Nanopower Semiconductor – Extending IoT device battery life

The Internet of Things (IoT) is rapidly transforming our lives. We’re increasingly surrounded by smart, small wireless devices that improve how we work, live, and interact.

But these benefits come at a price: energy consumption. The wireless chips inside IoT devices are sufficiently energy-efficient when sending and receiving data. But during idle periods, their performance is far from optimal.

Nanopower Semiconductor tackles this challenge with power-saving companion ICs. Their nPZero technology reduces the power consumption of any battery-operated system, significantly extending battery life.

From a few prototypes to full wafers

Nanopower Semiconductor operates with teams in Norway and Portugal. Their core expertise is circuit and system design. But their goal is to bring a silicon chip to market, which is a huge step for a fabless start-up with a limited budget.

Through the Europractice program, they connected with IC-Link to bridge that gap from design to manufacturing. They started with a few prototypes on shared multi-project wafers (MPWs). Later, they scaled up production to full wafers with their own mask.

A trusted partner for growth

IC-Link manages the semiconductor supply chain, including testing and packaging. This allows Nanopower Semiconductor to focus on optimizing the design and growing its business – on its path to becoming a global leader in low-power technology.

For Nanopower Semiconductor’s CEO Tore Irgens Kuhnle, the continued collaboration with IC-Link is key to the company’s success: “As we scale, we keep running into new challenges. And as a fast-growing fabless company, our in-house competence will always lag. It’s therefore essential that IC-Link continues to deliver the necessary expertise.”