Gas discharge tubes are extensively used for the protection of telecommunications plant and equipment against overvoltages caused by lightning, power switching and fault conditions. This document covers:

  • Bourns part numbering for discrete components and 5-pin modules and the general operation of a GDT.
  • Investigating how the key electrical parameters and their relationships relate to each other with ramp and surge waveforms.
  • Defining the expected ramp impulse and surge impulse of a GDT.
  • The life cycle of a GDT under surge and how its parameters change over its life.