Image source: Mentech official website
Driven by the rapid development of downstream industries such as AI computing hardware, new energy vehicles, and photovoltaic energy storage, the integrally molded inductor industry is undergoing technological iteration. As a new-generation technology route, the copper-iron co-firing process is attracting significant attention from the power supply industry, driving the upgrading of the power inductor industry from three dimensions: market demand, process technology, and industry landscape.
Downstream AI servers, 800V automotive platforms, and energy storage equipment are imposing comprehensive performance requirements on power inductors, including high current, low loss, miniaturization, and high saturation. Traditional compression-molded integrally molded inductors are gradually hitting performance ceilings under high-power and high-frequency operating conditions, making it difficult to balance small size with high saturation characteristics. The increasing usage of terminal equipment is forcing technological upgrades in inductor products, creating practical adoption scenarios for copper-iron co-fired inductors.
The copper-iron co-firing process enables one-time high-temperature sintering and forming of copper coils and iron-based magnetic powder, which is fundamentally different from the traditional compression molding process. Under the same package specifications, this product can achieve higher saturation current, lower DC resistance, better heat dissipation and EMI performance, and is suitable for demanding high-power operating conditions. However, this process has a high threshold, and the sintering shrinkage matching between magnetic powder and copper material, interface reliability, and production yield remain technical difficulties that require continuous optimization in actual industry production.
The new technology is also driving changes across the industrial chain. Magnetic material, equipment, and inductor manufacturing companies are all conducting related R&D work. Domestic manufacturers are progressively advancing sample validation and small-batch trial production, while downstream power supply customers are gradually carrying out selection evaluations. The focus of industry competition is gradually shifting toward formulation, process control, and custom development capabilities, with collaborative development across the upstream and downstream becoming the norm.
At the current stage, copper-iron co-fired integrally molded inductors are mainly applied in high-end niche markets. In the future, as yield rates improve and costs decrease, the scope of market applications is expected to further expand. While consolidating traditional products, component companies also need to keep up with cutting-edge technologies and provide customers with technical support services such as sample evaluation and custom development to adapt to the continuously evolving design requirements of downstream power supplies.