As with any power conversion device, the LMR36015 dissipates internal power while operating. The effect of this power dissipation is to raise the internal temperature of the converter above ambient. The internal die temperature (T_J) is a function of the ambient temperature, the power loss and the effective thermal resistance, R_θJA of the device, and PCB combination. The maximum internal die temperature for the LMR36015 must be limited to 150°C. This establishes a limit on the maximum device power dissipation and, therefore, the load current. Equation 11 shows the relationships between the important parameters. It is easy to see that larger ambient temperatures (T_A) and larger values of R_θJA reduce the maximum available output current. The converter efficiency can be estimated by using the curves provided in this data sheet. If the desired operating conditions cannot be found in one of the curves, then interpolation can be used to estimate the efficiency. Alternatively, the EVM can be adjusted to match the desired application requirements and the efficiency can be measured directly. The correct value of R_θJA is more difficult to estimate. As stated in the Semiconductor and IC Package Thermal Metrics application report, the values given in Section 8.4 are not valid for design purposes and must not be used to estimate the thermal performance of the application. The values reported in that table were measured under a specific set of conditions that are rarely obtained in an actual application.

Equation 11.

where

• η = efficiency

The effective R_θJA is a critical parameter and depends on many factors such as power dissipation, air temperature/flow, PCB area, copper heat-sink area, number of thermal vias under the package, and adjacent component placement; to mention just a few. Due to the ultra-miniature size of the VQFN (RNX) package, a DAP is not available. This means that this package exhibits a somewhat greater R_θJA. A typical example of R_θJA vs copper board area can be found in Figure 10-3. Note that the data given in this graph is for illustration purposes only, and the actual performance in any given application depends on all of the factors mentioned above.

Figure 10-3 R_θJA versus Copper Board Area for the VQFN (RNX) Package

Use the following resources as guides to optimal thermal PCB design and estimating R_θJA for a given application environment:

• Thermal Design by Insight not Hindsight Application Report
• Semiconductor and IC Package Thermal Metrics Application Report
• Thermal Design Made Simple with LM43603 and LM43602 Application Report
• Using New Thermal Metrics Application Report