AVX Corp., a manufacturer of advanced passive components and interconnect solutions, has expanded its extensive family of multilayer ceramic chips (MLCC) to include gold plated terminations. Designated the Au Series, the RoHS compliant MLCC eliminates the use of tin and lead and subsequent tin wiskering events on the PCB. Available for most standard MLCC values, AVX offers a range of gold thicknesses or flash terminations (soldering applications) from 1.9μin to 7.87μin, while the gold Std termination thicknesses start at 100μin minimum (epoxy/wire bonding applications).

"Wisker growth is caused by deposit stress, such as heat, to pure tin plated components. The gold plated termination series from AVX eliminates a printed circuit board's susceptibility to tin wiskering, which can significantly affect the performance and reliability of a system," said Tim Piver, Product Manager at AVX.

This series further strengthens AVX's commitment to alternate terminations. Other alternate terminations offered are SnPb, PdAg, Flexiterm and Flexisafe.

Typical pricing for the AVX's Au Series starts at $0.85 with a lead time of 12 to 15 weeks.