X-Capacitor Discharge ICs Certified to New IEC 62368 Standard

Power Integrations, Inc. announced that its CAPZero™ family of innovative, two-terminal, automatic X-capacitor discharge ICs has been certified to meet IEC 62368, the new over-arching safety standard covering TVs and IT equipment. The CAPZero family eliminates power losses while allowing power supplies to comply with safety standards. The new standard replaces IEC 60950 and IEC 60065 and will become mandatory.

CAPZero ICs are smart, high-voltage switches that are placed in series with the resistors used to provide a safe discharge path for a power supply’s X capacitor. Without this switching mechanism, these discharge resistors cause a constant power drain while ac is connected and therefore contribute significantly to no-load and standby input power consumption. CAPZero X-capacitor discharge ICs block current flow to the discharge resistors when ac voltage is applied, cutting the power wasted in these components to zero. When the ac voltage is disconnected, CAPZero automatically and safely discharges the X capacitor by closing the circuit and directing the energy away from the exposed ac mains plug.

Comments Edward Ong, product marketing manager at Power Integrations: "Once the new standards reach a mandatory phase, mains-voltage electrical equipment must carry the IEC 62368 certification. CAPZero ICs are certified to the new standard and deliver a simple, cost-effective solution to eliminate discharge resistor loss while requiring minimal modification to system or PCB layout. This approach allows engineers total flexibility in their choice of the X capacitor used, optimizing differential-mode EMI filtering and providing a highly cost-effective option for designers optimizing no-load consumption, power factor, and EMI, as well as meeting the most up to date safety regulations.”

CAPZero ICs can be used before or after the system input fuse, as the innovative X-capacitor discharge ICs inherently meet international safety standards for all open- and short-circuit fault tests. Devices are suitable for all ac-dc converters with X capacitors, and are available with 825-V or 1000-V MOSFETs to support a variety of power supply design needs. Applications include PCs, servers/workstations, monitors and TVs, printers and notebooks, appliances requiring ErP Lot 6 compliance, and adapters requiring ultra-low no-load consumption. CAPZero ICs are available now in an SO-8 package priced at $0.40 each in 10,000-piece quantities.