■ 7mm magnetic component for TV power module…opening the era of 2cm ultra-slim/ultra high-definition TV

■ The key is ‘High-efficiency Ferrite (X-2)’ independently developed by utilizing AI

■ 40% reduction in energy loss, 3 times increase in power density…Enabling slim magnetic component

■ “Advanced development of future innovative materials will be continued…Differentiated customer value will be created”

On the 27th, LG Innotek (CEO Jeong Cheol-dong) announced on winning the US ‘Edison Awards 2023’ with the magnetic component evaluated to open the new era of ultra-slim and ultra high-definition TV.

‘Edison Awards’ is the most prestigious invention award in the US, which has held since 1987 to honor the innovative spirit of the inventor Thomas Edison. It is also referred to as the ‘Oscars of Innovation’.

More than 3,000 judges composed of executives and scholars from industrial fields across the US participates for strict review and evaluation conducted for over seven months. Gold, silver, and bronze winners are chosen annually in 16 fields.

At this year’s awards ceremony held on the 20th, LG Innotek’s world’s thinnest magnetic component, ‘Nexlim’ was selected as the Bronze Award winner in the ‘Commercial Technology’ field.

Nexlim is a magnetic component that is mounted on the TV power module, vehicle power and chargers to change the voltage, or to perform the role of removing unnecessary signals that are generated from the current waves. It plays an important role of minimizing the power loss from heat generation to increase the energy efficiency of electronic products and electric vehicles.

As it was forecasted from 2018 that ultra-slim·high-definition TV with bigger screen and thinner size will increase in popularity in the market, TV manufacturer are facing difficulties in the product design. To realize TV specification of large screen and high-definition to the level preferred by the consumers, magnetic components had to be increased more than 3 times, and reducing the TV thickness at the same time was technologically impossible.

This is the reason why the main topic in the industry at that time was the development of an ultra-thin magnetic component to replace the existing magnetic component that occupies half of the overall TV thickness.

LG Innotek predicted this trend in the electronics industry in 2017 and has focused on developing the ultra-thin magnetic component. As a result, LG Innotek succeeded in commercializing ‘Nexlim’ magnetic component with 9.9mm in thickness. After the successful development, this technology was enhanced even more to lessen the ‘Nexlim’ thickness to 7mm last year. 

 The key to minimize the thickness of this magnetic component was the ‘High-efficiency Ferrite’ that is used as the main material in ‘Nexlim’. LG Innotek independently developed and applied the ferrite magnetic material (X-2) in ‘Nexlim’ to reduce the energy loss up to 40% compared to other general magnetic materials, and to increase the power density by 3 times.

Research Fellow Bae Seok, developer of Nexlim explained that “By introducing the simulation system utilizing AI, we were able to find the optimum material composition ratio for maximizing the ultra-low loss and high efficiency performance in just 6 months,” and added “The inductor and transformer, parts for converting the power in the magnetic component, was integrated into one part to lessen the thickness of the magnetic component even more.”

The advent of ultra-thin magnetic components such as Nexlim has made it possible to reduce the TV power module thickness to as little as 7.2~9.9mm. Through this innovative development, ultra-thin TV with an overall thickness of only 15~19.9mm has now become a reality.

Meanwhile, LG Innotek recently succeeded in developing the third-generation ferrite magnetic material (X-3) based on the original technology on the magnetic components that was secured during the development of Nexlim. Energy loss can be cut up to 30% more than the X-2 applied in Nexlim, and it is expected to play a decisive role in miniaturizing the vehicle components when X-3 is applied to electric vehicles. 

"With this Edison Award winning, LG Innotek has once again presented its unrivaled technology in the magnetic material & component field to the global customers," said Kang Min-seok, CTO of LG Innotek. He also added, "We will continue to invest in the advanced development of future innovative materials and take the lead in creating differentiated customer value.”