/> Vishay’s Z203 series offers an immediate answer to many resistor applications currently believed unsolvable, including secondary standards, feedback devices for operational amplifiers, precision voltage dividers, meter multipliers, precision bridge resistors, and decade voltage dividers. As a result, the devices open entirely new areas of design where the use of resistors had not been considered.

The Z203 devices are the result of a unique concept in resistor manufacturing. A proprietary new generation of the Bulk Metal Z-Foil element with known and controllable properties is applied to a special ceramic substrate. A resistive pattern is then photoetched by an ultra-fine technique developed by Vishay. The device’s etched planar construction results in the extremely low and reproducible reactance needed for high-frequency and pulse applications.

Z203 resistors are uniquely enhanced by post manufacturing operations (PMO) exercised after the manufacturing cycle has been completed. Some of these exercises are a standard part of the manufacturing cycle and are only repeated during the PMO cycle to gain added stability or confidence in the product.

The foil resistor load-life curve shows an increase in resistance from the first load application, but flattens out to no further change after the first few hundred hours of loading. This knee in the load-life curve is reduced significantly by a special accelerated load-life operation performed by Vishay, resulting in a flat response immediately after installation. Other resistive devices show a continuous change when subjected to these same stresses and are driven out of tolerance. The optional PMO for this product includes the combination of thermal shock, power shot, and special burn-in.

The Z203 released today features electrostatic discharge (ESD) immunity up to 25,000 V, a rise time of 1 ns, with essentially no ringing, current noise of < - 40 dB, thermal EMF of 0.1 µV/°C maximum, a maximum working voltage of 300 V, and a voltage coefficient of < 0.1 ppm/V.

The resistors offer a resistance range of 10 Ω to 100 kΩ, and are not restricted to standard values or minimum order quantities, and can be supplied from 1 unit with “as required” values (e.g. 9.997 kΩ vs. 10 kΩ) at no extra cost or delivery time. The devices offer a non-inductive (< 0.08 µH), non-capacitive design, and feature lead (Pb)-free or tin/lead alloy terminal finishes.

Samples and production quantities of the Z203 series resistors are available today, with lead times from five working days and standard orders from 4 weeks.