# Switching Converter Engineering with Carmen Parisi

- Show: [The Amp Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour)
- Published: 2021-11-15
- Length: 1h 13m
- Episode: 566
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi
- Listen: https://theamphour.com/566-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi/

## Summary

Carmen Parisi, Staff Applications Engineer at Renesas (formerly Intersil and TI), explains the engineering challenges of designing high-current switching regulators for Intel and AMD processors. She details the use of multi-phase buck topologies to handle extreme load transients of up to 150 amps, the trade-offs between analog and digital control schemes, and the critical role of test engineers in validating silicon and optimizing yield. Parisi also discusses the evolution of PCB design, the importance of proprietary communication buses like SVI and PMBus, and her career advice for aspiring hardware engineers.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi#t=0) Introduction and Role Definition
- [7:29](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi#t=449) High-Current Processor Power Requirements
- [14:25](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi#t=865) Multi-Phase Buck Topologies and Layout
- [20:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi#t=1231) Evaluation Boards and Thermal Trade-offs
- [32:44](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi#t=1964) Integration Levels: DrMOS and Regulators
- [39:57](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi#t=2397) Analog vs. Digital Control and Firmware
- [1:09:16](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi#t=4156) Testing, Validation, and Yield Optimization
- [1:05:39](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2021-11-15-switching-converter-engineering-with-carmen-parisi#t=3939) Career Advice and Resources

## Topics

- [Analog & power electronics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/analog-and-power-electronics)
- [PCB design & layout](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pcb-design)
- [Embedded firmware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/embedded-firmware)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)
- [Test & measurement](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/test-and-measurement)

## Most relevant to

large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Renesas (company)
- Intersil (company)
- Intel (company)
- AMD (company)
- Texas Instruments (company)
- SVI (other)
- PMBus (other)
- DrMOS (product)
- Cadence (tool)
- Sigridi (tool)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [216: Bavarian Folk Metal](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2017-09-22-216-bavarian-folk-metal) (Embedded.fm)
- [High Current PDN Design: Engineer of the Year Reveals Industry Secrets](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ontrack/2025-04-21-high-current-pdn-design-engineer-of-the-year-reveals-industry-secrets) (OnTrack)
- [More Tales from the Bringup Lab](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2022-04-19-more-tales-from-the-bringup-lab) (Oxide and Friends)
- [High Power PCB Design: Pushing the Limits with Caleb Buck](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ontrack/2025-08-19-high-power-pcb-design-pushing-the-limits-with-caleb-buck) (OnTrack)
- [379: Monstrous Cable Corporation](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2021-07-08-379-monstrous-cable-corporation) (Embedded.fm)

## Citing this page

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