Compact and High-Efficiency POL Converter for High-Current, Low-Voltage, Space Applications

Abstract

This article introduces a space point-of-load (S-POL) converter with a multilevel and multiphase architecture. This converter is designed to meet the increasing demand for the space environment's high-current ($ \geq 40\text{ A}$) and low-voltage ($\leq 1\text{ V}$) power supply. While the architecture used is well-established, this study brings several significant improvements. First, the topology choice was made by optimizing the selection of passive elements across several preselected topologies using a genetic algorithm. Second, an integrated current measurement method has been developed and optimized to ensure converter protection in the event of a short circuit without deteriorating its performance. Then, the converter was implemented as a high-density power module, offering a peak efficiency of 94% and a full load efficiency of 86.3% while only using thermal conduction for loss dissipation, as required for space application. This prototype demonstrates the advantages of hard switching in low-voltage, high-current applications and allows compact and efficient power delivery to high-performance, power-intensive FPGAs.