ISOM8710: The distance from the emitter through the insulator to the receiver

Hello Conor,

Thank you for your question. The distance through insulation of the ISOM8710 and ISOM8711 is >17μm. 

Regards,
Darrah

Hi Conor,

The ISOM8710 and ISOM8711 use a newer isolation technology including a stronger dielectric insulation material that does not require as large of a distance to achieve isolation. Traditional opto-couplers use an LED and photo diode that are separated by either air or a weak dielectric material like epoxy. For reference, air has a dielectric constant of 1V/μm and epoxy has a constant of 20V/μm. These materials can age and deteriorate over time so a larger distance through insulation (DTI) is needed to ensure high isolation values.

However, the ISOM8710 and ISOM8711 use a high-quality dielectric material that does not need to be as thick to achieve high isolation values. The silicon dioxide (SiO2) in the opto-emulators has a dielectric constant of 500V/μm. For more information on how our opto-emulators meet the DTI certification requirements, please see the white paper: Distance Through Insulation: How Digital Isolators Meet Certification Requirements

Regards,
Darrah