New Industry Products

IRC Boosts Resistance Range in Ultra-Miniature Silicon Resistor Chips

May 09, 2006 by Jeff Shepard

TT electronics plc's IRC Advanced Film Division announced that they have extended the resistance range of their wire bondable chip resistors to 1MΩ while maintaining the TCR at ±25ppm/°C. Designated the WBC Series, the resistors combine IRC's tantalum nitride thin film technology with silicon substrate processing to produce devices just 20mil square.

According to Dr. Debasis Roy, Director of IRC Advanced Film Division's Thin Film Business Unit, IRC is the only resistor supplier to develop a 1MΩ precision resistor in such a miniature package with TCRs as low as ±25ppm/°C. "In addition to a variety of hybrid circuit applications, the 1MΩ resistance value makes the chip resistors suitable for battery-operated implantable applications in medical electronics such as cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators," he said. "Our proprietary TaNSil® process produces an ultrastable self-passivating tantalum nitride resistance element on silicon that provides exceptional stability, power dissipation and precision for these types of applications. The higher resistance range enables the devices to withstand higher surge conditions."

The wire bondable chip resistors are available in 0202 and 0303 chip sizes, with optional gold backside metallization available. The 0303 two-resistor center-tapped chips can be used in feedback circuits of amplifiers, where ratio matching, high power and close tracking between two resistors is critical. The WBC Series wire bondable resistor chips feature a power rating of 250mW@70°C, with a rated operating voltage of 100V. Resistance range is 10Ω to 1MΩ, with absolute tolerances to ±0.1% and ratio tolerances (0303 chip) to ±0.05%. Absolute TCRs are ±25ppm/°C, with tracking TCRs to ±2ppm/°C. Operating temperature range is -55°C to +150°C.

Devices outside these specifications can be produced to meet specific customer requirements. Pricing for the WBC Series resistors typically starts at $1.00 in quantities of 1,000 pieces.