Approved! Extensions to Syfer’s surge protection & safety capacitor ranges

3rd December 2009

In response to rising customer demand, Europe’s premier manufacturer of ceramic multilayer capacitors, Syfer Technology, has announced extensive additions to its UL and TÜV approved surge and safety capacitor product ranges.

Syfer’s capacitor solutions for transient and surge protection are used extensively in networked and mains-based electronic equipment, in a wide range of industry sectors, providing valuable protection against lightning strikes and other transient events.

Chris Noade, Marketing Manager at Syfer, comments
“The main reason for the UL and TÜV approvals is that if there was a malfunction and the capacitors were to fail, there would be a risk of someone receiving a potentially fatal electric shock. The approvals are there to guarantee that the capacitors meet the relevant safety specifications. The demand for our products has been stimulated by a general trend in the industry for moving from leaded film capacitors in these applications to surface mount MLCCs, which are smaller and easier to assemble to pcbs”.

UL and/or TÜV approvals are often a critical factor in component choice for manufacturers supplying to top tier OEMs, service providers and systems builders. Gaining these approvals is an essential part of Syfer’s vigorous new product introduction programme, designed to meet customer demand for increased capacitance ranges, smaller packages and incorporation of Syfer’s award winning FlexiCapTM termination feature. Syfer is one of very few manufacturers worldwide offering MLCCs with flexible terminations with certification to IEC, EN and UL safety standards.

The Surge Protection (SP) family of Class Y2/X1 devices, for example, now includes TÜV approved ranges from 2.7nF to 3.3nF capacitance, in the 2215 case size and X7R dielectric. Higher capacitance additions, up to 2.2nF, extend the X7R dielectric Y2/X1 SP range in the 2211 package and the Y3/X2 class device in 1808 case size. UL/CSA approval is also available to the NWGQ2 / NWGQ8 classification. The parts are ideally suited for use in mains based telecommunications equipment and increasingly in consumer-oriented multimedia, and other multifunction applications, which are also susceptible to over voltage surges.

Syfer’s SP range of surge protection capacitors are fully approved and certified by TÜV and meet the electrical specifications of IEC60384-1. The capacitors have been designed specifically for use in equipment specified to IEC60950.

Syfer’s full range of surge protection capacitors is now available with its exclusive FlexiCapTM terminations. This innovative FlexiCapTM termination material, developed by Syfer, provides improved resistance to the risk of mechanical stress cracking.

FlexiCapTM is applied to the MLCC termination areas underneath the nickel barrier coating and tin plated finish. The inherent flexibility of the material provides greater scope for the device to accommodate mechanical stresses typically present in assembly operations.

For designers requiring the higher stability C0G/NP0 dielectric, Syfer’s 1808 PY2 series with a capacitance range from 4.7pF to 220pF now adds UL-approval to the existing TÜV Y2/X1 approval. UL approval to NWGQ2 / NWGQ8 has also been gained for the X7R dielectric versions in the same package size, with capacitance ranging from 150pF to 1nF. If higher capacitance devices are required, Syfer offers UL approved versions of the PY2 range in the 1812 case size, delivering capacitance ranges of 4.7pF to 470pF (C0G/NP0) and 150pF to 1nF (X7R).

Further recent additions to the product ranges include the option of tin/lead plating on larger component sizes, either with or without the FlexiCapTM option.