S18 make up a family of DC-DC converter IP blocks designed with low power consumption and an extensive range of input voltages that enable system-on-chip (SoC) designers to develop a breadth of portable, battery-powered handheld devices. These include high-end mobile phones, MP3 players, 3D graphics on mobile devices, digital video, Bluetooth/USB interfaces, biomedical devices, and many others.

Represented as a mask layout or “hard IP,” LTRIM’s IP is silicon-proven and fully characterized, offering designers a low risk path to integrate key power management functions into SoC designs to improve performance, lower costs, and to speed time to market for new products. The new LTRIM DC-DC converter IP blocks are available today from SMIC in 0.18-micron technology. As it has done with other foundries, LTRIM expects to expand its SMIC portfolio to include analog IP functions in various geometries to meet customer demand.

“With LTRIM IP components available on SMIC process platforms, designers can easily integrate analog functions into their digital SoCs,” said LTRIM marketing director, Sean Long. “This lowers the bill-of-materials (BOM) costs, reduces real estate, and improves the reliability and manufacturability of their overall designs.”

Product Features/Benefits:

LTR2100-1.8S18 is a synchronous step-down (buck) DC-DC converter IP block. The wide input voltage range (2.0V to 3.6V) makes this ideal for dual battery powered applications. The converter produces an output voltage of 1.8V with a guaranteed output current of 80mA. The quiescent current is only 30mA and 0. 5mA in shutdown mode.

LTR2250-3.3S18 is a synchronous step-up (boost) DC-DC converter IP block. The wide input voltage range (0.9V to 1.8V) is converted to an output voltage of 3.3V with a guaranteed output current of 150mA. The quiescent current is 30mA and 0.1mA in shutdown mode.

LTR2251-1.8S18 is a synchronous step-up (boost) DC-DC converter IP block. The wide input voltage range (0.9V to 1.5V) is converted to an output voltage, which is programmable from 1.6 to 2.0V in 100mV increments (+/-0.1V) with a guaranteed output current of 100mA. The quiescent current is 30mA and 0.1mA in shutdown mode.

LTR2251-3.3S18 is a synchronous step-up (boost) DC-DC converter IP block. The wide input voltage range (0.9V to 1.8V) is converted to an output voltage, which is programmable from 2.7 to 3.3V in 300mV increments (+/-0.3V) with a guaranteed output current of 100mA. The quiescent current is 30mA and 0.1mA in shutdown mode

These key features greatly extend the battery life of portable systems while providing highly reliable power supply performance, low ripple, fast response, and high efficiency. The synchronous PWM switching circuitry is optimized to allow the use of small surface mount inductors and ceramic capacitors for space saving designs.

About LTRIM

LTRIM Technologies is a leading provider of high-performance analog intellectual property (IP), with solutions offered in advanced CMOS technology from industry leading foundries. LTRIM provides solutions for the power management and data conversion markets. The company’s IP solutions can be easily integrated into mixed-signal system-on-chips (SoCs) and stand-alone analog chips. More information on LTRIM’s products and services can be found at www.ltrim.com.