Steady voltage, for smartphones, tablets and more?

A high-performance powder made from normal iron scrap protects important components of the electronic devices we use every day.

The smaller and more powerful notebooks, tablets and smartphones become, the greater the demands placed on their electronic assemblies. For components such as the CPU or hard drive to perform at their best, they each need a different electric voltage than the battery supplies. Voltage deviating from the required value can damage the components.

One solution is normal scrap iron which BASF processes into high-purity, microscopically small ferrous spheres that have a precisely defined structure and size. Incorporated in the cores of high-frequency coils, this carbonyl iron powder intensifies the magnetic field that is generated when electricity flows into the iron core of the coils, and thus ensures stable direct current. To prevent the energy losses that typically occur with an electroconductive iron core, each of the tiny particles is surrounded by an electrically insulating layer. This suppresses leakage current in the core.

In this way, carbonyl iron powder makes sure that the sensitive electronic components in the compact devices we use every day receive a steady supply of the required voltage. It protects them from voltage fluctuations and makes them more efficient, so even very small high-frequency coils can be extremely powerful. Every tablet computer contains three or four such high-frequency coils with a carbonyl iron powder core, while a notebook has up to 10.