150D154X9050A2T

Tantalum Capacitors

A tantalum capacitor is a type of electrolytic capacitor, a component of electronic circuits. It is a non-polarized capacitor with two leads for connection to a circuit, made of a pellet of tantalum metal as an anode, covered by an insulating oxide layer as the dielectric, surrounded by liquid or solid electrolyte or conductive polymer as a cathode. The 150D154X9050A2T model is a device of this type.

Application Field

A tantalum capacitor is commonly used in board-level and miniature electronic devices, such as hearing aids, cellular phones and pagers. The 150D154X9050A2T is a surface mount tantalum capacitor that is suitable for use in many different types of applications, including amplifiers, audio devices, bridges, timers, switching circuits, memory controllers, and many other applications. With its small size and high performance, it is ideal for space-constrained electronic systems.

Working Principle

A tantalum capacitor operates via an electrochemical reaction. A chemical reaction between the anode material (usually a pellet of tantalum metal) and the cathode material (a liquid or solid electrolyte or conductive polymer) develops a layer of oxidation on the surface of the anode. This oxidation layer acts as a dielectric between the anode and cathode, and forms a thin electric double layer. This resulting capacitance is determined by the area of the anode divided by the thickness of the oxide layer.

When the device is connected to a circuit, current flows between the two contacts. The cathode current is slightly greater than the anode current. This causes the oxide layer to grow in thickness, resulting in an increase in capacitance. When the oxide layer reaches a certain thickness and a maximum capacitance is reached, the device is said to be “fully charged” and can operate as a capacitor, storing electrical energy and releasing it when needed. This makes the 150D154X9050A2T model highly suitable for use in applications where capacitance is needed at high frequencies.