What type of electronic hardware is best suited for high temperature applications?

Question

What type of electronic hardware is best suited for high temperatures, roughly 200°C? From what I've discovered, most FPGAs, microprocessors, and DSPs have an operating temperature of 70°C or below. So what type of digital or analog circuitry should be selected for operations at 150°C or higher?

Answer 1

There are various companies that have processes for higher temperature devices. They are by their nature much simpler that CMOS in Si. You might be bale tt buy individual transistors.

for example Microsemi has MOSFET in SiC that operate at 150 C, Diodes in SiC at 175 C.

Look also for GaN as a possible material.

MACON has GaN on SiC amplifiers that operate to 200 C (link to pdf).

TI has a whole section dedicated to HT parts (up to 210 C) here. here is a derating curve for one part from them:

Answer 2

The semiconductors does not work on 200°C. You need better design of your project in order to make the temperatures lower at least for the semiconductor devices. The maximal temperature of 100°C is acceptable.

Although, some of the passive devices as resistors, capacitors and inductors can work on 200°C or even higher without problems.

Of course, you can try to make some electronics with vacuum tubes and some models might work on such temperatures. But I don't have extended information about the vacuum tubes.

The only data sheet I was able to find is for the USSR subminiature pentode: 1Ж37Б and it claims maximal ambient temperature of 120°C (with shortened life to 2 hours instead of the normal 500).

I don't know what actually fails in the tube. If it is the cathode, one can try to play with lower heating voltage in order to not overheat the cathode. If the problem is in the alloys used - nothing can help.

Again, the better design of the project can save tons of problems.

NOTE: Common use solder alloys melts on 180°C