Surface Mount Resistors are very popular and used with other surface mount components for some applications. Surface Mount technology is now being used to manufacture most industrial and commercial electronics. By using SMT, the manufacturing process is improved overall. It also increases reliability, enables higher levels of functionality that are to be achieved within a reasonable size, and minimizes costs effectively. Using SMT allows the electronic components to be placed on the printed circuit board and is soldered in place through an automated process.
What is Surface Mount Resistors?
A Surface Mount Resistor is a type of resistor that has a small rectangular body and has silver conductive edges on both ends. They are also referred to as surface mount technology and provide the benefits of saving space on printed circuit boards. The code of resistance value has to be printed on them in the empty area. The solder paste is printed onto the mounting pads of printed circuit boards. Then the resistors are automatically positioned over these pads with the help of some pick and place equipment. The board is then passed through a reflow oven that melts the solder and creates strong contacts.
Why are Surface Mount Resistors Preferred?
Surface mount Resistors are widely used throughout industries as the preferred resistors in electronic equipment because of their high reliability and size. They have a wide range of applications such as telecommunication, medical equipment, and automotive and in some personal devices, displays, and research instruments with advanced technology.
A Surface Mount Resistor provides the same amount of functionality as a traditional resistor that is axially led. Still, they have a low power dissipation capacity and sometimes even lower stray inductance and capacity. These resistors can be both thick filmed and thin filmed. The thick filmed resistors are the commonly used ones, whereas the thin filmed resistors are used to provide more accuracy and stability.
Surface Mount Resistor Construction
Surface Mount Resistors are also known as chip resistors because of their rectangular shape. These resistors have metalized areas near the end of the leading ceramic body, and in such a way, they can be set up on a printed circuit board that consists of pads onto which the two ends are supposed to provide the connection. The resistor can be made by using a ceramic or alumina substrate. The end connection electrode is then put over this, and fire is used to ensure that they are robustly put in place.
After this thin layer of resistive material is deposited, which is usually metal oxide and is fired again. The component's resistance is determined by its length, thickness, and material. However, you can adjust the resistance in many situations by trimming the resistive element using a YIG laser.
Once the resistive element is completed, it is further protected with some layers of protective coating, which are then permitted to try between applications. The protective coat layers effectively prevent mechanical damage and also restrict the entry of moisture and other such contaminants.
In the last stage, a marking is applied if the resistor is large enough. Once the resistors are completed, they are packaged either in the form of a blistering roll, or they can be supplied as loose components, but in both cases, they are used by pick and place machines.
