Bürklin Elektronik Quarterly # 02/2022 Englisch

TDK
TVS DIODES OFFER HIGHLY
RELIABLE AND COMPLETE ESD
PROTECTION SOLUTIONS FOR
USB TM TYPE-C ® CONNECTORS
Except for the four GND
(ground) pins, ESD protection
is needed on 20 pins.
This protection is achieved
by connecting small ESD
protection TVS diodes from
the pin to GND. If an ESD
event occurs, these will redirect
the transient current
to GND. TDK TVS diodes
are designed with a snapback
feature with extremely
low clamping voltage
characteristics due to their
“thyristor structure”. This
feature helps to guarantee
the reliable limitation of
over-voltage.
Pins are divided into three
different functional groups
based on pin functionalities,
and three different
TVS components have been
developed accordingly. This
ensures efficient and suitable
protection, as shown
in the following overview.
The USB Type-C ® connector
is the most common
interface for computers,
tablets and smartphones.
It supports high-speed
data transfer as well as
fast charging of peripheral
devices. Like other
interfaces, USB TM Type-C ®
connectors are frequently
exposed to Electro Static
Discharges (ESD), which
may cause damage to the
sensitive electronics of
the connected devices.
Therefore, connector pins
must be properly protected
against ESD. The layout
and performance of USB
Type-C ® connectors require
specific ESD protection.
TDK has developed Transient
Voltage Suppressor
(TVS) diodes, which are
specifically designed to
protect USB Type-C ®
connectors. The TDK TVS
portfolio provides the ideal
solutions for the highspeed
data pins up to 40
Gbps using the fast USB TM
4 40G protocol, as well as
the Thunderbolt protocol.
Furthermore, TDK TVS
diodes support fast device
charging via power delivery
protocol and the respective
pins.
One of the handy features
of the USB Type-C ®
connector is its flippabiliy
with no up or down orientation,
which has been
achieved by mirroring the
pins on both sides of the
connector. Figure 1 shows
all 24 pins densely arranged
without leaving
much space for protection
diodes. Additionally,
the best practice for ESD
protection is to place
an ESD component as
close as possible to the
connector at risk of being
exposed to the source of
the transient event. Due
to their miniaturized size,
TDK TVS diodes fit perfectly
into the application. TDK
TVS diodes offer robust
protection with minimal
space consumption. All
types comply with the IEC
61000-4-2 system-level
ESD standard.
USB Type-C ® pin-out
For super-speed Tx/Rx high
data-rate pins, TDK offers
ULC TVS diodes with low
reverse working voltage
(±3.3 V) and ultra-low
capacitance. ULC TVS
diodes have been tested
and certified by an independent
certification lab for
applications with USB TM 4
40 Gbps data rates and
Thunderbolt TM signals. Test
results show that TDK TVS
protection diodes do not
impair the communication
signal on the lines.
For the protection of the
differential signal D+/Dpins,
TDK offers TVS diodes
with a working voltage of
±5.5 V that are perfectly
suited to USB 2 signal
levels and that have a low
parasitic capacitance.
For VBUS power pins and
neighboring CC (Configuration
Channel) and SBU
(Sideband Use) pins, TDK
TVS diodes support reverse
working voltages up to ±20
V and fast charging functionality
with a USB PD
(USB Power Delivery) of up
to 100 W with 5 A/20 V.
The corresponding data
sheets are available at
Test reports and reliability
reports are available upon
request.
www.tdk.com
USB Type-C ® protection diodes portfolio
16 Bürklin Quarterly
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