Wire compendium for magnetic elements design

Magnetic components are the current bottleneck for improving the power density in power conversion. For that reason in SPC we have created Frenetic, an AI-based tool able to provide a working design without iterations needed in less than a week.

ROUND WIRE

Most commonly used wire, made of a round conducting section covered by an insulation layer. PROS: Easiness of use Low cost CONTRAS: Bad AC resistance at high freq. Bad compacity.

SQUARE WIRE

Similar to round, but with a square section.

• PROS: Good compacity Large conducting section
• CONTRAS: Bad AC resistance at high freq. High cost

LITZ WIRE

Wire made of many thin wire strands, individually insulated and woven together in prescribed patterns.

• PROS: Good AC resistance at high freq. Easiness of use
• CONTRAS: High-cost Lowest compacity

RECTANGULAR WIRE

Similar to round, but with a form factor that can optimize better-winding windows.

• PROS: Best compacity in some cases Large conducting section
• CONTRAS: Bad AC resistance at high freq. Can be difficult to wind

PLANAR WIRE

Wire printed directly on a PCB, using external and internal layers when a low profile magnetic is needed.

• PROS: High repeatability Good AC resistance at high freq.
• CONTRAS: High prototyping cost Low conducting section 

FOIL WIRE

Wire made of thin insulated sheets, that can be cut to the height needed in each design.

• PROS: Good AC resistance at high freq. Best compacity
• CONTRAS: High-cost Bad compacity

CONCLUSIONS

There are billions of possible combinations along the path towards designing the optimum magnetic element. When, additionally, different types of wires are introduced to the equation, the complexity of the problem can grow mindnumbingly large; especially because the usage boundaries and their trade-offs are not always clear. That's one of the reasons we have created Frenetic, where our AI is able to navigate all the variables and give our customers the optimum design, with optimum winding, for their power needs.