How to choose film capacitor equipment

How do I choose a film capacitor?

When selecting a film capacitor, it is important to distinguish between leaded and surface mount devices. Leaded (or through hole) capacitors have wire leads which extend from the device. These wires must be soldered onto a circuit board or other device to make a connection.

What is a film capacitor?

Film capacitors are also known as plastic film, polymer film, or film dielectric capacitors. Film capacitors are inexpensive and come with a nearly limitless shelf life. The film capacitor uses a thin dielectric material with the other side of the capacitor metalized. Depending on the application, the film capacitor is rolled into thin films.

What are the advantages of film capacitors?

These capacitors come with very specific advantages including non-polarity, a high insulation resistance, low dielectric losses and self-healing capability. Film capacitors can be optimized through diferent materials and manufacturing methods.

How are film capacitors made?

They are constructed of two pieces of plastic film wound into a cylindrical shape. The winding is attached to two unpolarized terminals, which represent the plates of a basic capacitor, and is then encapsulated for protection. Film capacitor manufacturing.

How do you calculate the life of a film capacitor?

For the life of a film capacitor, the Mean Time To Failure(MTTF), which is calculated by the inverse of the failure rate, is used as the basis for the life calculation. If a capacitor is used at high temperatures, its service life will be shortened due to thermal deterioration.

Are film capacitors better than ceramic capacitors?

While ceramic capacitors offer better dv/dt capabilities, film capacitors are good (with a maximum value of 2200 V/µs) making them suited for use in snubber circuits. Film capacitors also have low equivalent series resistance (ESR), low equivalent self-inductance (ESL) and can tolerate large peak currents.