BLF578XR LDMOS RF Power Transistor
Videos for Engineers

RF Cafe visitor Victor T. sent me a link to this video produced by NXT to demonstrate the ruggedness of their  LDMOS power transistor. Per NXP: "Tired of replacing tired, dead power transistors? Check out NXP's Unbreakable BLF578XR LDMOS RF Power Transistor in this video - and find out just how rugged eXtremely Rugged is! Would you dare to treat your transistor like this?" The transistor is shown surviving arcing, short circuits, open circuits, and extreme VSWR values. Having personally blown power transistors on the bench because of forgetting to hook up the load, I can appreciate the idiot-proofness of such a device. Of course the purpose of the design is mostly to facilitate survival in the field where transmission line damage or improper installation might otherwise destroy the device. One thing I noticed about the video is that none of the technicians/engineers doing the testing wore ESD protection straps. Maybe they had good mats and shoes, but I don't think so.

Posted July 12, 2011