Conformal coating enhances system reliability

POWER INTEGRATIONS now applies factory conformal coating for its SCALE IGBT and MOSFET drivers. Conformal coating enhances system reliability by protecting electronic components against contaminants such as pollution, dust and condensation, which may cause corrosion. Power Integrations’ factory- coated gate drivers reduce inventory cost, lead time and overall cost of ownership by eliminating the need for manufacturers to send boards to subcontractors for cleaning and coating.

Power Integrations uses an advanced acrylic lacquer, broadly used in the industrial and automotive sectors. The highly automated process is qualified in accordance with IEC 60068-2 tests, and is followed by 100 percent optical inspection to ensure consistent quality. Conformally coated SCALE gate- driver cores are UL recognised components.

Initially, the 2SC0106T, 2SC0108T, 2SC0435T, 2SP0115T and 1SP0335 gate- driver families will be offered with conformal coating, followed by the 2SD300C17, 2SC0535T, 2SC0635T, 2SP0320 and 1SP0635V series in the near future. All future products will also include factory coating as an option.

Michael Hornkamp, senior director of marketing for gate- driver products at Power Integrations, said customers in wind inverters, traction inverters, HVDC MMC stations, photovoltaics and industrial drives where harsh environments are routinely encountered benefit from a factory conformal- coating process.

“By testing, cleaning and coating the boards in our facility, we reduce the opportunity for the units to be contaminated prior to coating, and we eliminate the time, cost and inconvenience of using third- party subcontractors.”

WHAT IS CONFORMAL COATING?

Conformal coating is a process of applying a thin polymeric film which “conforms” to the contours of a printed circuit board in order to protect the board’s components. It is applied to electronic circuitry to act as protection against moisture, dust, chemicals, and temperature extremes that, if uncoated (non- protected), could result in damage or failure of the electronics to function. When electronics must withstand harsh environments and added protection is necessary, Power Integrations can coat the board assemblies as part of the production process.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF CONFORMAL COATING FROM POWER INTEGRATIONS?

• Factory- coated gate drivers reduce inventory cost, lead time and overall cost of ownership by eliminating the need for manufacturers to send boards to subcontractors for cleaning and coating.

• By testing, cleaning and coating the boards in our facility, we reduce the opportunity for units to be contaminated prior to coating.

• Full conformal coating qualification with testing in accordance to IEC 60068-2 standards.

• Controlled process with 100% optical inspection at end of line.

WHICH APPLICATIONS BENEFIT FROM CONFORMAL COATING?

Any application in which the IGBT Module and driver are exposed to harsh environmental conditions is a potential application for conformal coated parts. These include offshore and onshore wind parks, traction main and auxiliary inverter, HVDC stations, photovoltaics plants and Medium Voltage Drives in mining and oil and gas industry.