I believe...its more in terms...of how far does the current have to go. If= you want to shove that much current down traces...better size out those tr= aces to handle it, even though the sensor or switch or device leads are sma= ll. Pushing it 5mm vs 5m is a differnent issue, different problem. "Alan B. Pearce" wrote: >This has got me thinking (s= orry to hijack the thread!). It's fairly easy >to get hold of MOSFETs that will handle 70A or so, which are in a TO220 >case. >Now to handle that much current in a domestic mains installation you'd have >to use cable with a cross-sectional area of about 16mm=B2, whereas a TO220= 's >leads are maybe a couple of square millimetres at most. I realise that >installed cables have lots of other issues, such as thermal insulation, >voltage drop and so on, but can those little leads really handle scores >of amps without turning incandescent? had another thought about this ... "The die is willing, but the leads are weak ..." = -- = http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist = --------------------------------- Everyone is raving about the all-new Yahoo! Mail beta. -- = http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist