Bourns P-TCO-U and P-TCO-N polymeric thermal cutoff (P-TCO) devices

Bourns is pleased to announce the introduction of a new family of Polymeric Thermal Cutoff (P-TCO) devices designed to protect USB-C cables from destructive and potentially dangerous thermal runaway events. The new P-TCO family includes two series: the P-TCO-U series in a 1210 footprint, and the P-TCO-N series in an ultra-compact 1206 footprint.

The USB Type-C connector features 24 pins in a smaller form factor than previous USB connector designs, and is capable of delivering up to 100 W of power. There are clear benefits to these enhanced features and capabilities. The downside to this combination of increased power and extremely tight pin spacing is a heightened concern about safety hazards due to the possibility of thermal runaway triggered by dirt or liquid entering the connector and causing a short. The new P-TCO model family from Bourns offers an effective combination of compact, ultra-low resistance thermal protection to guard against such potentially dangerous runaway events.

Each P-TCO series has a 12 V maximum operating voltage rating, a 50 A maximum operating current rating, and comes in three different models designed to provide protection for six different temperaturecurrent combinations. The ultra-low resistance materials used in the P-TCO family enable both the P-TCO-U and the P-TCO-N series to achieve initial resistance values as low as 2 mOhms and posttrip resistance values as low as 14 mOhms, thereby allowing the devices to achieve current carrying capabilities as high as 4.5 A.

Features

• Surface mount packaging for automated assembly
• Small footprint sizes (1210 and 1206)
• Low profiles for over-molding considerations
• Ultra-low resistance
• RoHS compliant* and halogen free**

Applications​

• Thermal runaway protection for USB-C cables
• USB C-C, C-B, and C-A connector configurations
• USB 3.2, 3.1, 3.0, and 2.0 protocols
• Other charging cables

_{* RoHS Directive 2002/95/EC Jan. 27, 2003 including annex and RoHS Recast 2011/65/EU June 8, 2011.
** Bourns considers a product to be “halogen free” if (a) the Bromine (Br) content is 900 ppm or less; (b) the Chlorine (Cl) content is 900 ppm or less; and (c) the total
 Bromine (Br) and Chlorine (Cl) content is 1500 ppm or less.}