Silicon Labs Launches Industry's First 6-Channel 5KV Digital Isolator
– New SI86XX Isolator Provides Superior EMI and Noise Performance and Highest Data Transfer Rates for Industrial, Medical, and Eco-friendly Applications –

July 28, 2011 – Silicon Laboratories Inc. (NASDAQ: SLAB, Country Manager Jong-Chan Lee), a global leader in high-performance analog-intensive mixed-signal ICs, announced the launch of a family of digital isolators that provides the highest channel count, performance, and data transfer rates for applications requiring isolation ratings of up to 5 kV. The new Si86xx 3.75 kV and 5 kV digital isolators can be used in place of optocouplers in applications requiring robust operation and high levels of isolation protection, such as industrial automation, drives, motor control, and medical systems. Featuring a 5 kV isolation rating, the Si86xx family provides an ideal isolation solution for systems powered by 220 Vac main supplies, such as isolated AC-DC and DC-DC power supplies, as well as solar panel microconverters, data communication systems, and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs).

The new Si86xx product family, based on Silicon Labs' patented digital isolation technology, includes the industry's first 6-channel isolator rated at 5kV, a bidirectional isolator suitable for isolating I2C buses in various applications, and a 3.75kV option that provides a higher level of protection than currently available in 2.5kV isolators. These enhanced isolation ratings provide extended operating life under demanding application conditions. Furthermore, the Si86xx family's superior number of isolation channels allows developers to minimize the number of individual isolators, simplifying isolation issues in timing and high-speed systems with extensive digital buses, thereby reducing BOM costs and board area.

The Si86xx product family delivers error-free data in noisy environments and up to 20dB lower electromagnetic emission performance compared to competing solutions, thanks to its superior electromagnetic emission and immunity features. By providing superior electrical field immunity, Si86xx digital isolators are highly suitable for noisy environments commonly found in motor control, industrial automation, and power supply applications, as well as eco-friendly energy applications where temperature protection is critical, such as smart meters.

The Si86xx isolators provide ultra-low power operation of less than 1.6mA per channel at 1Mbps for energy-efficient system designs, as well as the industry's highest data transfer rates (150 Mbps) over the widest temperature range (-40 to 125ºC). The robust architecture of the Si86xx family ensures signal integrity maintained even during high data rates and high-temperature operation in harsh environments.

"The new Si86xx family delivers the EMI performance, high data rates, and reliability of Silicon Labs' digital isolation technology to demanding applications requiring system cost reduction, based on isolation ratings of up to 5 kV and higher channel number densities," said Mark Thompson, Vice President of the Embedded Mixed-Signal Family at Silicon Labs. "With the Si86xx isolators, developers can upgrade optocoupler-based designs into high-reliability, high-integration, and high-performance digital isolation solutions."

Product Price and Supply
Sample and mass-produced Si86xx digital isolators are currently available in a variety of compact packages, including 5kV rated widebody SOIC-16 packages and 3.75kV rated narrowbody SOIC-8 and SOIC-16 package grades. Pricing starts at $1.06 for a single-channel 5kV Si86xx device in 10,000 units, and goes up to $3.76 for a 3.75kV rated device in a SOIC-16 package for 6-channel 5kV isolation.
Silicon Labs offers the Si86xxISO-KIT evaluation kit for $49, which supports basic functional testing and technical verification of 5kV isolated product setups. The Si86ISOLIN-KIT linear isolation reference design provides a comprehensive, high-performance solution for high-cost isolation amplifiers used in analog signal isolation implementations. This reference design includes three different analog isolation circuits that support input signal bandwidths from 100kHz to 500kHz.

For detailed information, samples, and to purchase development tools for Silicon Labs' Si86xx digital isolators, please visit www.silabs.com/pr/isolation .