TVS Thyristor Selection Guide and Manufacturers
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This guide will help you select the appropriate TVS Thyristor from various manufacturers. It also covers TVS thyristor symbols and characteristics.
What is a TVS Thyristor?
Introduction: Transient overvoltages and surges are common in electrical environments due to power switching, EM radiation, electrostatic discharge, lightning, and more.
A TVS thyristor is an electronic component designed to protect electronic circuits from overvoltage transients induced on wires. TVS stands for “Transient Voltage Suppression.”
Figure 1 shows common TVS thyristor symbols.
The basic functions of a TVS Thyristor device are:
- Protecting people from hazardous voltages induced by power line contact or lightning.
- Limiting the maximum voltage seen by equipment.
- Diverting high transient currents to the ground, away from the equipment.
The characteristic curve of a TVS Thyristor is shown in Figure 2.
TVS Thyristor Selection Guide
When selecting a TVS Thyristor for a specific application, consider the following specifications:
- Voltage - Breakover
- Voltage - OFF state
- Voltage - ON state
- Current - Peak Pulse (specified for waveforms like 8/20µs and 10/1000µs)
- Current - Hold
- Number of elements
- Mounting Type: Surface Mount/Through Hole
- Packaging type
TVS Thyristor Manufacturers
The following table lists some popular TVS Thyristor manufacturers:
TVS Thyristor Manufacturers |
---|
Bourns Inc. |
Littlefuse Inc. |
Diodes Incorporated |
IXYS |
Micro Commercial Co. |
ST Microelectronics |
ON Semiconductor |
Microsemi Corporation |
PROTEK DEVICES |
Socay Electronics Corp., Ltd. |