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Double-layer capacitors provide memory back-up
eeProductCenter
Melville, N.Y. — NIC Components has introduced a new range of SMT
double-layer capacitors that provide memory back-up under power failure
conditions. The NEXC series offers the unique ability to conventionally
mount the V-chip style devices.
 The
surface-mount V-chip style
NEXC series
provides a double-layer construction and is housed in low-profile case
sizes. The series offers a capacitance value range from 0.047 F to 1.0 F
and rated voltages at 3.5 Vdc and 5.5 Vdc. The operating temperature range
is -25°C to +70°C.
A lead-free RoHS-compliant finish is offered as
standard. A higher reflow soldering heat-rated version of the NEXC series
is currently in development.
NIC also offers five series — NEXA, NEXG, NEXM, NEXT
and NEXS — of leaded parts for through-hole applications. The families
are offered with a wide choice of capacitance values between 0.01 F and
5.6 F, and voltage ratings between 3.5 Vdc to 12 Vdc. All have a
double-layer construction and meet RoHS requirements. The operating
temperature range for these leaded devices is -25°C to +70°C with the
exception of the NEXT series, which is suitable for use between -40°C and
+85°C.
Pricing: Typical unit pricing for the NEXC series is
$0.60 to $1.00.
Product information:
NEXC series
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Film chip capacitors deliver high stability
eeProductCenter
Melville, N.Y. — NIC Components has introduced two new ranges of
stacked film chip
 capacitors.
The NSHC
and NSPU
series combine small component size with stability under voltage,
stability over time, immunity from cracking and low dielectric
loss. Both ranges are fully RoHS compliant.
The NSHC series uses a stacked metallized
polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) film construction that helps it
achieve a wide operating temperature range from -55°C to +125°C.
It also offers a high soldering heat resistance.
Available in 0603, 0805, 1206, 1210, 1913 and
2416 case sizes, the NSHC series offers capacitance values from
100 pF to 0.22 uF with voltage ratings of either 16 Vdc or 50 Vdc.
The NSHC series delivers very stable temperature, frequency,
voltage, bias and dielectric absorption characteristics, said NIC.
The NSPU series features high capacitance
values using stacked metallized acrylic resin film construction.
Parts are available in 0805, 1206 and 1210 case sizes with
capacitance values ranging from 0.068 uF to 1.0 uF with a 16 Vdc
voltage rating. The operating temperature range is -40°C to +85°C.
Both the NSHC and NSPU series are supplied in
tape and reel packaging and are designed for reflow soldering
processes.
Pricing: Typical unit prices range from $0.09 to $0.30.
Product information:
NSHC series
and NSPU series
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Stacked film capacitors deliver stable performance in the most
demanding applications
Elextronics Express Europe
-
eeProductCenter
NIC Components has introduced a range of film chip capacitors.
Devices in the
NSHC
series have a stacked metallized polypropylene sulfide (PPS) film
construction that helps them achieve stable performance in the
most demanding applications.
The devices
provide an ideal replacement for less robust Class II multi-layer
ceramic capacitors (MLCCs). Parts are available in standard EIA
0603, 0805, 1206, 1210, 1913 and 2416 case sizes. Equipment
designers can choose from a wide range of parts with capacitance
values that range from 100pF to 0.22µF and voltage ratings of
either 16VDC or 50VDC.
In addition to their inherent stability over
time, voltage and temperature, the NSHC series has a very high
resistance to moisture and cracking. An operating temperature
range of -55°C to +125°C further underlines the suitability of the
series for use in the most difficult applications and
environments. The capacitors can be specified with optional
lead-free terminations and are supplied in tape and reel
packaging.
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Thin-film chip resistor
supplies ultra-stable performance
eeProductCenter
 Melville,
N.Y. — The NTR
series of high precision, thin-film chip resistors from NIC
Components Corp. features an ultra-stable, temperature coefficient
of resistance (TCR) of 10 to 50 ppm over a wide temperature range
and low noise figure. The resistors are designed for precision
applications such as telecommunications, automotive, medical,
audio and test instrumentation.
These lead-free devices have a resistance value tolerance range
of 0.1% to 0.5%, and a operating temperature range of -55°C to
125° C. They are available in case sizes from 0402 to 2512.
Resistance values range from 1Ω to 1MΩ, and working voltages from
25 V to 150 V.
These devices have a nickel chromium (NiCr) sputtered,
thin-film resistive element on an alumina substrate. The
wrap-around terminations with nickel barrier and tin finish are
compatible with established tin-lead and emerging lead-free
soldering processes.
Supplied on an 8-mm carrier tape for automatic pick and place
assembly, the chip resistors are priced at $0.01 to $0.08 each in
production volumes. Delivery is from stock to eight weeks.
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 Aluminum
electrolytic caps provide low impedance, high temp range
eeProductCenter
The new NRSZC series of miniature aluminum electrolytic capacitors
from NIC Components Corp. provide low impedance and high ripple
current ratings across a wide temperature range.
Components
tap WLAN chip sets
eeProductCenter
Driven by suppliers of wireless-LAN chip sets, passive-component
manufacturers are developing innovative devices and technologies to
meet the requirements for high-performance characteristics such as
quality, or "Q," factor, equivalent-series resistance (ESR) and small
packaging in the WLAN.
Solid-aluminum
caps aim at output-filter circuits
eeProductCenter
Solid-aluminum capacitors aim at output-filter circuits...
SMT
shift revs up for aluminum caps
eeProductCenter
SMT shift revs up for aluminum capacitors...
Small
inductors aim at wireless
eeProductCenter
The NML series of multilayer chip inductors in 0402 and 0603 packages
from NIC Components Corp. are said to feature high Q (greater than 50
at 1 GHz; less than 27 nanohenries) for high-frequency wireless
communication applications.
Component
lead times pinch distributors
eeProductCenter
Systems OEMs are facing stretched-out lead times, higher prices and
shortages of certain key parts from their components distributors.
Inductors
wind their way to advances
eeProductCenter
Inductor makers, beseeched by data communications and telecom
customers to weave improved performance characteristics into
ever-tinier packages, are yielding impressive results.
Active
demand greets crop of passives
eeProductCenter
Passive-component suppliers are toiling amid a changing market
landscape that affects such bedrock issues as pricing and availability
and requires the harvesting of a bumper crop of higher-performing,
smaller, more-integrated products.
Capacitor
arrays are surface-mountable
eeProductCenter
NIC Components Corp. has broadened its line of capacitors to address
two common design issues: the relatively large space requirements of
conventional capacitors, and the power loss and heat generated by
tantalum capacitors.
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Chip
caps must be smaller, better
eeProductCenter
As the appetite for passive components in computing and communications
equipment continues to rise, manufacturers of chip capacitors have had
to rethink, redesign and retool their product strategies. These
vendors are being pulled in two directions. They must focus on
miniaturization either by offering smaller package sizes or by
offering chip arrays containing several capacitive elements to
conserve space in portable applications. And they are under pressure
to improve performance by the use of new and different materials to
meet the surge in demand for low equivalent series resistance in
computer and telecommunications markets that demand higher frequency
and switching speeds.
Demand for higher performance in smaller packages at the lowest cost
is the driving force behind the development of new products that
combine increased integration, smaller packaging, lower ESR and
alternative materials. Also, capacitor suppliers must move into new
product areas to ensure higher profitability in a component market
often plagued with severe price erosion for commodity parts.
Several cap makers are turning to new specialty materials that provide
the extra boost they need for low ESR, higher capacitance and higher
current. And manufacturers of multilayer ceramic chip capacitors are
shifting to nickel, a base-metal electrode, to replace palladium
content after years of high palladium prices.
For low-ESR and high-current applications, several vendors have moved
to less conventional technologies such as conductive polymer tantalum
for surface-mount capacitors and solid conductive polymer aluminum.
While these specialty devices offer higher performance, they come with
higher price tags. It's estimated that conductive polymer tantalum
surface-mount caps are double the price of traditional tantalum chip
capacitors.
Companies such as Kemet
Electronics Corp. (Greenville, S.C.), NEC Electronics (Santa Clara,
Calif.) and NIC Components (Melville, N.Y.) are producing
surface-mount polymer tantalum chip caps.
Vishay Intertechnology
Inc. (Malvern, Pa.) is evaluating the low-ESR polymer tantalum
material for future development. In a joint agreement, NEC and Kemet
will sell conductive polymer tantalum capacitors under their
respective names: KO caps for Kemet and NeoCapacitors for NEC. The
alliance also allows for continued development and manufacture of
next-generation technologies for polymer capacitors. Applications
include input/output filtering on power converters and power
decoupling around microprocessors.
Kemet's KO cap replaces the existing manganese dioxide
counterelectrode in surface-mount capacitors with a conductive polymer
one. The new cap exhibits the high-frequency performance of ceramic
caps with the high volumetric efficiency and capacitance of tantalum
capacitors. These can replace low-ESR aluminum through-hole capacitors
and some high-capacitance ceramic caps. Currently, Kemet offers the
device in a V-size (7.3 x 4.3 x 2 mm) with a cap rating of 150
microfarads at 6 V. Other case sizes will follow. Additional technical
information on ceramic, tantalum and aluminum electrolytic capacitors
can be found at Kemet's Tech Topics at www.kemet.com, along with
frequently asked questions.
NIC's surface-mount polymer tantalum capacitor features
ultralow ESR and high ripple current ratings for capacitance values
from 3.3 to 330 microfarads in voltage ratings of 4 to 10 Vdc. They
are available in standard A, B, C, V and D case sizes. The benefit of
the technology is lower ESR and high-ripple current, said Jim Wright,
technical sales and marketing manager for NIC Components.
In the fourth
quarter of 1999 or the first quarter of 2000, Kemet plans to offer a
solid conductive polymer aluminum surface-mount capacitor. This would
mark Kemet's entrance into e aluminum capacitors. In July, Kemet
forged a technical alliance with Showa Denko KK (Tokyo) to develop and
manufacture such components, using SDK's technology related to
conductive polymers as the counterelectrode material in solid aluminum
capacitors.
Kemet has two major aims: to develop an industry standard for low-ESR
solid aluminum capacitors and to offer dual sources of supply. The
technology's advantage over existing aluminum electrolytic capacitors
is a true surface-mount capability, the company said. These caps do
not exhibit problems associated with liquid-filled aluminum caps:
limited life because the devices dry out. That makes for high heat
stability and low ESR.
NIC's
NSP series of surface-mount specialty
polymer solid aluminum capacitors offers a low impedance and high
ripple at 100 kHz. Designed to replace multiple tantalum chip
capacitors in high-current power supplies and voltage-regulator
applications, the capacitance range is 2.2 to 47 microfarad in voltage
ratings of 6.3 to 16 Vdc in molded chip caps. The low-profile (1.9-mm
maximum height) device is compatible with D and E case size tantalum
chip land patterns.
The devices will be used in applications where space is at a premium
and that can't physically handle a large-can aluminum electrolytic
capacitor, Wright said. If suppliers can improve the technology and
get the pricing down, it may become a long-term replacement for
liquid-style products in the future since they pack a lot of C/V in a
small space, he added.
Vishay offers a
complete line of solid-aluminum capacitors. Type 94SV of the Vishay
OS-CON series is compatible with vertical-chip aluminum electrolytic
capacitors and can be soldered by reflow and mounted by carrier
taping. Applications include high-frequency noise limiters and
switching power supplies.
Suppliers continue to introduce traditional cap chips with lower ESR
values. For example, NIC's low-ESR
NTC-L series of tantalum chip
capacitors is available in capacitance values from 10 to 220
microfarad in voltages from 6.3 to 35 Vdc. The ESR at 100 kHz is as
low as 0.1 ohm, and ripple current ratings range from 370 to 1,100 mA,
depending on capacitance and voltage values. They are available in
standard B, C and D case sizes.
Early next year, Taiyo Yuden expects to launch a
newly developed calcium zirconate-based ceramic material in its COG
electrode multilayer ceramic chip capacitor (MLCC) to extend the
capacitance range. The CF series, which is targeted to replace plastic
film capacitors, will be available in 0603, 0805 and 1206 sizes. Other
advantages include low distortion, minimal migration and low cost,
said Mike Tanahashi, strategic planning manager for Taiyo Yuden (USA)
Inc. (San Jose, Calif.).
Last April, TDK Corp. of America (Mount Prospect, Ill.) launched a
similar product, which combines a newly developed zirconate-based
ceramic material and the company's fine multilayer technology in its
COG high-capacitance MLCCs. The result is increased capacitance
through the use of thinner dielectric layers, according to TDK. The
capacitors range from 1 x 0.5 x 0.5 mm with values from 100 to 150 pF
to 3.2 x 1.6 x 1.15 mm with values of 3,900 to 10,000 pF.
Spectrum Control Inc. (Fairview, Pa.) improved its design for
single-layer chip capacitors. Designed for broadband and microwave
applications as a coupling capacitor or dc blocking capacitor in MMICs,
transistors or other ICs, the chip capacitors are manufactured with
sputtered-on termination for stronger adhesion and exceed the
requirements of MIL-C-49464. They are available with a capacitance
range from .05 to 5,000 pF, an operating frequency up to 50 GHz and a
standard voltage range of 50 to 100 Vdc. Higher voltages as well as
15dielectrics are available.
To offset the continually rising cost of palladium used in the
manufacture of ceramic chip caps, many makers of MLCCs have spent most
of their capital investment over the past year in converting from
palladium-based materials to base-metal electrode (BME) materials.
Vendors such as AVX, Kemet, Murata Electronics, NIC, Rohm Corp.
(Antioch, Tenn.) and Vishay have been moving away from palladium,
which accounts for the highest raw-material cost in MLCCs, for several
years in favor of nickel BM electrodes.
Palladium usage varies from product to product, and among individual
manufacturers. Most of NIC's Y5V dielectric parts are now produced
with base-metal materials. NIC chose to start with Y5V because it's
used for the highest capacitance values, which contain the highest
palladium content. Over time, the X7R-dielectric parts will be
converted, Wright said.
Nearly 70 percent of Murata's MLCC line has been converted to nickel
electrodes, and as much as 90 percent will be converted during the
next 12 months. The major focus has been on the conversion of X7R, Y5V
and Z5U dielectric materials. Next, Murata will shift COG products to
the BME lineup. Ben Gabany, marketing manager for Murata Electronics
North America Inc. (Smyrna, Ga.), said the shift to nickel BME does
not degrade the mechanical, electrical or thermal reliability of the
components.
MLCC makers most likely won't convert their complete lines, since
lower capacitance values with fewer layers contain less of the
precious metal. Rohm plans to offer BME caps in 0805 and 0603 packages
in the United States this year. A limited quantity is available in
Japan. Kemet is currently offering a few BME products in X7R and Y5V
lines.
Taiyo Yuden offers a unique nickel-based ceramic chip capacitor
manufactured with 100 percent nickel. The use of nickel-based
compounds for both internal and external electrodes minimizes
migration and lowers cost by shaving one step off the firing process,
said Tanahashi. The capacitors are available in values from 0.1 to 100
microfarads.
Incredible shrinking caps
To meet customer demand in the cellular-phone market for smaller
packaging, cap makers are shifting some production capacity to the
tiny 0401- and 0201-size chips. Today, most capacitor makers report
that the 0805- and 0603-size packages are the most popular in the
computer and telecommunications markets; however, the 0402 size is
gaining momentum and is expected to outstrip demand for the 0603-size
package by the end of this year. This shift has resulted in a severe
shortage of MLCCs in 0402-size packages. Lead times have stretched
beyond 20 weeks (see Sept. 13, page 133.)
Continued miniaturization of cellular phones, pagers and handheld
devices has driven capacitor package sizes down to the tiny 0201 size.
Today, less than a handful of suppliers offer a 0201 chip. Vendors
looking to launch such products face the challenges involved in
handling the small device along with minimal capacitance, since
surface area relates directly to final capacitance.
"As wireless communications customers look for more functionality in a
small size, the complexity of the circuits will require different
solutions," said Willie King, director of product marketing for AVX
(Myrtle Beach, S.C.). King noted that most customers are satisfied
with the 0402, but they have a couple of options if they want to go
smaller: They can move to some type of integrated passive device, or
to a chip-array package.
AVX recently expanded its line of interdigitated capacitors with a
smaller, 0508-size chip with an ultralow inductance of 110 pH. The
chip is available with capacitance values ranging from .047
microfarads at 16 V to 1 microfarads at 6.3 V in an X7R dielectric
with tolerances of plus/minus 20 percent.
The 0508-size chip array has generated a lot of interest for several
reasons, King said. "When customers are faced with high-volume
manufacturing anything that they can do to help alleviate additional
pick and placement, inspection of soldered joints and component count
bodes well from an efficiency standpoint," he said.
Another direction the capacitor market is taking is toward chip-cap
arrays. Most major suppliers offer standard four-element capacitor
arrays in a 1206 package. A few vendors are working on next-generation
chip arrays housed in 0805 packages. Among them is Murata Electronics,
which is offering the component in limited quantities but says mass
production will begin in the fourth quarter. A 0603-size chip is
slated for introduction next year.
The next step in this evolution is to offer multiple capacitance
values in a single array, said Murata's Gabany. However, the
technology is still in the early stages of development, and Gabany
believes such devices will be used in limited applications. While
Murata continues to expand its standard component line, it is looking
more closely at application-specific opportunities, he said.
AVX's 0508-size capacitor array, introduced in June, is the W2A
series. With four capacitive elements, it saves 30 percent more board
space than the previous 0612 array, the company said, and cuts
pick-and-place time by 75 percent.
Still, acceptance of chip arrays is not widespread. One challenge for
cap makers is convincing OEMs to consider the total cost of the
solution. Plus, there are design issues centered on higher inductance
and filtering, report vendors.
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