KYOCERA AVX expands ultra-broadband capacitors to 110 GHz

High-speed optical links and RF front-end circuits depend on passive components that maintain predictable impedance across wide frequency ranges. To address these requirements, KYOCERA AVX has expanded its 550/560 Series ultra-broadband capacitors with additional values and higher operating voltage capability.

Passive components in high-bandwidth optical systems
Optical communication equipment — including datacenters, 5G infrastructure, sensing and satellite links — relies on stable RF behaviour across broadband frequency ranges. Variations in insertion loss or return loss can affect modulation accuracy, receiver sensitivity and timing stability in optical transceivers and microwave circuits.

The expanded 550/560 Series targets these conditions as multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) designed for RF and microwave operation from 7 kHz to 110 GHz. The components exhibit flat frequency response, low insertion loss and controlled return loss, characteristics required for maintaining signal integrity in broadband data transmission.

New capacitance values and extended voltage range
Four additional part numbers increase the series to 15 devices and introduce new 0402 capacitance values of 1 nF, 10 nF, 22 nF and 47 nF. The maximum working voltage rating has been extended from 16 V to 100 V.

The full range now covers:

Nickel barrier terminations with tin or gold plating support reflow soldering while preventing base metallization leaching and the formation of brittle intermetallic compounds that can cause cracking.

Roles inside optical transceivers and RF front ends
The capacitors are intended for DC blocking, AC coupling, bypass and feedback functions in microwave and millimeter-wave optical communication circuits. Typical placements include transimpedance amplifiers, ROSA/TOSA optical subassemblies, SONET equipment and broadband test instrumentation.

Additional use cases extend to VCSEL laser drivers, RF sampling paths, network control circuits, satellite and 5G communications hardware, as well as sensing and radar systems used in industrial automation and security detection equipment.

Mechanical and compliance characteristics
The devices use a one-piece construction for mechanical robustness and are supplied on tape-and-reel packaging in quantities from 500 to 20,000 units. The components comply with RoHS requirements.

By expanding capacitance options and voltage capability while maintaining broadband RF behaviour, the updated 550/560 Series addresses design constraints in optical communications hardware where component size, frequency coverage and predictable impedance must be balanced within compact electronic assemblies.

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