PERFORMANCE

Until now, every switch has been a compromise.

1
There are so many switches, because engineers have to find just the right balance between their strengths and many weaknesses.

ELECTROMECHANICAL
RELAYS

ELECTRO-MECHANICAL
RELAYS

SOLID STATE
SWITCHES

SOLID STATE
SWITCHES

2
These weaknesses make the things they power bigger, slower, wasteful, less capable, or more expensive.

ELECTROMECHANICAL
RELAYS

WEAKNESSES
Big & bulky
Slow
Unreliable

STRENGTHS
Low loss
Air-gap isolation
High-power

ELECTRO-MECHANICAL
RELAYS

WEAKNESSES
Big & bulky
Slow
Unreliable

STRENGTHS
Low loss
Air-gap isolation
High-power

SOLID STATE
SWITCHES

WEAKNESSES
High losses
Distorts RF signal
Can require bulky heatsinks

STRENGTHS
Small & lightweight
Fast & silent
Reliable & vibration-proof

SOLID STATE
SWITCHES

WEAKNESSES
High losses
Distorts RF signal
Can require bulky heatsinks

STRENGTHS
Small & lightweight
Fast & silent
Reliable & vibration-proof

3
The Ideal Switch delivers all the strengths with none of the weaknesses.

STRENGTHS

Low loss
Air-gap isolation
High-power
Small & lightweight
Fast & silent
Reliable & vibration-proof

Side by side comparison
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vs. Electromechanical
These improvements aren’t incremental. They’re paradigm shifts.
Power Consumption (mW)
Longer battery life, less heat, new form factors
100x
LESS POWER
Longer battery life, less heat, new form factors
EMR
0
25
50
75
100
> 100mW
> 1mW
Linearity/IIP3 (dBm)
Distortion-free RF signal
100x
HIGHER LINEARITY
Distortion-free RF signal
EMR
50
55
60
65
75
85
60 dBm
> 85 dBm
Switching Speeds (ms)
New capabilities, new applications
1000x
FASTER SWITCHING
New capabilities, new applications
EMR
0
2.5
5
7.5
10
10ms
<10µs
Switching Cycles
Massive reliability gain
1000x
LONGER LIFE
Massive reliability gain
EMR
0
1B
2B
3B
< 3M operations
> 3B operations
Size
240V/20A relay with integrated protection
48A/10A relay with integrated protection
200V/2A Signal relay
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Side by side comparison
Show less
vs. Solid-State
If infinite nano-second switching isn’t required, the Ideal Switch is always the better option.
Power Consumption (mW)
Longer battery life, less heat, new form factors
100x
LESS POWER
Longer battery life, less heat, new form factors
SS
0
25
50
75
100
100 mW
< 10 mW
Linearity/IIP3 (dBm)
More bandwidth, higher data rates
100x
MAGNITUDE BETTER LINEARITY
More bandwidth, higher data rates
SS
30
45
60
75
90
60 dBm
>85 dBm
Insertion Loss (dB)
Longer battery life, no big, heavy heatsinks
>0.5dB
LOWER LOSS
Longer battery life, no big, heavy heatsinks
SS
0 dB
0.4 dB
0.7 dB
0.7 dB
0.2 dB
On-Resistance
No heatsinks, massive weight, size and cost savings
85%
LESS RESISTANCE
No heatsinks, massive weight, size and cost savings
SS
0
50
100
150
200
200 mΩ
<30 mΩ
Size
200V/20A relay With integrated protection
High power SP4T switch
SP4T RF switch with integrated driver
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So many problems, solved.

High linearity
  • Linear performance from 0 Hz to >50 GHz
  • Higher bandwidth
  • Faster speeds
  • More simultaneous phone calls
  • Fewer dropped calls
Low power needs
  • Very little power needed for switching
  • Longer battery life
  • Smaller battery packages
High reliability
  • Longer lifetime
  • Lower parts costs
  • No relay replacement downtime
  • Lower total cost of ownership
Small size and weight
  • Semiconductor-like packaging
  • Size and weight of a chip, but without the bulky heatsink
Low loss
  • Low resistance when "ON"
  • No heat
  • No heatsinks
  • Longer battery life
Airgap isolation
  • No leakage when "OFF"
  • Energy savings
  • Longer battery life
  • Lower total cost of ownership
Fast switching relay
  • Saves energy
  • Saves test time (with high volume test equipment)
  • Protects equipment (faster protection, reduce fault currents)
High power
  • Switch kW in a chip-sized package for smaller, lighter things
  • More portable (e.g. military radios)
  • More efficient to move (e.g. cars)
  • Easer to place and manage remotely (e.g. building circuit breakers)
“For 40+ years the industry has been trying to develop the perfect combination of the electromechanical relay and the silicon transistor. Well, Menlo Micro has engineered the holy grail with this Ideal Switch.”

TONY FADELL
FOUNDER OF NEST
PRINCIPAL AT FUTURE SHAPE

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