About Power Integrations

Power Integrations, Inc. designs, develops, and markets analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits (‘ICs’) and other electronic components and circuitry used in high-voltage power conversion. The company’s products are used in power converters that convert electricity from a high-voltage source to the type of power required for a specified downstream use. In most cases, this conversion entails, among other functions, converting alternating current (‘AC’) to direct current (‘DC’) or vice versa, reducing or increasing the voltage, and regulating the output voltage and/or current according to the customer’s specifications. A large percentage of the company’s products are ICs used in AC-DC power supplies, which convert the high-voltage AC from a wall outlet to the low-voltage DC required by most electronic devices. Power supplies incorporating the company’s products are used with all manner of electronic products, including mobile phones, computing and networking equipment, appliances, electronic utility meters, battery-powered tools, industrial controls, and ‘home-automation,’ or ‘internet of things’ applications, such as networked thermostats, power strips and security devices. Variations of the company’s power-supply ICs are used for high-voltage power conversion in electric vehicles (‘EVs’). The company also supplies high-voltage LED drivers, which are AC-DC ICs specifically designed for lighting applications that utilize light-emitting diodes, and motor-driver ICs for brushless DC (‘BLDC’) motors used in consumer appliances, HVAC systems, ceiling fans, and a variety of industrial applications. The company also offers high-voltage gate drivers—either standalone ICs or circuit boards containing ICs, electrical isolation components and other circuitry—used to operate high-voltage switches, such as insulated-gate bipolar transistors (‘IGBTs’) and silicon-carbide (‘SiC’) MOSFETs. These combinations of switches and drivers are used for power conversion in high-power applications (i.e., power levels ranging from approximately 100 kilowatts up to gigawatts), such as industrial motors, solar- and wind-power systems, EVs, and high-voltage DC transmission systems. The company’s power-conversion products are distinguished by their ‘system-level’ nature; that is, they incorporate into a single product numerous elements of a power-conversion system, including a high-voltage transistor, drivers, advanced control circuitry, and in some cases, a communication link connecting the primary (i.e., input) and secondary (i.e., output) sides of the power converter while maintaining safety isolation to protect the end user from exposure to high voltage. Alternatively, a power converter can be designed and assembled using discrete components purchased from a variety of suppliers. Growth Strategy The company’s growth strategy includes the following elements: increasing its penetration of the markets the company serves; capitalizing on efforts to reduce carbon emissions by providing products that contribute to improved energy efficiency and increased use of renewable energy; and increasing the size of the company’s addressable market. Products Below is a brief description of the company’s products: AC-DC Power Conversion Products TOPSwitch is the company’s first commercially successful product family. The company has introduced a wide range of products (such as the company’s TinySwitch, LinkSwitch and Hiper families) to increase the level of integration and improve upon the functionality of the original TOPSwitch, and to broaden the range of power levels the company can address. In 2010, the company introduced its CapZero and SenZero families, which reduce standby power consumption in certain applications by eliminating waste caused by so-called bleed resistors and sense resistors. The company has also introduced products designed specifically for LED-lighting applications, known as LYTSwitch ICs, as well as a range of high-performance, high-voltage diodes known as Qspeed diodes. In 2014, the company introduced its InnoSwitch product family, the first power-supply ICs to combine primary, secondary and feedback circuits into a single package. These ICs employ a proprietary technology known as FluxLink to enable precise control without the need for optical components, which tend to add cost and diminish the reliability of power supplies. In 2019, the company began offering InnoSwitch ICs with more-efficient GaN transistors rather than silicon transistors. In 2020, the company introduced GaN-based MinE-CAP ICs, which enable the use of smaller input capacitors as a way to further reduce the size of a power supply. The company’s ClampZero ICs, introduced in 2021 alongside the GaN-based InnoSwitch4-CZ family of ICs, further enhance efficiency by recovering power losses associated with the high switching frequency of GaN transistors. In 2023, the company announced new versions of its InnoSwitch products incorporating GaN transistors with higher voltage ratings of 900 volts and 1250 volts; earlier GaN products feature transistors rated at 750 volts. This portfolio of power-conversion products generally addresses power supplies ranging from less than one watt of output up to approximately 500 watts of output, a market the company refers to as the ‘low-power’ market. This market consists of an extremely broad range of applications, including mobile-device chargers, consumer appliances, utility meters, LCD monitors, main and standby power supplies for desktop computers, servers and TVs, and numerous other consumer and industrial applications, as well as LED lighting. The company also offers automotive-qualified versions of certain products, such as InnoSwitch ICs, for use in electric vehicles. High-voltage Gate Drivers The company offers a range of high-voltage gate-driver products sold primarily under the SCALE and SCALE-2 product-family names. These products are fully assembled circuit boards incorporating multiple ICs, electrical isolation components and other circuitry. The company offers both ready-to-operate ‘plug-and-play’ drivers designed specifically for use with particular IGBT modules, as well as ‘driver cores’, which provide more basic driver functionality that customers can customize to their own specifications after purchase. In 2016, the company introduced the SCALE-iDriver family of standalone ICs, which enables the company to address applications ranging from a few kilowatts up to about 100 kilowatts, whereas previously the company’s sales of high-power products were primarily for applications above 100 kilowatts. In 2020, the company introduced an automotive-qualified version of SCALE-iDriver suitable for use in powertrain and charging applications for electric vehicles. Motor-driver Products The BridgeSwitch family of products, introduced in 2018, is a family of motor-driver ICs addressing BLDC motor applications up to approximately 400 watts. Such applications include refrigerator compressors, ceiling fans, air purifiers, as well as pumps, fans and blowers used in consumer appliances, such as dishwashers and laundry machines. BridgeSwitch products are complemented by the company’s Motor-Expert software, which provides configuration and diagnostic tools for design engineers. End Markets and Applications When evaluating the company’s net revenues, the company categorizes its sales into the following four major end-market groupings: communications, computer, consumer, and industrial. The company’s products are used in a vast range of power-conversion applications in the above-listed end-market categories. The following chart lists the most prominent applications for the company’s products in each category. Communications: Mobile-phone chargers, adapters for routers, cordless phones, broadband modems, voice-over-IP phones, and other network and telecom gear. Computer: Desktop PCs and monitors, servers, adapters for tablets and notebook computers, and other computer peripherals. Consumer: Major and small appliances, air conditioners and other comfort appliances, TVs and set-top boxes, and video-game consoles. Industrial: Industrial controls, LED lighting, utility meters, motor controls, uninterruptible power supplies, battery-powered tools, networked thermostats, power strips and other ‘smart home’ devices, industrial motor drives, renewable energy systems, electric locomotives, electric passenger cars and commercial vehicles, and high-voltage DC transmission systems. Sales, Distribution and Marketing The company sells its products to original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs, and merchant power-supply manufacturers through the company’s direct sales staff and a worldwide network of independent sales representatives and distributors. The company has sales offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, India, China, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Canada, Singapore and Taiwan. Direct sales to OEMs and merchant power supply manufacturers represented approximately 31% of the company’s net product revenues in 2023, while sales to distributors accounted for the remainder. The company’s top ten customers, including distributors that resell to OEMs and merchant power supply manufacturers, accounted for approximately 80% of net revenues in 2023. Intellectual Property and Other Proprietary Rights TOPSwitch, TinySwitch, LinkSwitch, DPA-Switch, EcoSmart, Hiper, Qspeed, InnoSwitch, BridgeSwitch, SCALE, SCALE-II, SCALE-III, SCALE-iDriver, PeakSwitch, CAPZero, SENZero, ChiPhy, FluxLink, CONCEPT, PI Expert and Motor-Expert are trademarks of the company. In 2023, the company received 17 U.S. and 48 foreign patents. As of December 31, 2023, the company held 300 U.S. and 349 foreign patents. Both the U.S. and foreign patents have expiration dates ranging from 2024 to 2044. The company also holds trademarks in the U.S. and various other geographies, including Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong, China, the United Kingdom, Europe, Japan, India, Brazil, Russia, and Switzerland. Manufacturing The company contracts with three foundries for the manufacture of the vast majority of the company’s silicon wafers: Lapis Semiconductor Co., Ltd., or Lapis; Seiko Epson Corporation, or Epson; and X-FAB Semiconductor Foundries AG, or X-FAB. These contractors manufacture wafers using the company’s proprietary high-voltage process technologies at fabrication facilities located in Japan, Germany, and the United States. The company’s ICs are assembled, packaged and tested by independent subcontractors in China, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines; a small percentage of the company’s ICs are tested at its headquarters facility in California. The company’s gate-driver boards are assembled and tested by independent subcontractors in Sri Lanka and Thailand, some of the boards are tested at the company’s facility in Switzerland. The company’s wafer supply agreements with Lapis, Epson and X-FAB expire in April 2028, December 2025, and December 2028, respectively. Competition Competing alternatives to the company’s high-voltage ICs for the power-supply market include monolithic and hybrid ICs from companies, such as STMicroelectronics, Infineon Technologies, and Sanken Electric Company, as well as PWM-controller chips paired with discrete high-voltage silicon or GaN transistors. Such controller chips are produced by a large number of vendors, including those listed above, as well as others, including NXP Semiconductors, Diodes Inc., On-Bright Electronics, MediaTek Inc., Renesas Electronics, and in recent years, an increasing number of Chinese suppliers, such as Southchip Semiconductor, Chipown Microelectronics, and Hangzhou Silan Microelectronics Co. The company’s gate-driver products compete with alternatives from such companies as Broadcom, Infineon, Mitsubishi Electric, Fuji Electric, Semikron, and Hangzhou Firstack Technology Co., as well as driver circuits made up of discrete devices. The company’s motor-driver ICs compete with power modules from such companies as ON Semiconductor, Infineon, STMicroelectronics, Mitsubishi and Sanken, as well as discrete designs from a wide range of other suppliers. History Power Integrations, Inc. was founded in 1988. The company was incorporated in California in 1988 and reincorporated in Delaware in 1997.