Datacenter power architecture: IBA versus FPA

Abstract

For a majority of applications implemented today, the Intermediate Bus Architecture (IBA) has been the preferred power architecture. This power architecture has led to the development of the isolated, semi-regulated DC/DC converter known as the Intermediate Bus Converter (IBC). Fixed ratio Bus Converters that employ a new power topology known as the Sine Amplitude Converter (SAC) offer dramatic improvements in power density, noise reduction, and efficiency over the existing IBC products. As electronic systems continue to trend toward lower voltages with higher currents and as the speed of contemporary loads such as state-of-the-art processors and memory continues to increase, the power systems designer is challenged to provide small, cost effective and efficient solutions that offer the requisite performance. Traditional power architectures cannot, in the long run, provide the required performance. Vicor's Factorized Power Architecture (FPA), and the implementation of V·I Chips, provides a revolutionary new and optimal power conversion solution that addresses the challenge in every respect. The technology behind these power conversion engines used in the IBC and V·I Chips is analyzed and contextualized in a system perspective.