Why tantalum capacitors are derated (II)

Such requirements have brought a lot of inconvenience to the actual users; on the one hand, many users do not know such harsh conditions of use of tantalum capacitors in such circuits, so the use of high voltage often results in breakdown. On the one hand, users are unable to reach chip products that have higher voltage withstand capabilities under conditions where the volume and capacitance are strictly defined.

The reason why tantalum capacitors have such severe conditions in practical use is actually a dangerous failure mode of tantalum capacitors. When tantalum capacitors have a large leakage current, the product's withstand voltage will rapidly decrease, resulting in rapid breakdown. Instantaneously, it can cause the rapid collapse of the dielectric layer to cause combustion or explosion. This type of defect causes tantalum capacitors to exhibit very fragile characteristics in circuits with large inrush currents; Surge immunity is common to all capacitors. the worst.