Capacitor 0603 vs 0402Glenn, 0603's rarely, if ever, fail due to thermal stress or board flexing. Therefore, I would scratch that as a benefit. I have seen a number of OEM's struggle with failed capacitors with high capacitance (thin dielectric layers). That seems to have a greater effect on cap failure rate due to manufacturer defects than size of the cap. Best Regards Craig -----Original Message----- From: TechNet [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Pelkey, Glenn Sent: Wednesday, August 08, 2001 3:56 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: [TN] Capacitor 0603 vs 0402 Hi all, I'm brainstorming on risks and benefits of 0603 caps vs 0402 caps. If the cap value, voltage rating, dielectric material, terminations, and use conditions are the same, would one be better than the other? My thoughts are it would be a wash or at least not significant. Here's what I have so far: Benefits of 0402 vs 0603: Smaller size reduces thermal stress/strain on solder joints from CTE or board flexing. Smaller size uses less real estate on board Risks of 0402 vs 0603: Equipment may have difficulty placing Thinner dielectric spacing to achieve same capacitance, cap higher failure rate Smaller size, cracks easier to develop Higher risk of tombstoning What do you all think? I'm sure I missed something, maybe even wrong on some of the above. Thanks, Glenn