
GR500/T210
KEMET Electronics Corporation P.O. Box 5928 Greenville, S.C. 29606 864/963-6300
8
KEMET
Voltage and Temperature Ratings; Reliability Effect —
T210
Series capacitors are manufactured in 6 through 100
volt ratings at 85°C. Operation at 125°C with 2/3 rated volt-
age applied gives equivalent results and voltage may be der-
ated linearly between these two points. Solid tantalum
capacitors may be operated continuously at any voltage from
zero to the maximum rating without adverse effects.
Operation at voltage below nameplate improves reliability,
while subsequent operation at a higher voltage will not be
affected by prior low voltage use.
Expected reliability factors for voltages and temperatures
other than the rated conditions may be found in Figure 6.
Since
T210
Series capacitors are supplied with a predeter-
mined failure rate under rated conditions, reliability under
use conditions may be estimated with this nomograph.
Circuit Impedance —
Failure rates are affected by temper-
ature and voltage as described in Figure 6 and also by the
circuit impedance seen by the capacitor. Originally, applica-
tion advice for solid tantalum capacitors suggested an
impedance of 3 ohms or higher per applied volt. This advice
was later found to be unnecessarily conservative, and the
factors below are based on 0.1 ohm per volt as the unity fail-
ure rate multiplier.
Circuit Impedance,
Ohms per Volt
0.1
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
2
≥
3
Failure Rate
Multiplying Factor
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0.07
Equivalent Series Resistance —
The equivalent series
resistance (ESR) of a solid tantalum capacitor is frequency
dependent as shown in Figure 7a thru 7g. The curves are typ-
ical of the capacitor values noted, with measurements being
made by contacting lead wires
1
/
4
inch from the ends of the
capacitor cases. Since ESR decreases with frequency, AC
performance at higher frequencies is considerably better
than would be predicted from the 120 Hz ratings.
Capacitor Impedance —
The relationship between imped-
ance and frequency at various voltage ratings is illustrated
with typical curves in Figure 7. Impedance declines with
decreasing capacitive reactance, but ESR becomes dominant
before the self-resonant point is reached, producing the typ-
ical damped curves. Finally, impedance increases as induc-
tance of the lead wire and other capacitor elements domi-
nates. Obviously, high frequency impedance is directly
influenced by the length of lead wire and general mounting
configuration. The typical curves of Figure 7 include
1
/
4
inch
of lead wire at each end of the capacitor.
AC Ripple —
Permissable AC ripple voltage is related to
the rated voltage, the ESR of the capacitor, and the power
dissipation capability of a particular case size:
1. The positive peak AC voltage plus the DC bias
voltage (if any), must not exceed the rated voltage.
2. The negative peak AC voltage, in combination
with the bias voltage (if any), must not exceed that
allowable for a polar
T210
capacitor (see Table
III).
APPLICATIONS INFORMATION GR500/T210 (Continued)
Fig 5 Typical variation of leakage current with voltage
Fig 6 Reliability alignment chart
M
Percentage of Rated Voltage
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
1.0
0.1
0.01
0.001
O
A
Connect the temperature and
applied voltage ratio of
interest with a straight edge.
The multiplier of failure rate is
given at the intersection of this
line with the model scale.
Given T
& V1 Read Failure
Rate Multiplier F1
Given T, & F2
Read Reguired Voltage V2
Given F3 & V3
Read Allowable Temp T3
120
125
110
100
90
60
85
70
80
50
40
30
25
85
°
C
Rating
125
°
C
Rating
0.67
1.2
1.1
1.0
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
V
T
F
10
-1
1.0
10
2
10
3
10
1
10
-2
10
-3
10
-4
10
-5
10
-6
10
-7
10
-8
F
T
3
T
1
T
2
F
3
F
1
F
2
V
2
V
1
V
3