How Parylene Coatings Protect a Variety of Components

Parylene coatings have been used over the years for protecting a wide variety of equipment. They are useful in various industries including medical, automotive, electronics, military and so on.

Medical devices and components like catheters, needles, stents, electrosurgical tools, ocular implants, etc, are given outstanding chemical, moisture and dielectric protection through parylene coating. The coating reaches every nook and cranny of the components because parylene is used in the vapor deposition process.

Parylene coatings are used to protect automotive components like sensors, circuit boards, MEMS, gaskets and so on. The coatings are pinhole-free, ultra-thin and absolutely conformal thereby giving excellent chemical, moisture as well as dielectric barrier protection to components that need to survive harsh automotive environments. They are well suited for the protection of vital components with many applications like power train control, emission monitoring, tire system monitoring and engine/fluid monitoring systems, just to mention a few.

Furthermore, electronic components also enjoy protection from parylene coatings. Parylene is used in the vapor deposition process which ensures ultra-thin covering that breaks into the crevices and smallest profiles of electronic devices for absolute encapsulation. Since there isn’t any liquid phase in the deposition process, there isn’t any succeeding pooling, meniscus or bridging effects as applicable in liquid coatings, hence, the excellent dielectric properties of the coatings are not compromised.

Other components like sensors, circuit boards, multi-layer packages and MEMS are protected with ultra-thin parylene coating while LEDs used in various applications like utility meters, agricultural equipment, hydrocarbon drilling, etc, are not left out. The coverings are lightweight with outstanding barrier properties that do not add dimension or significant mass to components that are delicate. They are UV stable and optically clear which make them preferable to other conformal coverings like urethanes, acrylics, silicones and potting compounds which were used for older electronic devices.

In the military, parylene coating has been used for so many years. The Parylene N,C and HT are in the list of QPL for MIL-I-46058 and meet the requirements of OPC-CC-830. Parylene HT has the smallest molecular structure which makes it to easily penetrate small areas in order to provide absolute coverage without compromising operational abilities. It also has the capacity of providing long-term thermal stability of up to 350°C. It is useful for the protection of military components like sensors, circuit boards, LEDs, multi-layer packages and so on. These components are used in different applications like radar systems, aircraft control systems, armament control systems, etc.