Concise Technical Guide

to Reed Relays
If used correctly, a Reed Relay is a superbly reliable device. The switch contacts are hermetically sealed, so do not
suffer from oxidization or contamination in the same way as an open electromechanical relay. Although in reality,
relays are often considered slightly mundane and little thought is given to them which sometimes leaves them
vulnerable.
This concise technical guide will help you to maximise the reliability of your design. Contents include:

y SoftCenter ™ Construction
y Former-less Coils
y Magnetic Interaction
y Temperature Effects
y Contact Abuse
y ‘Hot’ Versus ‘Cold’ Switching
y Why Place a Diode Across a Relay Coil
y Pickering Reed Relay Product Selector

Featuring new electrostatically screened

relays: 67ES and 68ES

[Link]
 Reed Relay Construction and SoftCenter ™ Technology

How are Reed Relays Constructed? Please click on the image below to view our website video.

SoftCenter ™ Technology
Pickering Reed Relays are encapsulated using a soft inner material to cushion the reed switch capsule. The very
hard compounds used by most other manufacturers can cause stresses that can potentially damage the reed
switch and degrade contact resistance stability and life expectation. Pickering relay SoftCenter ™ construction
stops this.

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 Former-less Coil Winding and Magnetic Interaction

Former-less Coil Winding

All our Reed Relays are constructed using our SoftCenter ™ technology, which uses a soft inner material to
reduce stresses on the reed switch. In addition, contact life and more reliable contact resistance are achieved by
our use of Former-less coil winding. Our Former-less coils are manufactured using a fully automated process that
provides consistent output quality and repeatability. So what is Former-less Coil Winding and what advantages
does it give you? Looking at the above diagram you can see that former-less winding greatly increases the
winding ‘window’, providing the following advantages:
• A much higher magnetic drive level and better magnetic coupling as the smaller diameter of the inner turns
are more efficient (more turns per Ohm).
• The number of Ampere Turns (AT) is increased - Reed switches are usually rated in sensitivity by an Ampere
Turn number, for example, an AT rating of 15AT is twice as sensitive as one with a 30AT. Because the 30AT
switch needs more magnetic drive there is much more ‘restoring force’, which is the ability to open when the
coil drive is turned off. This in turn extends the working life of the reed switch many times.

Learn more about SoftCenter Technology and Former-less Coil Winding at [Link]/softcenter

Magnetic Interaction
The switch contacts in a reed relay are operated by the magnetic field generated by the coil which is wound
around the hermetically sealed switch capsule. When these relays are stacked close together, the field from
adjacent relays will partially oppose the magnetic field from the relay alongside, reducing its sensitivity. This
means that a higher coil voltage will be required to operate it. For very small relays, this increase could be as
high as 40% which means that it may not be possible to operate the relay at its normal coil voltage. Look at the
magnetic field illustrations below.

Reed Switch &

coil assembly
Simplified illustration Simplified illustration
of magnetic fields showing cancellation
around screened of magnetic fields due
and unscreened to adjacent unscreened
Unscreened assembly
reed switch and reed relays
coil assemblies

Mu-metal screened assembly

Our relays are fitted with a Mu-metal magnetic screen rather than one made of steel because of its high
permeability and very low magnetic remanence. This screen concentrates the magnetic field, greatly improving
the device’s efficiency and reliability and allowing side by side stacking to maximize density. The high packing
densities that can be achieved when using our reed relays is illustrated below on a PXI High Density Reed Relay
Matrix Module from our sister company Pickering Interfaces.

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 Magnetic Interaction

This module uses 360 Pickering Series 111P relays, plus 156 Pickering Series 117 relays.
A total of 516 Reed Relays.

Magnetic screening is absolutely essential for reed relays mounted on a close pitch!

Watch our Magnetic-interaction video below, or learn more about magnetic interaction at [Link]/
magnetic-interaction.

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 Temperature Effects

Operating Temperature
Reed Relays are sometimes considered a mundane component by design engineers and often little thought is
given to their operating parameters. One of these parameters is operating temperature and failure to consider its
effects can lead to the possibility of the relay not operating at high temperatures.
The relay’s reed switch is operated by a magnetic field generated by a coil which is wound around it using copper
wire. Copper has a positive coefficient of resistance of approximately 0.4% per °C and its resistance will increase
with temperature at this rate. As the resistance increases, the current and therefore the level of magnetic field
will fall.

The industry standard ‘Must Operate Distribution of Operate Voltage for a sample of 1000 Pickering 109P-1-A-5/2D Relays
Voltage’ sometimes called the ‘Pull-In
Voltage’ is 75% of nominal and usually
quoted at 25°C. For a 5V relay this would
be equal to 3.75V, although in practice
it will be lower than this figure. The first
graph shows the actual distribution of
Operate Voltages for a batch of 1000
Pickering relays. In the second graph you
can see how this operate voltage figure 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5 5
will change with temperature. Operate Voltage

Must Operate Coil Voltage Specification Versus Temperature (for a 5V Relay)

5
Coil Voltage

4
Standard Higher
3 Temperature
Standard Specification Limit 85oC
2 Must Operate Voltage
Standard Lower 75% of nominal at 25oC
Temperature
1
Limit -20oC

0
-35 -30 -25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100
Temperature (°C)

Remember that there will also be a voltage drop in the relay driver that needs to be taken into account. It can
be clearly seen that at higher temperatures it is possible that the relay will not operate at its nominal coil drive
voltage. For Reed Relays other than those manufactured by Pickering, magnetic interaction with adjacent relays
will also need to be considered.

Pickering are able to supply Reed Relays with an increased magnetic drive level to accommodate higher
temperatures if requested and also have sensitive 3V coil versions in many ranges.

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 Contact Abuse

Relay Damage
High current or high power inrushes are the most damaging and most frequent cause of contact damage. Reed
Relays have specified maximum Current, Voltage and Power ratings. The Power figure is simply the product of the
voltage across the open contacts before closure and the instantaneous current as they first make.
We at Pickering have lost count of the number of times that we have heard something like “I was only switching
5 volts at 50 milliamps onto this CMOS logic board” when the user has completely disregarded the current inrush
into the liberal sprinkling of decoupling capacitors and several micro-Farads of reservoir capacitance on that
board.
Do not rely on electronic current limiting of power supplies only, to protect relay contacts. Electronic current
limiting takes a finite time to react and there are often decoupling capacitors on the output of a power supply.
There is nothing better than resistive current limiting.
As well as inrushes due to charging capacitive loads, discharging capacitors can be an even greater issue as the
current is often only limited by the resistance of the reed switch and PC tracks. Even capacitors charged to quite
low voltages can cause current inrushes of tens of amps and although they may be for microseconds only, they
can cause damage to small reed switches.

As voltages increase for some applications, inrushes can become an even greater issue, for example when
discharging cables after high voltage proof testing. The energy stored in a capacitance is equal to ½ CV² Joules so
will increase with the square of voltage. Increasing from 10 volts to 1000 volts will increase the stored energy by
10,000 times.

If you have ever had a relay contact stick closed, only to free with a slight tap, or had a longer than expected
release time, more than likely, it is caused by a micro-weld due to a current inrush.

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 ‘Hot’ versus ‘Cold’ Switching

Reed Relays generally have a higher Carry Current rating than their ‘hot’ Switching Current rating. It is usually
during ‘hot’ switching where contact damage occurs due to the resulting arc across the contacts as they open
or close. A severe current overload will quickly melt the contact area causing the two surfaces to fuse together
creating a hard weld as soon as the contact closes. Less severe current inrushes will cause a milder weld or
gradually build up a ‘pip’ on one contact and erode a ‘crater’ on the other according to the direction of current flow.
These can eventually lock together. Arcs can occur when contacts open, particularly when the load is inductive
and Back EMFs from inductive loads should always be limited, usually by a simple diode in the case of DC loads or
by a Snubber or Varistor in the case of AC loads.

One way to reduce or remove these issues is to ‘Cold’ switch.

This is a common technique in Test Instrumentation, where
the current or voltage stimulus is not applied to the switch
until after the relay has been operated and contact bounce
finished. In the same way, the stimulus is removed before
the contact is opened. In this way there will be no arcing
or switched current inrushes and the relay will achieve
maximum life, often into billions of operations.

When calculating the delay time between switching on

the relay coil and applying the current to the switch, it is
important to consider the effects of high ambient temperature
if this is likely to be encountered. The maximum operate time
and bounce figures given on the data sheets are at a 25°C
ambient level. At higher temperatures, the resistance of the
coil winding will increase at a rate of 0.4 % per °C, this being
the coefficient of resistance of the copper coil wire. There
will therefore be a corresponding fall in coil current and the
level of the magnetic field that is generated to operate the
reed switch. This lower drive level will increase the operate
time slightly. The timing figures on Pickering data sheets are
normally quite conservative so this is unlikely to be an issue
up to the normal ambient specification of 85°C. However, if
there is any additional self-heating within the relay due to a
high carry current and the switch resistance (I2R Watts), it
will be necessary to consider this and allow a little more time
before turning on the current through the switch.

Please contact Pickering Application Engineers at

techsales@[Link] for further help if required.

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 ‘Hot’ versus ‘Cold’ Switching

Learn more about Hot and Cold Switching from our website video below.

Diodes
In the majority of relay applications, a diode is connected across the relay coil, this could be either externally fitted
or commonly integral within the relay. Some relay driver ICs include an internal diode so another is unnecessary.
A reed relay operating coil usually comprises of many hundreds or even thousands of turns of wire wound around
a reed switch (effectively a ferro-magnetic core). This operating coil therefore forms an inductor. When a current
flows through this coil, a magnetic field is generated which operates the reed switch. A problem arises when the
current through the coil is switched off. Generally this is performed by a semiconductor switch of some sort. The
collapsing magnetic field will produce a substantial voltage transient in its effort to disperse the stored energy
in the inductor and oppose the sudden change of current flow. This voltage transient may be equal to many
hundreds of volts and is commonly referred to as a Back EMF. If not suppressed, this will be equal to –L x di/dt
where L is the inductance of the coil in Henrys and di/dt is the rate of change of current. If the current is reduced
quickly, di/dt will be a high figure, resulting in a high level of Back EMF. If the current is reduced slowly, di/dt will
be smaller resulting in a lower Back EMF figure but a longer release delay time which may not be desirable.

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 Why place a diode across a relay coil?

The diagram below shows a common method of driving a relay coil using an open collector NPN driver transistor.

When the transistor is turned on, it will pull Point

A to near 0 Volts turning on the relay. When the
transistor is turned off, the stored energy in the
inductor will generate a Back EMF pulse. This
pulse will be of the opposite voltage polarity to
that which was used to energize the coil. You will
see from the oscilloscope display that there is a
very large voltage spike which can be hundreds
of volts more positive than the supply rail.

If not limited, this voltage spike can quite easily damage the semiconductor driver and interfere with the
controlling electronics due to the electrical noise generated.

Limiting the Back EMF and the Effect on Release Time

The most usual method of limiting this Back EMF voltage to protect the driver, is by the use
of a diode connected across the coil as shown in this circuit. When the driver output at A,
rises above the coil supply voltage, the diode conducts and clamps the Back EMF voltage
to the Forward Voltage figure of the diode (Vf = 0.7 Volts for a typical silicon diode) so the
driver will only be subjected to the supply line voltage plus 0.7 Volts. Ideally, this diode
should be inside the relay or very close to the coil terminals to avoid the risk of RFI as this
current is carried along printed circuit tracks.

A consequence of using a simple diode in this way is to increase the opening or release time
of the relay as the magnetic field will be retained until the energy is dissipated, limited by
the coil resistance. The release time of a reed relay is quite fast so this is rarely an issue
but in some instances, a faster release time is desired. Using the circuit shown with a Zener
diode in series with a normal diode will achieve this by clamping the Back EMF to the Zener
voltage plus 0.7 volts. As an example, a small reed relay might have a typical release time
of around 120 microseconds with a simple diode clamp and this could fall to perhaps 50
microseconds if a 6.2 volt Zener is added in this way.

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 Reed Relay Product Selector

Ultra High Density 4mm2 TM Reed Relays Series 120 Series 122 Series 124

N
E
W
3.9mm 3.9mm
• Highest packing density currently possible - (0.15in) (0.15in) 3.9mm 3.9mm 3.9mm 3.9mm
(0.15in) (0.15in) (0.15in) (0.15in)
requires a board area of only 4mm x 4mm 1 Form A
15.5mm 12.5mm 9.5mm
• Plastic package with internal mu-metal (0.375in)
(0.6in) • Switching up to (0.492in) • Switching up • Switching up to
magnetic screen
1A, 20W to 0.5A, 10W 0.5A, 10W
• SoftCenter ™ Technology •3, 5 or 12V coils •3 or 5V coils •3 or 5V coils

High Density Vertical SIL Reed Relays Surface Mount Reed Relays
• Ideal for Very High and High Density ATE/Instrumentation applications • Ideal for High Density ATE/Instrumentation applications
• Plastic package with internal mu-metal magnetic screen • High temperature plastic package with internal mu-metal magnetic screen
• 3V, 5V, or 12V coils. Diodes are Optional • Wide range of switching configurations
• Dry Instrument Grade switches Series 112 • Coaxial version for high speed digital or R.F. to 5GHz.
1 Form A
1 Form A
• SoftCenter ™ Technology 10.0mm 3.7mm • 3, 5 or 12 volt coils with optional diode
(0.39in) (0.145in)
• Dry Instrument Grade or Mercury Wetted switches
11.0mm
Series 117 (0.43in)
• SoftCenter ™ Technology
2 Form A

• 10 Watts, 0.5 Amp switching in

1 Form A, 1 Form A Coaxial
1 Form A & 2 Form A
6.6mm 3.7mm Series 116 15.25mm
3.9mm
(0.154in)
(0.26in) (0.145in) (0.6in)

9.5mm •10 Watts, 0.5 Amp switching, requires a Series 200 6.8mm 1 Form A Coaxial
(0.27in)
(0.375in) board area of only 0.15 x 0.27 inches
6.6mm 3.7mm
(0.26in) 17.25mm
(0.145in)
(0.68in)
Series 115 Series 110 1 Form C
12.45mm
(0.49in) 1 Form B, 2 Form A 1 Form A - HV, Dry or Mercury
•Pin compatible with Series 116 and 117 but 10.0mm 3.7mm 1 Form C
using same switches as the Series 109 & 109P (0.39in) (0.145in)
15.25mm 5.85mm
(0.6in) (0.23in) 20.0mm 5.85mm
6.6mm 3.7mm (0.79in) (0.23in)
1 Form A 2 Form A 6.8mm
(0.26in) (0.145in) 15.2mm 9.0mm 1 Form B
(0.27in)
(0.6in) (0.35in)
15.5mm
(0.61in) 17.25mm
(0.68in) 22.0mm
(0.87in)

General Purpose SIL Reed Relays Mu-Metal Package SIL Reed Relays

• Ideal for General Purpose and High Density ATE/Instrumentation applications • Ideal for General Purpose and High Density ATE/Instrumentation applications

• Plastic package with internal mu-metal magnetic screen • Mu-metal package eliminating the risk of magnetic interaction

• 3V, 5V, 12V or 24V coils. Diodes are Optional • 3V, 5V, 12V or 24V coils. Diodes are Optional

• Dry Instrument Grade switches • Dry Instrument Grade switches

• SoftCenter ™ Technology • SoftCenter ™ Technology

Series 111P Series 109P Series 111 Series 109 Series 108
Series 113
•1 Form A only •1 Form A only •1 Form A only 3.7mm
3.7mm 15.1mm 3.7mm 20.1mm
3.7mm 12.5mm (0.145in)
10mm 3.7mm 15.1mm (0.145in) 10mm 3.7mm (0.595in) (0.145in) (0.79in)
(0.145in) (0.49in)
(0.39in) (0.145in) (0.595in) (0.39in) (0.145in) 6.6mm
6.6mm
6.6mm (0.26in)
6.6mm 6.6mm 6.6mm (0.26in)
(0.26in) (0.26in) (0.26in)
(0.26in)

1 Form A 2 Form A
Series 107
Series 106 Series 105 1 Form A 2 Form A

•Dry or mercury wetted switches

19.1mm 4.8mm •Dry or mercury wetted
(0.19in) 4.8mm 2 Form C
(0.75in) switches 19.1mm
(0.19in)
(0.75in) 1 Form B 1 Form C
8.1mm 19.1mm 6.6mm
(0.32in) (0.75in) (0.26in) 1 Form B 1 Form C 7.6mm
(0.3in)
7.9mm
(0.31in)

Series 107 only

Try our fully interactive reed relay selector tool online today:
[Link]/reed-relay-selector-tool

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Reed Relay Product Selector

High Voltage/High Power Reed Relays

• Ideal for high power/voltage applications 1 Form A 2 Form A

Series 67/68
• Plastic package with internal mu-metal
magnetic screen Series 119 •Up to 10kV standoff at 50W, 8kV standoff at 200W
NEW

• 3V, 5V, 12V or 24V coils. •Robust 50 or 200 Watt Tungsten contacts
1 Form A
Diodes are Optional Electrostatic Screened •High Voltage up to 3000V •Series 67 has pcb pins for all connections.
1 Form B
•Single Pole Relays up to 3kV Standoff Series 68 has flying leads from the top face
• Dry Instrument Grade switches •Double Pole Relays up to 1.5kV Standoff for the high voltage connections
+
•1 Form A. Standing off 5kV, switching up to 3.5kV.
• SoftCenter ™ Technology
1 Form A, 1 Form B 1 Form A. Standing off 8kV, switching up to 6kV
1kV, 2kV 15.1mm (0.595in) 3.7mm 1 Form A. Standing off 10kV, switching up to 7.5kV
1 Form A 3kV, 2 Form A (0.145in) 1 Form C. Standing off 5kV, switching up to 2.5kV
Series 114 20.1mm (0.79in)

N
•Electrostatically Screened Versions 67ES and 68ES NEW
Series 100HV

E
W
1 Form A
•High Power up to 40W 6.6mm (0.26in)
•Will replace mercury wetted •High Voltage up to 3000V 2 Form A,
relays in many applications 1 Form B 12.6mm
•High Coil Resistance (Up to 6800Ω) 8.9mm (0.35in) (0.495in)
for Low Power Consumption
6.3mm 14.5mm
24.1mm (0.245in) 24.1mm 10.2mm
(0.95in) (0.57in)
(0.95in) (0.40in)

N
8.2mm
Series 131 11.9mm

E
(0.32in)

W
12.7mm (0.47in)
(0.50in)
•1 Form A only 58.4mm
6.7mm
•Minimum 1.5kV Standoff (0.27in)
(2.3in)

12.5mm 3.7mm
(0.49in) (0.145in) Series 67, 1 Form A
N

Series 100HC
E

Series 104 6.6mm

W

(0.26in)
•1 Amp switching up to 40W
•High Voltage up to 4000V 1 2 3 4
•Carry up to 3 Amps continuous +
•Single Pole Relays now up to Series 67 Circuit Schematic - 1 Form A
Series 68, 1 Form A
•Pulsed Carry > 3 Amps 4kV Standoff
Diode is optional

•1 Form A, 1 Form B •Double Pole Relays up to 1 Form A 1 Form A

2kV Standoff 1.5kV 2kV
Stand-Off Stand-Off 1 2 3 4
•Electrostatically Screened version 104ES
+
24.1mm 10.2mm Series 68 Circuit Schematic - 1 Form A
(0.95in) (0.40in) Diode is optional
6.3mm 1 Form A 2 Form A
24.1mm (0.245in) 3kV 1.5kV Series 67,

N
12.7mm (0.95in) Stand-Off Stand-Off 1 Form C

E
(0.50in) 8.2mm

W
(0.32in)
1 Form B 1 Form B
1.5kV 2kV
Stand-Off Stand-Off
1 2 3 5 7
+
Series 67 Circuit Schematic - 1 Form C
Diode is optional

Low Power/Low Thermal EMF Reed Relays RF/High Speed Digital Reed Relays

• Ideal for Data Aquisition or thermo-couple switching • Ideal for High Density ATE/Instrumentation applications
• Plastic package with internal mu-metal magnetic screen • Mu-metal or Plastic package with internal mu-metal magnetic screen
• 3V, 5V, 12V or 24V coils. Diodes are Optional • 3V, 5V, or 12V coils. Diodes are Optional
1 Form A
• Dry Instrument Grade or Mercury Wetted switches • Dry Instrument Grade switches Series 109RF
• SoftCenter ™ Technology Series 118 • SoftCenter ™ Technology NEW •Up to 2 GHz
Series 100 •1 Form A only
15.1mm 3.7mm
Series 101 Series 111RF Series 113RF (0.595in) (0.145in)
•Direct Drive from CMOS •High Coil Resistance for 6.6mm
Portable Instrumentation •Up to 2.5 GHz •Up to 3 GHz (0.26in)
•Direct Drive from HC or HCT CMOS
24.1mm 10.2mm
10mm 3.7mm 12.5mm 3.7mm
20.1mm 7.4mm (0.95in) (0.40in) 8.4mm 4.8mm
(0.39in) (0.145in) (0.49in) (0.145in)
(0.79in) (0.29in) (0.33in) (0.19in)
6.6mm 6.6mm
12.7mm
9.4mm
(0.5in) (0.26in) (0.26in) 1 Form A Co-axial
(0.37in) 15.24mm
(0.6in)

Series 103G Series 102M

1 Form A 2 Form A 1 Form B 1 Form C •Up to 2 GHz •Up to 1.5 GHz
4.8mm 19.1mm 4.8mm
19.1mm
(0.19in) (0.75in) (0.19in)
(0.75in) See also Surface
8.1mm 7.6mm
(0.32in) (0.3in) Mount Series 200
Coaxial version.

Try our fully interactive reed relay selector tool online today:
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 About Pickering Electronics

Pickering Electronics are a British manufacturer of high quality Reed Relays predominantly used in
Instrumentation and Test equipment. Pickering have been designing Reed Relays since 1968 and today, Pickering's
Single-in-Line(SIL/SIP) range is by far the most developed in the relay industry, with relays 25 percent the size of
many of their competitors. Pickering Relays are available in Surface Mount, Single-in-Line (SIL/SIP) and Dual-in-
Line (DIL/DIP), with the option of dry or mercury wetted switches. These small relays are sold in high volumes to
large ATE companies throughout the world.
In 1980 Pickering moved to a purpose-built factory of 2200m2 (22000 ft2) in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, where all
manufacturing took place until 2007, when Pickering opened a Czech manufacturing facility located on a site of
12500 ft2. Pickering is a privately-owned company and currently employs over 200 people.
Pickering are certified to ISO 9001-2000 and audited by the British Standards Institution. Pickering prides itself on
the quality of its products therefore continuous inspection during the manufacturing process is carried out, and
Reed Relays are 100 percent tested for all operating parameters.

Global Operations

Sweden
UK
Anglia
UK

Rapid
UK Leitik Co Inc.
Czech Republic China
Testco France Beijing Korea
California Germany uc-chip technology co., ltd
Newark Farnell China Comcraft
USA UK/Europe
Illinois Tomtech Corporation
Vigven Tech Mechantronics Co Japan
Mark Pvt Ltd China Winningway Material
India Development Co.
Taiwan
Wiselink Technology
Pte Ltd
Singapore, Thailand,
Element14
Malaysia
Asia

Manufacturing/Sales
Pickering Sales Offices
Distributor

Pickering operates globally with manufacturing facilities in the UK and Czech Republic, along with additional
representation in countries throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia and Australasia.
To contact an official Pickering agent please visit: [Link]/agents

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The Advantages of Pickering Reed Relays

Key Benefit Pickering Reed Relays Typical Industry Reed Relays

1 Instrumentation Grade Reed Switches Often low grade Reed Switches with
with vacuum sputtered Ruthenium electroplated Rhodium plating resulting
Instrumentation Grade plating to ensure stable, long life up to in higher, less stable contact resistance.
Reed Switches 5x10E9 operations.
Formerless coil construction increases Use of bobbins decreases the coil
22 the coil winding volume, maximizing winding volume, resulting in having
magnetic efficiency, allowing the use of less magnetic drive and a need to use
Formerless Coil less sensitive reed switches resulting in more sensitive reed switches which
Construction optimal switching action and extended are inherently less stable with greatly
lifetime at operational extremes. reduced restoring forces.
Mu-metal magnetic screening (either Lower cost reed relays have minimal
external or internal), enables ultra-high or no magnetic screening, resulting in
PCB side-by-side packing densities with magnetic interaction issues causing
3 minimal magnetic interaction, saving changes in operating and release
Magnetic Screening significant cost and space. Pickering voltages, timing and contact resistance,
Mu-Metal magnetic screen - interaction causing switches to not operate at their X-Ray of Pickering X-Ray of typical
approx. 5% nominal voltages. Typical industry mu-metal industry
screen - interaction approx. 30% magnetic screen magnetic screen
SoftCenter™ technology, provides Transfer moulded reed relays (produced
maximum cushioned protection of the using high temperature/pressure),
4 reed switch, minimising internal lifetime result in significant stresses to the glass
stresses and extending the working life reed switch which can cause the switch
SoftCenter™ and contact stability. blades to deflect or misalign leading to
Technology changes in the operating characteristics,
contact resistance stability and operating
lifetime.
100% testing for all operating Simple dc testing or just batch testing Dynamic Contact Resistance Test
parameters including dynamic contact which may result in non-operational
wave-shape analysis with full data devices being supplied. Operate
5
Contact Resistance
scrutiny to maintain consistency. Release

100% Dynamic
Testing

Coil Voltage

Inspection at every stage of Often limited batch inspection.

manufacturing maintaining high levels
6
of quality.
100% Inspection
at Every Stage of
Manufacturing

Stress testing of the manufacturing Rarely included resulting in field failures.

processes, from -20°C to +85°C to -20°C, +85°C
7 repeated 3 times.
100% Thermal
Cycling
-20°C

8 Flexible manufacturing processes allow Mass production: Usually large

Flexible quick-turn manufacturing of small batch sizes and with no quick-turn
batches. manufacturing.
Manufacturing
Process
Our reed relays can be customized Limited ability to customize.
easily, e.g. special pin configurations,
9 enhanced specifications, non-standard o n g v it o n g v it
y

e
y
L

e
L

Custom Reed Relays coil or resistance figures, special life

testing, low capacitance, and more.

Pickering are committed to product Most other manufacturers discontinue

10 longevity; our reed relays are parts when they reach a low sales Product

Product Longevity
manufactured and supported for threshold; costing purchasing and R&D 25+Years
more than 25 years from introduction, a great deal of unnecessary time and Longevity
typically much longer. money to redesign and maintain supply.

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 Pickering Electronics

Reed RelayMate
The Reed RelayMate from Pickering Electronics is a publication which looks in detail at reed relays. In it you’ll find
out how reed relays are constructed, what types there are, how they work, what parameters affect their operation,
how to choose the correct relay, a comparison with other relay technologies and
how to drive and place reed relay coils.

The Reed RelayMate is available Free from the Pickering Electronics’ website and
is available as printed copy or pdf format.

RoHS
We are committed to RoHS compliance and Lead Free manufacture. We do however, offer non-compliant, mercury
options in many of the relay ranges if they are purchased as service replacements, needed to expand existing
capacity or go into electrical or electronic equipment already in place prior to 1st July 06.

Free Working Reed Relay Samples for Evaluation

Determining which components to design in can be challenging. Fortunately, here at Pickering Electronics, we
offer free working samples to help you evaluate our high-quality Reed Relays.
To claim free Reed Relays now visit: [Link]/samples

Technical Help
Please go to: [Link]/help.
If your questions are not answered here, please e-mail: techsales@[Link].
Alternatively, please call our Technical Sales Office on + 44 (0)1255 428141.

Pickering Electronics Ltd. Tel: +44 1255 428141

Stephenson Road email: techsales@[Link]
Clacton-on-Sea Web: [Link]
CO15 4NL
United Kingdom
Registered in England no. 857509 VAT no GB103 5366 04
Registered Office: Stephenson Rd, Clacton-on-Sea, Essex. CO15 4NL

Copyright (2023) Pickering Electronics Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Pickering Electronics
maintains a commitment to continuous product development, consequently we
reserve the right to vary from the descriptions given in this booklet.

LIT-069 Jan 2023

email: techsales@[Link]
[Link]