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High-Frequency Magnetics

T07.1 - Low-Profile Embeddable Chip Inductors for 10 W, 40-50 MHz DC-DC Converters

Tuesday, March 24, 2026
8:30 AM - 8:50 AM CT
Location: 217C
This paper presents low-profile multiturn chip inductors for DC-DC converter applications switching up to 50 MHz. These inductors are designed and fabricated with new pre-release magnetic materials to suit multi-MHz DC-DC converter applications. These inductors are designed based on high-volume manufacturing capabilities with a target height of 0.28 mm, i.e., slightly smaller than a typical PCB core thickness of 0.3 mm, which enables embedding the inductor within the application PCB core or the SoC package substrate core for integrated power delivery. The fabricated inductors have a measured inductance of 26-39 nH and DC resistance of 18.4-36.4 mΩ, in a package size of 1 x 0.5 x 0.28 mm. They achieved L/RDC of 1.45 nH/mΩ, Self-Resonance Frequency (SRF) of 300 MHz, and measured a large-signal Q-factor of 10 at 48 MHz and 0.34 A current amplitude. The FEA model indicated a saturation current greater than 8 A. The calculated inductor efficiency is 95% at VIN = 4 V, VOUT = 2 V, FSW = 50 MHz and IDC = 2 A. Therefore, the measured characteristics indicate the inductor’s potential for superior performance for 10 W DC-DC Converters switching at 40-50 MHz.