Instrument Grade Pickering Reed Relays

Pickering has 50 years of experience in switching technology; this includes the in-house design and manufacturing of quality reed relays by our Relay Division, Pickering Electronics. Many of our switching solutions use these instrument-grade reed relays, including our General Purpose PXI Relay Switching. 

Instrumentation grade reed relays manufactured to the highest possible standards

Undergoing rigorous test and attention to detail, Pickering's relays are the logical choice for your product. Quality in both build and signal integrity that is unmatched by any semiconductor solution; Pickering relays can switch microvolts to kilovolts, microamps to amps, and hertz to gigahertz, all with extremely fast switching times. It's little wonder that some of the largest test and measurement industries in the world insist on Pickering reed relays and why many of our switching solutions use them as well.

Soft Centers (SoftCenter™)

Pickering reed relays are encapsulated using a soft inner material to greatly reduce physical stresses on the glass/metal seal of the reed switch capsule. Different materials have different expansion characteristics, and the very hard compounds used by most manufacturers can cause stresses that can damage seals or distort the reed switch, thereby changing switch blade alignment. This will degrade contact resistance stability and life expectation.

What reed relays do you use?

What sort of relay do you use in your own product designs? Does the specification call for instrument-grade relays, or can you get away with relays sourced from your local component supplier? Chances are that the locally sourced relays are far from instrumentation grade, and you will have a better experience with Pickering's reed relays.

So why should you fit Pickering reed relays?

Relays are often the last considered component in any product design, yet they perform the most fundamental routing functions within a product. These functions determine the accuracy and long-term reliability of your entire test solution. Fitting sub-standard components can have long-lasting effects both for productivity and your long-term confidence in your system.

The most reliable mechanical relay solution for low-power switching

Reed relays are considered to be the most reliable mechanical relay solution for low-power switching. They have few moving parts and an inherently long mechanical life. However, not all reed relays are constructed to the same high standards. We only use reed relays assembled by our Relay Division because these offer the very best performance. Pickering reed relays are chosen by many ATE vendors because their life and reliability performance measures have the most consistent performance and long life. Because of these measures, these reed relays give our products a competitive advantage over other suppliers of reed relay switching systems. 

Take a look at this video that explains what a reed relay is and how it is constructed:

Support for your Pickering switching solution that uses these reed relays

Replacement parts for these switching systems can be obtained directly from Pickering Interfaces using the part number quoted on the datasheet for the switching solution. Alternatively, you can request spares information by mailing [email protected], including information on the number of relays required and the part number of the switching solution.

To learn more about reed relay technology, please visit our knowledgebase or visit Pickering Electronics to learn more.