News: Microelectronics
26 January 2024
Infineon and Anker open joint Innovation Application Center in Shenzhen
Infineon Technologies AG of Munich, Germany has announced its joint Innovation Application Center in Shenzhen with mobile charging and consumer electronics products firm Anker Innovations of Changsha, Hunan, China. With the center already fully operating, it is paving the way for more energy-efficient and CO2-saving charging solutions that support decarbonization.
Driven by the growing consumer demand for faster-charging solutions due to increasing usage of mobile devices, laptops and other battery-powered devices, the idea of establishing an Anker-Infineon Innovation Application Center dates back to 2021. After two years of preparation, the joint lab now serves as R&D hub for industry experts to develop power-delivery (PD) fast-charging solutions with higher power density, mainly based on Infineon’s next-generation Hybrid Flyback (HFB) controller product family and the CoolGaN IPS (integrated power stage) for fast chargers above 100W.
Anker has already brought several products to market, such as the 100W+ fast-charger device powered by Infineon’s CoolGaN in 2022. With the Innovation Application Center, Anker and Infineon aim to further shorten the application cycle and accelerate the time to market for future products.
Picture: Infineon and Anker business representatives as well as project managers joined the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the joint Innovation Application Center.
“Anker is an important customer for Infineon,” notes Christian Burrer, VP of systems & application marketing for Infineon’s Power & Sensor Systems Division. “We have already started a strong cooperation in the charging field, with product and system solutions covering several Infineon product lines,” he adds. “In the field of PD charging, we provide our customers a comprehensive product portfolio, including state-of-the-art power controllers, first-class switching power supplies, leading silicon MOSFET and GaN transistor performance, and more.”
Beyond charging solutions, the joint lab is focusing on a more diversified range of consumer applications, driven by Infineon’s expertise in wide-bandgap materials such as gallium nitride (GaN). Infineon reckons that the acquisition of GaN Systems Inc of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (a fabless developer of gallium nitride-based power switching semiconductors for power conversion and control applications) in late October 2023 has significantly accelerated its GaN roadmap and further strengthens its leadership in power systems through expertise in all relevant power semiconductor technologies.
“In 2023, Anker achieved success in many markets such as China and Europe. This would not have been possible without Infineon’s GaN technology solutions and the strong collaboration between our companies,” says Kang Xiong, general manager of Anker’s charging business unit. “We look forward to even intensifying our partnership with Infineon.”
Infineon completes acquisition of GaN Systems
Anker partners with Infineon, Navitas, Innoscience and Southchip to develop all-GaN fast chargers
