ESP32-P4: How to connect VDD_HP

The VDD_HP pins on the ESP32-P4 microcontroller are used to power the high-performance domain of the chip, which includes the main CPU cores and high-speed peripherals.

DO NOT CONNECT THE VDD_HP PINS TO A 3.3V POWER SUPPLY. The permissible voltage range for these pins is from 0.99V to 1.3V (absolute maximum rating of 1.3V). Supplying a higher voltage than 1.3V may destroy the chip.

The intended way to connect the pin is to connect an external DC/DC converter to the FB_DCDC and EN_DCDC pins to generate the required voltage for the VDD_HP pins (including). You must not use ANY arbitrary DC/DC converter chip, preferred is the Texas Instruments TLV62569. See our post ESP32-P4 external DC/DC converter: Which chip should you use? for details and other options.

You must connect all the VDD_HP pins (VDD_HP0, VDD_HP1 if present, VDD_HP2, and VDD_HP3) to the output of the DC/DC converter.

There is a particular way of how to connect the DC/DC converter and it depends on your chip revision (v3.0 vs v1.3 or lower). See the ESP32-P4 schematic checklist for detailed instructions.

You must place a 10µF capacitor near the DC/DC converter output and place 100nF capacitors as close as possible to each VDD_HP pin (all connected between the respective VDD_HP pin and ground) to ensure stable operation.

Source: ESP32-P4 hardware design guide