Future direction of power management in mobile devices

Mobile devices such as smartphones have two major restrictions from the standpoint of design: thermal dissipation and the supply of battery power. Thermal dissipation restricts power consumption of AP (Application Processor), which additionally limits computational performance. Battery usage time is also determined by power consumption of the mobile device. Due to these reasons, power management to improve efficiency of electric power usage becomes a very crucial part of mobile product design. In this paper, we look into power management from two different hierarchical aspects: power management techniques at the processor design level and PMIC (Power Management IC) at the power analog circuit level. Particularly, PMIC in the smartphone is expanding its role to a multi-function solution chip from the traditional function of power conversion and distribution. Future direction of PMIC and engineering challenges will be also discussed.