Sub-miniature reed switches provide high-reliability and longer life cycles

Littelfuse, Inc. has announced the availability of the MATE-12B Reed Switch Series. These sub-miniature reed switches supply longer life and higher reliability than currently obtainable in existing 12.7mm reed switches, attaining millions of cycles. Their extensive longevity surpasses the necessities for automatic test equipment and appliance applications.

The series is a normally open switch with a 12.7mm x 1.8mm (0.276” x 0.071”) glass envelope, which can switch to 200VDC 10W. They provide a high insulation resistance of 1012-Ohms (minimum) and a low contact resistance of less than 100mOhm.

The series is ideal for markets that need long-life cycles and high reliability, such as ATE for power semiconductor testing, appliances, and other limit-switching applications.

The device offers key benefits and differentiators, including high reliability and a prolonged lifecycle. It is extensively tested and proven to achieve millions of operation cycles, a significant advantage over currently available 7mm reed switches. The sub-miniature magnet size and hermetically sealed glass envelope offer design flexibility and allow use in more challenging environments and applications. PCB space savings are provided in an extremely compact and lightweight size that helps decrease the end product’s size. The device is suitable for harsh environments, hermetically sealed, and meets cULus requirements.

“The MATE-12B is an extension of our existing product line, which helps our end customers with significantly higher efficiency and longer lifetime,” said Wayne Wang, global product manager at Littelfuse. “The minimal risk of failure is especially critical to limit switching applications such as in appliances and power semiconductor automatic test equipment.”