A capacitor comprising a solid electrolytic capacitor element that contains a sintered porous anode body, a dielectric that overlies the anode body, and a solid electrolyte that overlies the dielectric. The capacitor further contains a barrier film that is formed by vapor deposition and that is positioned between the dielectric and the solid electrolyte or overlies the dielectric.

A wet tantalum electrolytic capacitor containing a cathode, fluidic working electrolyte, and anode formed from an anodically oxidized sintered porous tantalum pellet is provided. The pellet is formed from a pressed tantalum powder. The tantalum powder is formed by reacting a tantalum oxide compound, for example, tantalum pentoxide, with a reducing agent that contains a metal having an oxidation state of 2 or more, for example, magnesium. The resulting tantalum powder is nodular or angular and has a specific charge that ranges from about 11,000 μF*V/g to about 14,000 μF*V/g. Using this powder, wet tantalum electrolytic capacitors have breakdown voltages that ranges from about 250 volts to about 400 volts. This makes the electrolytic capacitors ideal for use in an implantable medical device.

A capacitor for powering an implantable medical device is described. The capacitor includes a casing having contoured surfaces to more closely conform to body contours. This means that the anode housed in the casing must also have a contoured shape substantially matching that of the casing. Accordingly, the anode is comprised of a pressed pellet having a surrounding peripheral edge extending to spaced-apart first and second major face walls. An anode lead wire comprises an embedded portion extending into the anode pellet. First and second channel-shaped recesses aligned with each other extend into the anode pellet from the first and second major face walls to intersect with the embedded lead wire portion. The first and second channel-shaped recesses also extend to opposed locations at the surrounding peripheral edge of the anode pellet. The anode pellet is bent at the aligned first and second channel-shaped recesses to provide a right anode pellet portion electrically connected to a left anode pellet portion by the embedded lead wire portion. The thusly contoured anode pellet has an anatomical shape that matches that of the contoured casing to provide an implantable capacitor that is volumetrically efficient.

Anodes made from powder, such as tantalum powder, that is highly spherical is described. Methods to make the anodes are further described.

A capacitor comprising a solid electrolytic capacitor element that contains a sintered porous anode body, a dielectric that overlies the anode body, and a solid electrolyte that overlies the dielectric. The capacitor further contains a barrier film that is formed by vapor deposition and that is positioned between the dielectric and the solid electrolyte or overlies the dielectric.

An improved capacitor is provided. The capacitor comprises an anode comprising a pressed and sintered, preferably tantalum, powder wherein the anode has edge surfaces and parallel major surfaces. The anode further comprises a first set of parallel surface protrusions and a second set of parallel surface protrusions on each parallel major surface wherein the first set of parallel surface protrusions and second set of parallel surface protrusions are not parallel and form a well therebetween. An anode wire extends from an edge surface of the edge surfaces. A dielectric is on the anode and a conductive polymer on said dielectric.

A solid electrolyte capacitor includes a sintered body formed by sintering a molded body containing a metal powder; and a solid electrolyte layer disposed on the sintered body, wherein the solid electrolyte layer includes a first layer containing an electrolytic polymerization conductive polymer disposed on the sintered body and a second layer containing a chemical polymerization conductive polymer disposed on the first layer.

A solid electrolyte capacitor includes a sintered body formed by sintering a molded body containing metal powder; and a conductive polymer layer disposed above the sintered body. A ratio (t2/t1) of a thickness (t2) of the conductive polymer layer in an edge portion of the sintered body to a thickness (t1) of the conductive polymer layer in a central portion of the sintered body satisfies 0.35≤t2/t1≤0.9.

A solid electrolytic capacitor element that includes a porous body, a dielectric layer on a surface of the porous body, and a solid electrolyte layer on a surface of the dielectric layer. The porous body is made from a sintered body of a Ti-alloy-containing grain having a Ti—Zr—X multicomponent alloy on a surface thereof, where X is at least one valve metal element selected from Si, Hf, Y, Al, Mo, W, Ta, Nb, and V, and a composition of the Ti—Zr—X multicomponent alloy is Ti: 50 atm % to 80 atm %, Zr: 8 atm % to 32 atm %, and X: 1 atm % to 20 atm %.

Anodes made from powder, such as tantalum powder, that is highly spherical is described. Methods to make the anodes are further described.