IEC 60384-23:2023

Overview

IEC 60384-23:2023 is the IEC sectional specification for fixed metallized polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) film dielectric surface mount DC capacitors. It applies to surface-mount device (SMD) capacitors with metallized electrodes and solderable pads or strips, intended for direct mounting on printed circuit boards (PCBs) or hybrid substrates. These capacitors are primarily for DC service where any AC component is small relative to the rated voltage and may exhibit self‑healing properties depending on use.

Key topics and technical requirements

This standard defines preferred ratings, characteristics, test methods and quality assessment procedures by selecting applicable clauses from IEC 60384‑1:2021 and adding sectional specifics. Major technical topics include:

• Preferred ratings and characteristics: nominal capacitance, tolerance, rated voltage, category voltage, rated temperature.
• Mounting and mechanical requirements: mounting methods, initial and final inspections after mounting.
• Electrical tests: voltage proof, capacitance measurement, tangent of loss angle (tan δ), insulation resistance.
• Mechanical and reliability tests: shear test, substrate bending, solderability, resistance to soldering heat (now including tan δ measurement), rapid temperature change.
• Environmental and lifetime tests: climatic sequence, damp heat (steady state and cyclic), endurance, charge/discharge.
• Chemical resistance: component solvent resistance and solvent resistance of marking (new subclauses).
• Marking, documentation and detail‑specification content: required marking on components and packaging, and information to be supplied in a detail specification.
• Quality conformance and inspection: lot‑by‑lot and periodic inspection plans (moved to Annex A), revised inspection levels.

Note: capacitors for electromagnetic interference (EMI) suppression are excluded (see IEC 60384‑14).

Practical applications and who uses this standard

IEC 60384-23:2023 is essential for:

• Capacitor manufacturers specifying design, testing and production acceptance criteria for PEN film SMD DC capacitors.
• Component and PCB design engineers selecting reliable SMD metallized film capacitors for power electronics, DC filtering, timing and energy storage applications.
• Quality assurance and compliance teams implementing lot inspection, qualification approvals and supplier audits.
• Purchasing and procurement teams defining technical requirements in purchase orders and datasheets.

Using IEC 60384‑23 helps ensure component interoperability, consistent performance, and compliance with internationally recognized test severities and inspection levels.

Related standards

• IEC 60384‑1:2021 - General requirements for fixed capacitors (referenced for quality assessment and test methods).
• IEC 60384‑14 - Capacitors for EMI suppression (exclusion for IEC 60384‑23).
• ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2:2021 - structural and editorial alignment adopted in this edition.

Keywords: IEC 60384-23:2023, PEN film capacitors, metallized film SMD capacitors, surface mount capacitors, tan δ, insulation resistance, soldering heat, quality assessment, IEC capacitor standards.