What are the advantages in using reed switches ?
They are hermetically sealed in glass environment, free from contamination, and are safe to use in harsh industrial and explosive environments. Reed switches are immune to electrostatic discharge (ESD) and do not require any external ESD protection circuits. The isolation resistance between the contacts is as high as 1015 ohms, and contact resistance is as low as 50 milli-ohms. Reed switches can directly switch loads as low as a few micro-watts without needing external amplification circuits, to as high as 120W. When used in combination with magnets and coils, they can be used to form many different types of relays.
