PMIC technology platform
Nordic’s PMIC technology platform consists of a broad set of power management building blocks, all optimized for ultra‑low power operation, reliability, and efficiency. These building blocks are selectively combined and configured to create PMICs optimized for specific application needs. This high level of integration simplifies system design while providing a flexible foundation for a wide range of battery‑powered products.
Battery management
Battery charger
The universal battery charger combines built‑in safety, flexibility, and automation. It supports Li‑ion, Li‑polymer, and LiFePO₄ batteries with configurable charge currents and termination voltages, while continuously monitoring temperature to ensure safe operation.
Fuel Gauge
By combining high accuracy with ultra‑low power operation - including zero power consumption in sleep - and low system cost, the Nordic algorithm-based fuel gauge solution delivers accurate battery state of charge without extra components, licensing fees, or impact on battery life. Battery state of health is also supported for rechargeable batteries.
System management
The system management features add a protective layer and robust error handling for both the system and host controller. Ship and hibernate modes reduce energy consumption during inactivity, while a comprehensive set of interface functions enables full application control over all power management features.
Recovery and protection
Boot failure recovery – Power cycle host devices that hang before the watchdog is enabled
Hard reset – Use hardware-enabled buttons to power cycle a frozen device
Watchdog timer – An external watchdog timer that acts as a second layer of protection outside the firmware domain
Power loss warning – Provides early warning of power loss at the PMIC level, giving the host MCU time to reach a safe state
Energy conservation
Ship mode - Ultra-low power state designed to minimize battery drain during shipping, storage, or device power-off
Similar to ship mode except that a low-power wake-up timer is also running, allowing the device to wake up automatically after a set time period. Additionally, hibernate mode on nPM2100 supports active LDO (to e.g. power a sensor) with fast wake-up
Interfaces
TWI – I2C compatible interface for configuration and monitorning of all PMIC resources
USB – Type-C compliant for power delivery and battery charging
LED driver – Used for charge indication or controlled by application for general purpose use
GPIO - General purpose IOs that can also be used to control PMIC features (voltage rails, load switches, interrupt output, reset, power fail warning etc.)
Voltage regulators
Power supply resources include a variety of voltage regulator topologies with configuration options to ensure maximum efficiency
Buck converter – Ultra-efficient step-down converter with forced or automatic mode switching techniques dependent on load for best efficiency
Boost converter – Ultra-efficient step-up converter with forced or automatic mode switching techniques dependent on load for best efficiency
Low Drop-Out (LDO) regulator – High-precision linear regulator for powering sensitive circuits like analog and RF
Load switch – On/off switches connected to internal or external voltage rails to turn on/off subsections of the system for optimized power consumption performance
